Entrepreneurship award winner focuses on community
Scott Limberg speaks from the podium at the Steele County History Center Wednesday, after accepting his Entrepreneur of the Year award.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit Owatonna businesses, nonprofits, and schools, Scott Limberg’s video production business literally had nowhere to go.
Since 2012, Limberg Productions has captured events and activities throughout the community for OwatonnaLive.com. He and his staff usually can be seen behind a video camera at everything from Owatonna and Medford high school sports events to summer concerts and local government meetings.
“Everything is community based, and everybody was shut down,” said Limberg, named Entrepreneur of the Year during a Wednesday ceremony at the Steele County History Center. “There were no concerts, no livestreams... so we had a lot of time on our hands.”
He and his crew started taking their video equipment around to local businesses, giving them an opportunity to talk about their hours, what services they still offered, and how to find them. Those free video segments formed the foundation for “Business Talk,” a series that’s still running on OwatonnaLive.
Limberg Productions also teamed up with Steele County on a weekly series with updated COVID data and information, with nonprofits holding virtual fundraisers, and with Michaelson Funeral Home to livestream funeral services for loved ones to view on a private website.
All those community-minded actions earned Limberg Productions the Spirit of Owatonna award from the Owatonna Area Chamber of Commerce and Tourism in February.
After Wednesday’s event, Limberg said he felt honored to be in the company of nominated business owners: Dan Kubista of Wagner’s Lunch, Roger Warehime of Foremost Brewing, Scott Haglund of Straight River Coffee.
“Entrepreneurship is the driving force in America, not just Owatonna,” Limberg said. “In small towns, when the community gets behind the person who has an idea, that’s when it really takes off.”
While the honors are welcome and appreciated, Limberg said his company will keep doing the work he and his family started in their garage 11 years ago.
“We’re gonna make sure we continue our drive and what we started for, bringing the community together with the power of video,” he said.