Tag: 3BL

Becky and Tony Santoro are always willing to face challenges. One might even say the couple raises a coffee cup to them.

But it’s not just any old cup. It’s one that’s fostered love and support throughout the community, as the couple lifts others through their coffee shops and foster family nonprofit. And it’s one that sparked Truist teammates, who have supported both efforts through volunteerism and putting the couple’s coffee shop in their headquarters.

Becky and Tony’s story really begins at Michigan State University, where the couple met and bonded over a love of coffee. Degrees in hand, they uprooted their lives for teaching careers in North Carolina. Next came the births of their two children and the challenge of providing for them. (“Our family was growing, but our paychecks were not,” is how Tony puts it.)

They faced that challenge by working even harder. Suddenly they had four jobs, including Tony’s burgeoning interest in starting a coffee business. He roasted beans in their driveway between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. before heading to teach.

Amid these challenges, they added another: becoming foster parents. Their experiences led them to create Foster Village, a nonprofit that provides practical and emotional support to foster families. It was a decision that would change their lives—and the lives of the fostering community in Charlotte, North Carolina.

It was a lot. And some might have crumbled under all these pressures. But for the Santoros, each challenge was another opportunity to smile at each other and ask, “Why not?”

A loving space to give

During the Santoros’ seven years as teachers, they met children in the foster care system and witnessed the challenges of it.

They wanted to help, and explored the idea of becoming foster parents—despite their four jobs and their children, then ages 4 and 2. “I just felt like if we didn’t step into it, we’d always have an excuse not to,” says Becky, “and it felt like this was something that we were supposed to do. We still had this loving space to give.”

One hour after they were officially licensed, they got a call that a 1-year-old girl needed a safe home. Could they help?

The Santoros looked at each other and said, “Why not?”

The child came to them with just a blanket and the onesie she was wearing.

Doing good in the world through their beans

At the same time, Tony’s coffee business was getting underway. At first it was just a hobby. “I thought it was so interesting. You can buy green coffee beans, turn them brown, and then you can grind them and drink them,” he says.

His fondness for coffee is due in part to his courtship with Becky. Although the two grew up 3 miles apart in the Detroit suburbs, they didn’t meet till they got to Michigan State University, where Becky was a coffee shop barista. “When we’d go out to dinner, we wouldn’t get wine, we’d get coffee with dessert,” Tony says. “It was just always central to us.”

To make ends meet after the births of their children, Tony began selling his driveway-roasted coffee to friends, family, and even their church. That coffee was so popular that a friend asked, “What’s stopping you from making this your full-time career?”

That friend hired Tony to work for him and then slowly reduced Tony’s hours as that dream became a reality. Enderly Coffee Company began as a small-batch coffee-roasting business, focusing on great coffee and “doing good in the world through [their] beans.” They opened a coffee shop in Charlotte’s Enderly Park neighborhood, and in late 2021, a second coffee shop in Truist’s Charlotte headquarters.

It was fortunate there was plenty of coffee on hand for what came next.

Fostering a commitment to their community

When the couple began fostering, they expected it to be challenging, but the hardest parts weren’t what they’d anticipated. There were last-minute court dates and demands on their schedule. They assumed they’d find support through foster organizations, but “we started asking, ‘Where are the other foster parents, so we can just have some peer support?’ And we kept getting the answer that there really isn’t any peer support,” Becky says.

They decided to make the fostering experience better for other Charlotte-area families. Becky found a small Facebook group of local foster parents looking for community, all of whom were licensed by different adoption agencies. The group grew, and Becky recognized the momentum. “This isn’t just a personal need we have,” she says.

“There’s a gap in our city for supporting the caregivers who open up their homes.” Becky Santoro, co-founder and co-director of Foster Village Charlotte

The Santoros helped fill that gap with Foster Village, which they founded with others from that Facebook group. Many foster parents don’t continue fostering after their first placement, the couple says, because it’s so hard—and so isolating on top of that. Foster Village began addressing that isolation with peer support.

On the day Tony and Becky debuted their coffee shop in 2018, they also launched Foster Village. “I was on one side of town unpacking boxes, and Tony’s on the other side of town opening up a coffee shop,” Becky laughs.

