Small wonders.

• Position: UPFRONT - Business competitions

In early December, we gather together and share our stories. Some are happy, some sad, all are moving. The small-business owners who attend bring their families, employees and partners to our annual luncheon honoring their success. We discuss the opportunities and challenges of the past year, breathe a collective sigh of relief and take stock of our accomplishments. Ws a small, select group, but that's how we like it. It's where our Small Business of the Year winner, who might well be from some place remote from Raleigh, can introduce his mother to the secretary of commerce and one runner-up can debate another on which part of the state has the best barbecue. In many ways, it's like a family dinner.

This makes 18 years BUSINESS N0RTH CAROLINA has held the annual competition and the 13th that Winston-Salem-based BB&T Corp. has sponsored it. For seven of those years, I have been fortunate enough to not only emcee the luncheon but be one of the three judges who pick the winner and runners-up from the finalists our editorial staff culls from the nominees. I have a front-row seat to what makes small business so special to our state.

Winners have been well-known companies such as Winston-Salem-based T.W. Garner Food Co., makers of Texas Pete hot sauce, as well as those known by only a few. Bakers and beekeepers have won. They're all different, engaged in diverse ventures in every part of the state, yet they find common ground in stories of passion for what they do. Hearing how they overcame obstacles to succeed makes you incredibly optimistic.

Their stories resonate with everyone in the room. There was the woman whose business...