Today we have the great opportunity to welcome one last presenter to this year's Big Omaha speaker slate. Co-founder of Square and fellow Midwesterner Jim McKelvey will be making the trek to Omaha to share his entrepreneurial story on stage.

We're thrilled to have Jim join us as he brings with him a fascinating background, which includes the now famous story behind the founding of Square. As a renown glass artist, he once lost a sizable order because he couldn't accept credit cards. "We made the solution he needed," Square co-founder and fellow St. Louis native Jack Dorsey told Fast Company in February.

Jim is a true serial entrepreneur. Before launching Square with Dorsey, he switched gears from his work as a technologist and focused his energy on the art of glassblowing. In 2002, McKelvey and a friend established the Third Degree Glass Factory in downtown St. Louis. What was once an abandoned service station is now a state-of-the-art glass facility.

Also inspiring about Jim is his recent activity in St. Louis' startup community. In January, he invested in St. Louis startup LockerDome, and in February, Arch Grants, a non-profit that wants to create a more robust startup culture and infrastructure in St. Louis, announced Jim as the head of its advisory board.

For more on McKelvey and his involvement in the founding of Square, MIT's Technology Review published a fascinating story in 2008 which I'd highly encourage you to read.

We are extremely grateful and excited for Jim to spend time with us next week. Please join us in welcoming Jim to the Big Omaha 2012 lineup!

Credits: Photo courtesy of Jim McKelvey