A new business, a new organization—and a new baby

If that weren’t enough, the Santoros got another call from the agency they’d worked with before. Their foster daughter, whom they’d adopted, had a brother. Would they be interested in fostering him?

“Why not?” they both said (no doubt while putting on an extra pot of coffee).

“We had this new coffee shop and nonprofit, and then in walked our son like a hurricane,” Becky says. “He’s now our adopted son, and so now we have four kids under 11.”

That “I get it” feeling

There are close to 550 children in the foster care system in Charlotte but only 100 foster parents. Foster Village provides support for the people who open their homes to children who need them. There’s beauty in the kind of support “where people can look across the table from each other and have that ‘I get it’ feeling, and know that they can keep going,” Becky says. That support includes tangible items like a welcome pack, delivered by volunteers, that includes pajamas, water bottles, diapers—things a foster child may need but not necessarily show up with. “We believe that’s a time for us to give dignity to children who may be coming to a place with nothing,” she says.

Truist has long supported Foster Village. The Lighthouse Project is a companywide initiative that allows Truist teammates to address critical needs in their communities. Teammates choose nonprofit organizations to partner with, and Truist provides them with time off so they can offer hands-on support. Thousands of teammates have devoted thousands of volunteer hours of community service.

Tony says that two of their friends work at Truist, and both donated to Foster Village as part of the Lighthouse Project. They didn’t know each other, but when they saw they’d both supported the same cause, they decided to do more. They gathered other teammates and tackled Foster Village’s entire Amazon wish list.

“The Lighthouse Project also funded a lot of our welcome pack essentials,” says Becky. “Everything from car seats to toddler beds to pajamas to hair care products.”

That’s how Truist teammates became familiar with Foster Village, and as the new Truist headquarters took shape in Charlotte, Truist teammate Tina Fullard, head of corporate programs and hospitality services, realized that Foster Village and Enderly Coffee were related to each other.

Fullard was helping develop the Innovation & Technology Center (ITC) on the 14th floor of the building, and her goal was to bring in local vendors. It was a lot more work to do so, but “this is what we say we are,” she says. “We want to build better lives and communities. How do we do that? We invest in small businesses.”

That started a conversation with Aramark, Truist’s food management company, to put an Enderly Coffee location at Truist. In late 2021, the shop opened in the cutting-edge ITC.

“It just seems like our companies are cut from the same cloth,” Fullard says of Truist’s relationship with Foster Village and Enderly Coffee. “We want to align with partners who believe in the same things we do. And this partnership felt perfect.”

Truist teammates and others can give back with their cups of Enderly Coffee through Enderly’s Foster Village Blend coffee; proceeds help support Foster Village. “It’s a really solid medium roast,” says Tony. “Craft-roasted, ethically traded. And what we do is, as Foster Village has needs, we just jump in, write checks, buy supplies, and provide manpower, with those sales.”

“I love that I constantly hear from teammates, ‘Wow, this coffee is not only convenient— it’s actually good!” says Fullard.

Fostering dreams and paying it forward

Business has been brisk at ITC, and Tony is grateful for the support. “As a small, family-owned, local business, a partnership like this goes a really long way for us,” he says. “It would’ve been easy for Truist to put a big coffee company in there. I really like to see bigger organizations using their money intentionally to support the local economy. I think our world’s a better place when the local economy is flourishing in any city. That’s really important.”

“I really like to see bigger organizations using their money intentionally to support the local economy.” Tony Santoro, owner, Enderly Coffee

Enderly Coffee is indeed flourishing. After working with Aramark at Truist headquarters, Enderly is in talks to be the coffee supplier for future Aramark sites outside of Charlotte.

No matter how successful they get, the couple says that their purpose, through Foster Village and Enderly Coffee, is to lift up others. Tony hasn’t forgotten what his friend did to help him launch Enderly Coffee. In the same way, Tony supports the dreams of the people who work for him. “The jobs that we create are to support them in this season, similar to how my friend did for me,” he says.

Becky says it’s the same with the support Foster Village offers to those who need it. “Very much the root of who we are is we’re rooting for whatever you’re passionate about,” she says.

From accountant to founder of a music school that empowers women to produce music, tune in for a fascinating podcast with Xylo Aria. Talented musician, songwriter, engineer and producer in addition to her work for MPW. Inspiring not only for women seeking their place in the music industry, but also for men who want to be their champions.

