RED OAK, Iowa – U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), ranking member of the Senate Small Business Committee, today announced her Small Business of the Week: Kaleidoscope Factory of Pocahontas County. Throughout this Congress, Ranking Member Ernst plans to recognize one small business in each of Iowa’s 99 counties.
“Woodworking, like a kaleidoscope, is an art that celebrates transformation: with each cut and carve, new beauty emerges.” said ranking member Ernst. “The Kaleidoscope Factory reveals new perspectives with every turn, uncovering the potential hidden in every piece of wood.”
In 1997, Leonard Olson received his first kaleidoscope as a gift, sparking a lifelong passion for woodworking. He began making them on his own and opened the Kaleidoscope Factory in Pomeroy, Iowa, in 2004. In 2014, Leonard moved the Kaleidoscope Factory to downtown Pocahontas.
After Leonard passed away in 2019, his sisters, Lois Hessenius and Margaret Egli, kept the business running while other family and friends joined in to help create a variety of products such as kaleidoscopes, toy trains and puzzles. Kaleidoscope Factory partnered with the Pocahontas County Economic Development Commission to install life-size kaleidoscopes throughout the community. Last April, Kaleidoscope Factory celebrated its 20thth anniversary.
Stay tuned as Ranking Member Ernst recognizes more Iowa small businesses across the state with her Small Business of the Week award.
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