Last Thursday I had the honor of welcoming U.S. Congressman Rick Larsen into my studio as he toured local businesses that have worked with the Small Business Development Center in WA District 2. I was selected by Janet Toth, the SBDC advisor I worked with last year. She taught and guided me as I wrote my business plan for Cat Snapp Studio.

SBDC is funded in part by Congress through a partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration. Part of Rep. Larsen's work also includes serving on the Congressional Arts Caucus- a caucus that works to secure adequate funding for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) as well as other important groups in the humanities.

During his visit, he shared with us that he worked in a bindery when he was younger and I showed him how I print my greeting cards on a half-ton cast iron letterpress from the 1910's and he even printed one himself! I asked him to sign it and I plan to hang it on my wall next to the Obama Family holiday card and Prince Harry & Meghan Markle's engagement card.

It was an awesome opportunity to open up my studio, the world of letterpress, printmaking and bookbinding, and to be a visible Mexican-Samoan business woman in the arts. Wow!

All the thanks to Janet at SBDC for her business guidance and for making this visit possible. If you're in Snohomish County and are interested in business consultation, I would love to connect you with her, just reach out! If you live elsewhere and want to work with SBDC on your business (they have resources for every aspect of running and growing a business!), visit americassbdc.org or wsbdc.org (WA State). It is a free and confidential resource intended to help small businesses grow!