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About this podcast

Audio Talks. A podcast on all things audio presented to you by HARMAN and our family of audio brands including JBL, Harman Kardon and AKG. Host Oisin Lunny, music journalist and audio enthusiast, will interview expert guests, legends of the music industry and audio scientists to discuss the power of music and audio in all its facets. New episode bi-weekly every Thursday.

Originally published by Small Business Currents

By Emily Wheeler

At a time when inflation is on the rise and funding for microbusinesses is tight, entrepreneurs could need to find alternative funding solutions to meet their capital needs. Finding these solutions isn’t always simple.

As GoDaddy’s senior corporate sustainability manager and inclusive entrepreneurship expert, I speak frequently with microbusiness owners from all walks of life to understand both the challenges and solutions they face daily.

Entrepreneurship provides a vital component of today’s global economy, creating a platform for innovation, job creation and economic growth. However, 67% of microbusiness owners surveyed by GoDaddy’s Venture Forward research initiative reported being unaware of business assistance, funding, and government programs available to them.

As we know, not all entrepreneurs have the opportunity to pitch to deep-pocketed investors. Most entrepreneurs are scattered across the U.S. They’re scrappy and tenacious but don’t always get a fair shot. Socioeconomic status, race or location has hindered their ability to seize opportunities available to others. For example, Black entrepreneurs have historically faced disparities in securing venture capital funding and typically receive less than 2% of overall venture capital dollars each year.

For many microbusiness owners, one question continues to persist – what alternative funding solutions are available, and how will they help me scale my business and achieve growth-based goals?

I identified three helpful ways that entrepreneurs can leverage alternative funding solutions:

Microloans

There are a number of nonprofit and community-focused lenders who provide relatively small loans to existing businesses. For example, the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) is a resource that provides grants and loans to entrepreneurs from underserved communities and further partners with local business development organizations to help entrepreneurs access capital and improve their business practices. A great starting point to learn more is the SBA’s approved list of microlenders.

Crowdfunding

Crowdfunding is more of a grassroots method, where business owners can tap into their community for investments, rather than finding one person to support all of their funding needs. There are several crowdfunding platforms to choose from, like Kiva, where borrowers in the U.S. can secure 0% interest, $0 fee loans. Over the last eight years, GoDaddy and its employees lent more than $610,545 partnering with Kiva, supporting over 31,000 small businesses in 78 countries.

Those who find success with crowdfunding often leverage strategic marketing efforts, such as creating an entire social media campaign around the crowdfund to highlight progress and inspire the community to invest. Microbusiness owners can also create a custom hashtag to promote a campaign and encourage followers to use it within their posts. They can also temporarily swap their own profile picture with an eye-catching graphic to promote the crowdfunding campaign.

Small Business Grants

Who doesn’t like the idea of getting “free” money for their startup venture? Small business grants are available in a variety of categories from federal to state and regional to corporate. There are several resources available to help identify the best small business grant options, including through SBA.gov or local Small Business Development Centers, which offer resources to meet the unique needs of small business owners along their journey.

In addition to alternative funding solutions, there are other ways that entrepreneurs can scale their business during lean times, including:

Leveraging Generative AI

Generative AI isn’t just a tool for the enterprise or Big Tech workers. Small business owners can easily take advantage of this innovative technology to save time, cut costs and increase productivity. A recent GoDaddy survey showed that 57% of small business owners are interested in using Generative AI tools for their business. GoDaddy recently launched three new Generative AI products specifically geared toward solving small business challenges including:

Online Store Product Descriptions: Provides an AI-generated, creative, customized product description based on the product image.Customer Service Messages: With AI technology, it summarizes previous messages with the customer and generates a suggested response that can be adapted and sent.Instagram and Facebook Ads: Creates AI-generated advertisements that almost instantly attract customers on social media.

Building a Website

One of the easiest ways to increase a customer base and reach other people outside of the local community is to build a website. Even those who don’t consider themselves tech-savvy can tap into the many free website builder platforms available online. I recommend finding a template or designing a website that reflect business goals and how you want the customer to feel when learning more about your product or service.

