Family-owned business receives award for excellence
When Diana Flores received the call that her family’s business Freddy’s Well Service had won a Small Business Association award, she was so excited that she couldn’t speak.
“It was such a shock, but in my eyes, this was long overdue,” said Flores, executive director and CFO of the Victoria company. “My husband, Richard, is one of those people who is always behind the scenes doing something to keep the company running well. It’s so wonderful to know his and all of our hard work has been acknowledged.”
Freddy’s Well Service was named Family-Owned Business of the Year by the SBA San Antonio District Office, and Diana, Richard and members of their family accepted their award Thursday. The San Antonio district is made up of 55 counties. The business was nominated for the award by the UHV Small Business Development Center. The nomination and judging process takes several months and looks into many different aspects of the business.
“Earning an award from the SBA is a huge deal, especially for a business from a more rural area such as ours,” said Lindsay Young, UHV SBDC director. “We are proud to see Freddy’s Well Service do so well and receive this acknowledgement of their hard work and commitment to excellent work and service.”
Mark Martinez, business advisor IV with the UHV SBDC, has advised the company since 2018 on ways to improve their operations. Freddy’s Well Service is an oil and gas company that mainly plugs abandoned oil wells. Through his role as a business advisor, Martinez encouraged Flores to revamp the company’s accounting software to make the financial recordkeeping more efficient and effective. He also worked with the company to help them qualify for government contracts through the Railroad Commission of Texas.
“I’ve always enjoyed working with Diana and Richard, and I hope to continue working with them for years to come,” Martinez said. “It’s always so exciting to see a Victoria business receive an award. In our district, they are competing against businesses in San Antonio and Austin, so this achievement is definitely worthy of celebration.”
One of the great aspects about this award is how it has shown the company’s employees that their work matters, especially those like Richard who are often out in the field, Flores said. Last week, as Flores and her family were getting ready to go to San Antonio to attend the award ceremony, there also was a lot of important activity happening at the company. At one point, Richard asked if he should just stay and handle the business while she went to the ceremony.
“I told him that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us and our business,” Flores said. “He’s always committed to doing his best and putting the business first so he can do the best for himself and everyone else. But I wanted to open his eyes to all the accomplishments he may not think about while he’s out there every day. It was a great moment to share that celebration with him and others in our family.”
Flores and her family are grateful for everyone who made the award possible, especially their employees, including truck drivers, rig crews and others, many of whom have worked for the company for years. She also thanked God for the opportunity and said he led them every step of the way. The company also is grateful to the UHV SBDC for offering free support and helping the company achieve the successes that led to the award.
“The SBDC was instrumental in some of our biggest successes, such as getting the state contracts,” Flores said. “Having a local SBDC office is vital to the community, and we encourage any business owners we know to use their expertise.”
The University of Houston-Victoria, located in the heart of the Coastal Bend region since 1973 in Victoria, Texas, offers courses leading to more than 50 academic programs in the schools of Arts & Sciences; Business Administration; and Education, Health Professions & Human Development. UHV provides face-to-face classes at its Victoria campus, as well as an instructional site in Katy, Texas, and online classes that students can take from anywhere. UHV supports the American Association of State Colleges and Universities Opportunities for All initiative to increase awareness about state colleges and universities and the important role they have in providing a high-quality and accessible education to an increasingly diverse student population, as well as contributing to regional and state economic development.