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Laurie Carlson huffed and puffed as she spoke with the gritty sound of sanding in the background.

"This is a pretty big contract. We're refreshing the furniture on each floor of the hotel, in 108 rooms. We're also redoing about 90 chairs. It's a big deal."

Carlson was speaking to me via cell phone from the historic Colcord Hotel in Oklahoma City. She's general manager at CertiRestore of Tulsa, which was awarded its biggest contract ever in its two years of business by the landmark OKC auberge.

While CertiRestore has the same concerns as any business (how to keep costs down and how to increase profit margins, among others) it's not exactly your run-of-the-mill operation. For starters, it's staffed completely (except for Carlson) by female ex-cons.

Read the rest of this story on Consumer Watchdog in Urban Tulsa Weekly.