Networking

Entrepreneurs often feel that they have to go at it alone. That do-it-yourself mentality is a nice motivator, but it isn’t sustainable in the long run. Microbusiness owners need a community or network of people that they can turn to for advice, guidance, and support. Networking in their local area can help them identify like-minded business owners who they can go to for solutions (or even just to vent). Empower by GoDaddy is a global social impact initiative that connects entrepreneurs with tools and resources by partnering with local community groups like the Better Business Bureau Serving the Pacific Southwest and Baltimore Impact Hub. The resounding benefit to this program is the chance for connecting and building relationships.

This isn’t the first time entrepreneurs are navigating tumultuous times, but it’s important to remember that there are resources, funding options and ways to build a successful business even when faced with the most challenging of circumstances.

Emily Wheeler is the Senior Corporate Sustainability Manager and Inclusive Entrepreneurship Expert at GoDaddy. Twitter Handle: @GoDaddy.

Funding stock image by EtiAmmos/Shutterstock

Supply chain volatility, incoming regulations, reporting requirements, and increasing stakeholder expectations have placed significant pressure on companies to set and achieve ambitious corporate goals that tackle complex sustainability challenges, build business resilience, maintain short-term profits, and enable long-term growth. 

To facilitate solutions-based discussions on the most pressing ESG challenges facing companies today, the UN Global Compact Network UK Annual Summit returns on 16-17 October 2023! 

Day One will be hybrid, hosted in person at an iconic City of London location, and Day Two will be hosted online. 

Across both days, the Summit will convene corporate, government, and civil society leaders to discuss how we can drive sustainability to ensure business success. Attendees will learn about best practices on various issues, including decarbonisation, transformational governance, sustainable finance, new reporting requirements, supply chain resilience, and more. 

Join us as we bring together diverse perspectives and foster meaningful dialogue to catalyse positive change and inspire a more sustainable future to do business in. 

Don’t miss out! Find more information and register here. 

Media Contact: 
Lily Venables 
Governance and SDGs Project Manager 

About the UN Global Compact Network UK 
The UN Global Compact Network UK is part of the world’s largest responsible business initiative connecting UK companies and other organisations in a global movement dedicated to driving sustainable growth. Through an extensive programme of activity, we promote practical sustainability leadership, share knowledge across sectors, and actively shape the responsible business environment to create a world we want to live and do business in. 

The United Nations Global Compact’s universally recognised Principles, rooted in UN treaties, provide a robust foundation from which we lead UK business action on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We use our power to convene business and other organisations to find practical solutions to global challenges.

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Initially seen as a cost centre for senior management and boards, how can sustainability be turned into a source of commercial value for the business? In what ways can chief sustainability officers communicate through the lens of profit and loss? How can companies simultaneously deliver ESG performance and good returns to shareholders?

Featuring:

Randall Hopkins: Global head of ESG solutions, Nasdaq corporate platforms, Nasdaq

Viviana Sanchez: Board advisor and Independent consultant, sustainability and corporate strategy, Centre for Responsible Business at Berkeley Haas

Ben Ratner: Executive director, sustainability, JPMorgan Chase

Moderated by:

Kurt Harrison: Founder and co-head of the global sustainability practice, Russell Reynolds Associates

Click here to watch the full panel at The Economist’s 3rd Annual Sustainability Week US.

Click here to learn more about Nasdaq ESG Solutions. 

“A tapestry is made of many threads woven into one story. So are we.”

Tapestry, the parent company of renowned brands Kate Spade, Coach, and Stuart Weitzman, plays the vital role of seamlessly integrating the distinctive narratives, products, missions, values, and focus areas of each brand into a single tapestry. All three brands are united under Tapestry’s purpose, Stretch What’s Possible, which provides both cohesion and autonomy to each organization.

We invited David Casey, Chief Inclusion and Social Impact Officer, to unveil the company’s comprehensive approach to one of its most valuable stakeholders: its employees. In his first year, David immersed himself in the experiences of employees, gaining valuable insights into their realities, particularly with store associates. Equipped with this knowledge, Tapestry developed a framework focused on four core objectives to promote equity, inclusion, and diversity (EI&D).

Tapestry is also weaving new environmental practices into the way they source and sell, from embedding circularity into designer fashion through Coachtopia to supporting the World Wildlife Fund for responsible leather sourcing.

