Elizabeth Ball Townsend, owner of Hanover Security Guards Inc. of Mechanicsville, has been named a finalist in the Metropolitan Richmond Chamber of Commerce's Small Business Entrepreneur of the Year competition. A former teacher in Henrico County Schools, Ms. Townsend is in the business of hiring private security guards, private investigators, and plainclothes store detectives. She started with the firm as a bookkeeper in 1978, while the company was owned by founder and ex-Hanover Sheriff J.B. Vaughn. Then, she operated out of her home while caring for two young children. Since then, she has purchased the company, moved into an office complex on Hanover Green Drive, and increased the staff from 12 to 100 people. New Services The firm has also added new services to their investigative work, including a loss prevention program for retail establishments that provides plainclothes store detectives to monitor shoplifting activity. Ms. Townsend said although education and security are vastly different callings, she believes her course has been "God directed." She actually got her first taste of the potential danger the job holds while she was still a teacher. "While I was teaching, I had one little boy who was extorting money from another little boy with a knife," she said. "I had to work with the police in setting that up." Though that experience might have given her a glimpse into situations she may have encountered later, Ms. Townsend still had a lot to learn when she started. Fortunately, Vaughn gave her ample opportunity. Made a Good Team "I was immediately thrown into all aspects of the business, because Mr. Vaughn was retired and really wanted to stay retired," she said. "I was sort of the operations director from home. We made a very nice team for eight years, and he really enjoyed watching the business grow." With Vaughn and Ms. Townsend concentrating on the professionalism of their guards and on customer service, the firm began carving a niche for itself in the Richmond market, and business took off from there. In 1985, Ms. Townsend acquired controlling interest in the firm, and in 1986, bought the remaining shares from Vaughn. The company doubled in size both years. Last year, after a leveling off period, the firm grew by about 50 percent, and she expects 1989 to be about the same. Surprised at Mention Ms. Townsend said she was surprised when her name appeared on the list of finalists, even though she had been encouraged by other chamber members to submit her name. "I submitted my name last year and wasn't one of the finalists," she said. "This year, (Mechanicsville architect) Lonnie Henley asked me to submit my name again; and after Lonnie and another member kept encouraging me, I finally put my name in. They must've had some reason for encouraging me." The winner of the Entrepreneur of the Year contest, to be named at an awards luncheon October 11, will go on to compete for the U.S. Small Business Administration's Small Business Person of the Year honor on the state level. By Ray Hall, H-P Staff Reporter • October 4, 1989