PageAô_________________________________________ il’1 JJnrtlanh © b seru er________________________ October 17.2007 KELIS. R&B star, genre buster Shattered glass ceilings and plastic expectations. Coloring inside the lines is so not hot. Leave that for the conformists Break the rules. The new crossover from Ford. 265 horsepower w ith impressive fuel economy.* Audio input jack for MP3 players. www.fordurtnn.com photo by R aymond R endi . eman /T he P ortland O bserver Sharon Maxwell-Hendricks looks over some residential building plans soon after moving the office for her contracting firm, Boanerges Group, into the Oregon Association of Minority Entrepreneurs Center in north Portland. Class-exclusive Panoramic Vista Roof.™ ** THE NEW FORD EDGE Obstacles for Business Center continued from Front in real estate make it difficult to tell whether a deal is too good to he true. “Property is only worth what you get when you sell it,” says Brooks. "You have to be on your toes all the time trying to make ends meet.” And in working tirelessly to make deals go through. Brooks has or­ chestrated success not only for him­ self, but also for many other minor­ ity entrepreneurs who have moved to larger spaces after leaving O A M E's nest. As he thinks back to the approxi­ mately 1,000 people attending the last annual OAME conference, he considers all the headaches worth it in the quest to make something from nothing. Brooks prioritizesopening doors for other minorities when consider­ ing his legacy, “so that they know it can be done.” He hopes that the next person to run a minority-busi­ ness incubator will make it even bigger and the next African-Ameri­ can president of the PBA will be able to do even more. For Simone Brooks, these are large shoes to fill. “It’s a little more daunting forme, because I’m far more realistic now about what I have ahead of me,” she says, laughing at the suggestion that her answer would change with­ out her father present. “There’s no way to have a really good family business unless everyone can be open and honest." • tP* estimated fuel economi is city/hwy U/25 FWD • • Class is Medium Crosso» Vehicles with 6 cylinder entines standard. This ad w ould w o rk a lot b e tte r if yo u ’d asked to see it. T h a t’s th e g e n iu s o f S P E C IA L O F F E R : M O N E Y - B A C K S A T I S F A C T I O N G U A R A N T E E . S ig n u p f o r S p o n s o r e d S e a rc h b y D e c e m b e r 31, 2 0 0 7 a n d t r y it f o r a t le a s t 14 d a y s . If y o u 'r e n o t c o m p le t e ly s a tis fie d w it h y o u r r e s u lts , w e ’ ll r e fu n d y o u u p t o $ 3 0 0 in c lic k c h a r g e s ? H u r r y —th is o f f e r Y a H o o . i SEARCH M A R K E T IN G is a v a ila b le f o r a lim it e d tim e o n ly . C o n n e c t w it h c u s to m e r s s e a r c h in g f o r w h a t y o u s e ll. S ig n u p to d a y . S E A R C H M A R K E T IN G .Y A H O O .C O M /S E A R C H A D S I C a ll 8 6 6 - 2 5 0 - 7 5 7 4 a n d m e n t io n p ro m o c o d e U S 2319 •O ff»» e»p »e» 0«?». a m oar 31 2 0 0 7 at t> PM P», f Q p »n to n«w « u v n m w , only w ho »ign up »or Y ahoo’ In o n to r a d S aarrh u t n g tha pro m o c o d * h » t*d atoo*» A " • * v »h o o ' ! • * » < ’ M arhgtm y ru ito m » » >« « n y o n * w ho h*» «rpt adv»»'«sad w>f|. Yahoo* • * » r » h Ma»kat>ng in tha >*«t 1> m onth» To qualify for tha »»fund ypdj m ut» »'av* u»»d S»pon««»r»d $aa»rt- »or * m nw nuni pf 14 c o n ta c u f'*» day» horn you» fi»«t w * * n»w Sno»'« >»ad S«a»ch cuytom »» and had «» >*»tt on» »d g»«2UO 6P»Ktnu0V« ty othar off««*« nr rt»«< ou»'»4 s *o « » * f* d ra