Listen for insights on:

Uniting brands with unique social impact focuses under a parent company’s purposeEmbracing circularity through second-generation designer productsAdvice to the C-Suite on prioritizing equity as a company

To listen to this episode and others, visit Purpose 360 Podcast.

Originally published by Walgreens Boots Alliance

June 5, 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of the first celebration of World Environment Day, an event led by the United Nations Environment Programme to bring businesses, governments and people together to act for a more sustainable planet. What began in 1972 as an environmental summit has grown to an international movement under the slogan “Only One Earth,” and is the largest global platform for environmental outreach.

WBA supports the need to preserve our One Earth and has centered our Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) strategies in supporting healthy communities, enabling a healthy planet, building a sustainable marketplace, and providing a healthy and inclusive workplace. To that end, we are proud of the most recent milestones that are outlined in our 2022 ESG Report:

Promoted sustainable procurement: WBA is a champion of the Sustainable Procurement Pledge, which is a commitment to using sustainable practices in the procurement of goods and services. The company has achieved many successes in this area, including:Removed nearly 30 million plastic bags, equivalent to more than 370 tonnes of plastic, from Boots UK online deliveries since 2018.As of June 2021, all Boots owned brand and No7 Beauty Company cosmetic wipes have been 100% plastic free.In July 2022, Boots and No7 Beauty Company joined as signatories to the EcoBeautyScore Consortium, a collaboration of major global cosmetics companies that seek to establish a transparent global environmental impact scoring system.Reduced carbon emissions: WBA has reduced its carbon emissions by 21.2% since 2019 and is on track to reduce its emissions by 30% by 2030. The company is achieving this goal through several initiatives, including energy efficiency improvements, renewable energy procurement and supply chain adjustments.Increased use of recycled content: WBA has increased the use of recycled content in its packaging by 10% since 2019. The company is committed to using 100% recycled content in its packaging by 2025.

Learn more about WBA’s commitment to protecting the environment and promoting sustainable business practices by browsing the stories below.

Where does extra inventory go, anyway? For World Environment Day, we explore how surplus products are donated, liquidated or returned to vendors through Walgreens Green Boxes recycling program.Our commitment to Earth Day, every day: See our environmental and sustainability progress, translated into terms you know.‘Hard to Recycle’ no more: Now available in 700 stores, Recycle at Boots gives customers an easy way to make the sustainable choice.Every child has the right to return to school feeling clean: Since the beginning of Boots UK’s partnership with The Hygiene Bank, more than 220,000 toiletries, or 50 tonnes, have been donated by customers to people in need.Boots UK eliminates plastic from owned brand wet wipes: WBA continues to lead in its commitment to reducing the use of single-use plastics, and since the end of 2022, Boots UK has stopped stocking plastic wipes from any other brand.

Originally published on Illumina News Center

The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples asserts “the right to access, without any discrimination, to all social and health services.” When the 159-member General Assembly adopted the declaration in 2007, only four members voted against it: Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States.

In the years since, all four countries have reversed their positions and now endorse it. Canada’s government even passed an act requiring its laws to be consistent with the declaration, emphasizing that Indigenous peoples’ free, prior, and informed consent be given for any decisions that affect them.

The dream of precision medicine is to tailor diagnoses and treatments to each patient based on their individual DNA and living environment. If a patient with a suspected genetic disorder belongs to an ethnic population that’s well represented in reference databases, their doctor can rule out the vast majority of their personal genetic variations that are common among that population and unlikely to be causing disease. But most of the genomic data currently available comes from people of European ancestry.

The lack of reference data for Canada’s Indigenous groups leaves clinicians with hundreds of thousands of variants of unknown significance, creating health care inequity as Indigenous patients face more difficult and uncertain paths to diagnosis.

Correcting this inequity is possible only through sustained, concerted partnerships between researchers, clinicians, and Indigenous communities across Canada, and the Silent Genomes Project, based out of the University of British Columbia (UBC), is forging those partnerships.

Indigenous governance over Indigenous data

The Silent Genomes Project launched in 2018, with Dr. Laura Arbour, Dr. Nadine Caron, and Dr. Wyeth Wasserman as co-leads.

