Entrepreneurs, Venture Capitalists, and Experts in Marketing to Baby Boomers Convene at Santa Clara University Next Week, June 16 - 17

Participants in the Sixth Annual Silicon Valley Boomer Venture Summit & Business
Plan Competition Include Top Experts in the Fields of Aging and Marketing to
Baby Boomers. Business Plan Competition Winners Eligible for $11,000 in Prizes

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(Business Wire)--
Entrepreneurs and investors looking to ride the current over-45 demographic wave
will convene next week at Santa Clara University for the 2009 Silicon Valley
Boomer Venture Summit & Business Plan Competition. The event is sponsored by
Santa Clara University`s Leavey School of Business and strategic
business/communications firm Mary Furlong & Associates.

Among the topics on the program for the two-day event: financing a
boomer-focused business; top 10 business-plan mistakes; social marketing to
boomers, and lessons from entrepreneurs on marketing strategies, and methods to
"scale`` a business.

Top venture investors will share with attendees their financing priorities for
the boomer and senior markets, what current research says about the market, and
which areas are ripe for innovation and new product development.

For more information about the program, please visit www.scuboomerventure.com.

"We have recruited some of the most experienced experts on the baby boomer
market to present during our program and to judge our business plans," said Mary
Furlong, boomer market analyst and event producer. "These people are passionate
about business and new ventures that address the 45+ consumer market, and will
share their thoughts on successful businesses as well as select the winning
plan."

The event will conclude with business-plan and elevator-pitch presentations, in
which finalists will present their business ideas to a panel of judges. Winners
receive a $10,000 grand prize or $1,000 for best elevator pitch.

Competition judges include:

Amy Belt, Advanced Technology Ventures
Andy Donner, Physic Ventures
Jeannette de Noord, InnovationPoint
Ken Dychtwald, Age Wave
Elizabeth Ford, Santa Clara University
Onne Ganel, Edwards Lifesciences
Jody Holtzman, AARP
Joshua Raffaeli, Draper Fisher Jurvetson
Nancy Kamei, Intel Capital
Nate McLemore, Microsoft Health Solutions Group
Shinobu Toyoda, Sega
Jack Young, Qualcomm Ventures
Peter Ziebelman, Palo Alto Venture Partners

The finalists in the business-plan competition who submitted plans in the areas
of biodesign, medical devices, geriatrics, and gerontology are:

Aaron Nelson, Audiallo
Erika Palmer, HemRx Medical
Jared Garfield, J & J Solutions
Karen Routt, Magnolia Prime
Kevin Chao, Miret
Thanguy Chau, Novophage Therapeutics

Finalists for best elevator pitch are:

Laura Nuhaan, FamiliLink
Carrie Shores, Larson Shores Architects Inc.
Heather Steven, Life at Home Longer
Chris Clark, The Senior List
John Smilgin, Traveling4Health

For more information about these the finalists, please visit
http://www.scuboomerventure.com/B-Plan%20Competition_index.html

The Summit`s sponsors include AARP, firstSTREET, and Southwest Airlines.

About the Leavey School of Business

The Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University began in 1926, and was
one of the first business schools in the country to receive national
accreditation. Its undergraduate business program is among the top 35 in the
nation (and among top three in California), its MBA program has ranked in the
top 15 for the last decade, and its Executive MBA is ranked 19th in the U.S. In
fall 2008, the school opened its $49 million building for undergraduate,
graduate, and professional business education. For more information, see
www.scu.edu/business.

About Santa Clara University

Santa Clara University, a comprehensive Jesuit, Catholic university located 40
miles south of San Francisco in California`s Silicon Valley, offers its 8,758
students rigorous undergraduate curricula in arts and sciences, business, and
engineering, plus master`s and law degrees and engineering Ph.D.s. Distinguished
nationally by one of the highest graduation rates among all U.S. master`s
universities, California`s oldest operating higher-education institution
demonstrates faith-inspired values of ethics and social justice. For more
information, see www.scu.edu.

About Mary Furlong & Associates

Mary Furlong & Associates works with companies seeking to capitalize on new
business and investment opportunities in the boomer market. The company provides
business development, financing strategy and integrated marketing solutions to
entrepreneurs, corporations and non-profit organizations serving the 50+ market.
Mary Furlong is the Dean`s Executive Professor of Entrepreneurship at the Leavey
School of Business. See www.maryfurlong.com for more information about the
boomer marketplace.

Santa Clara University
Deborah Lohse, 408-554-5121
dlohse@scu.edu
or
Boomer Venture Summit & Business Plan Competition
ValleyPR LLC
Georgia Marszalek, 650-345-7477
Georgia@ValleyPR.com

Copyright Business Wire 2009