Piper Group International

Merchants INFORMATION SOLUTIONS, INC.

July 6, 2007

Dear Rick:

It is with great pleasure that I send you this letter of recommendation.

As you know, the transaction to purchase American Tescor, Inc. was very fluid. First of all, the initial offer book Piper Group created helped to answer a lot of questions regarding the company and how a transaction could be structured.

Secondly, the auction style bid process that you facilitated forced all of the participants to become competitive and creative. Plus it was very time sensitive. The perfect situation if you're selling a business. Through it all you and your team kept us current on the status of the transaction and provided requested deliverables, which allowed us the opportunity to respond to the changing structure of the transaction.
Lastly, as with many deals, once you have been selected as the winning bidder, the real negotiations begin. That was also true with this transaction. Your ability to bring issues forward and look for resolutions in a professional manner kept the transaction moving and was very much appreciated.

We would definitely recommend and look forward to working with the Piper Group on another transaction.

Best Regards,
Russell A. Johnson, President & CEO

2nd Wind Investments

February 1, 2008

Rick,

I want to thank you for your professional efforts in representing the sale and purchase of the automotive service business we closed on the first of the year. I am extremely happy with the purchase and all that you did to facilitate the transaction.

I had been looking for a business for the past two years and was astonished to find that most merger and acquisitions (M&A) firms did not have much, if any grasp of the business and financial information they were representing. I often raised questions about financial statements that did not make sense to me and for the most part the M&A firms I encountered either did not understand the financial details or simply did not bother to do any smell test on the numbers provided by owners. My experience with your firm was completely opposite. After I signed non-disclosure forms and was presented with the initial packet of information on the business I was interested in, the difference of what you prepared and what I was accustomed to seeing was startling.

Your packet was professionally prepared and covered in some detail all of the various aspects a prospective buyer would need to know in order to make a decision. It covered the history of the business; marketing considerations such as demographics, competition, future opportunities; and detailed financial history, to name a few. When I sought clarification on any details, the information was provided promptly.

During the offer and closing phases, your professionalism also shined through. You managed the closing like a project manager with weekly meetings with all principals and advisors to ensure that no stone was left unturned and all tasks were completed on time with a minimum of misunderstanding. You were there every step of the way. Thank you for that.

I would heartily recommend you and your firm to any serious seller of buyer of a business in the Northwest. Outstanding work.

Thanks again,
Gregg Peters, Owner

QUALITY WOODWORKING

June 13, 2008

Dear Rick,

I wanted to take a few minutes and express my gratitude for the outstanding job you and your team did during my recent purchase of a secondary wood products manufacturing company. Your company provided a very professional process and a calm and friendly environment that resulted in a very smooth ownership transition. I feel I was treated very fairly, especially when others were bidding on the same business. The fact that your company provided a very detailed offering booklet eliminated many questions and concerns right from the start. The offering booklet was one of the key elements that differentiated your business offering and the Piper Group from the many others businesses I was considering. I appreciate that your team provided referrals to assist with me with the evaluation, legal and financial services. 1 strongly recommend your company to anyone buying or selling a business. You and your team made a substantial contribution to the entire process which really helped close the deal.

Many thanks. Sincerely,

Mike Beenken,  Quality Woodworking

Teaching Strategies

June 20, 2008

Dear Rick:

I want to thank you again for the key role you played in the purchase of Educational Production's assets by Teaching Strategies, Inc. In every negotiation there are crucial moments that can make or break the deal. In this case, you quickly stepped in and put forth some creative ideas that helped put humpty-dumpty back together again. And that was before you were even formally involved with the process! Your approach put us back on track and, in fact, became the basis for the final deal structure.
I also really appreciated your process, which you call the "Roadmap to Closing." This organized approach kept us all moving forward and dealing with the issues in a timely manner. Our weekly update calls provided an ongoing forum for additional clarification and negotiations. Most important, it helped create a team environment that retained the goodwill between the principals and advisors as we worked our way through the maze of documents and issues.

Thanks again for the help. We ended up with a deal that acknowledged all the parties needs and fears and crafted solutions to minimize risk and maximize performance incentives. We couldn't have done it without you. I look forward to working with you again.

Regards,

Larry Bram
Publisher & Vice President, Strategic Initiatives Teaching Strategies, Inc.