Arbour, a professor in UBC’s Department of Medical Genetics, has been working directly with Indigenous communities for over 20 years to address the genetic component of health. She remembers that when she came to her first pediatric residency rotation in Nunavut, “there were assumptions that social determinants were causing all health problems, and that’s not so.”

Caron is a surgical oncologist and professor in the UBC Faculty of Medicine’s Department of Surgery, whose passion is for Indigenous health and Canadian health policy; she also holds the distinction of being the first female First Nations general surgeon in Canada.

Wasserman is a fellow medical genetics professor at UBC, a senior scientist in the Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics at the British Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, and a computational biologist—in his words, a “data geek”—who became involved in this work once his lab began applying next-generation genomic sequencing to identify the causes of metabolic disorders.

The Silent Genomes Project is organized around four activities—the first and most critical of which is ensuring Indigenous governance of, and community engagement in, the project itself.

Geographic conditions play some role in limiting Indigenous peoples’ participation in medical research—although 90% of Canada’s population lives within 160 kilometers of the US border, about 60% of its Indigenous population lives in rural or remote areas—but the most pernicious barrier is US and Canadian historical context, which is filled with shameful examples of authorities neglecting minority populations and knowingly inflicting harm.

The project’s non-Indigenous team members are constantly aware of how these failures work against their long-term efforts to build trust. “There’s an awful lot of people who step in and then step out,” Wasserman says. “Dr. Arbour brought me to a meeting of the Canadian Alliance for Healthy Hearts and Minds early on, and I remember someone next to me said, ‘We welcome you here, but we’ll see if you’re still here in five years.’”

Arbour emphasizes that “our project could only be carried out with Indigenous involvement right from the start.” That involvement included Caron’s leadership role in the project; the International Indigenous Genomic Advisory Committee, composed of Indigenous scholars and scientists (from, incidentally, all four countries that originally voted against the UN declaration); communities with an interest in research, and a steering committee, whose members come from Indigenous communities across Canada.

The Precision Diagnosis Study and Indigenous Background Variant Library

The project’s second activity was a precision diagnosis study, which offered whole-genome sequencing (WGS) to 100 Indigenous families with a suspected but undiagnosed genetic condition. The families enrolled through referrals to one of 11 Medical Genetics centers across six provinces.

About a quarter of those patients have already received clear diagnoses from their WGS data, a few of whom have gone on to participate in larger projects to understand the cellular basis for their conditions. About 50% of variant information provided back to clinicians for their patients was uncertain. Arbour says that scientists would have a better chance to understand the variants if they had a more relevant Indigenous background variant library (IBVL) to reference them against—but no such library yet exists.

Creating that IBVL is the project’s third activity, which is still in progress. An initial set of 600 samples has been approved for sequencing. After communities approve participation, each DNA sample is given to the Silent Genomes project in a deidentified tube—no record of the individual or community name is provided, only a unique number. The data from the study will be available only in the aggregate (showing that a particular variant appears in X percent of the library) and only for clinical diagnosis, not as an open-source research repository.

“Many Indigenous people are concerned about open data because of concerns that genomic information could be used against them, or that their data will benefit others, leaving Indigenous people with continued health disparity,” Arbour explains. “And that’s not going to change just because open data is a mainstream standard of practice. All that does is prevent people from participating. Unless we start to really change the way we do things, there’s going to be continued inequity.”

Justice matters

The project’s fourth activity will be to look at the big picture, assessing the economic impact of precision diagnosis for Indigenous children. Although the impact of the IBVL data can not yet be assessed, the team members’ anecdotal experiences paint a promising picture.

“In ending the diagnostic odyssey, you also have a chance to build community,” Wasserman says. Once families have that diagnosis, they often connect with other families around the world who share it. Older children can lend their insights on what to expect from treatment. “It makes the world a little smaller.”

Matching funding for the project’s second and third activities was provided in part by Illumina. “Illumina is the engine by which clinical diagnosis of rare disease is carried out around the world,” Wasserman says. “Particularly in Canada, almost all the clinical samples are being applied to Illumina platforms, and the data’s coming off Illumina systems. The Illumina team’s enthusiasm to find a way to make this work from the very beginning was clear and outstanding.”

Arbour acknowledges the ambitious scope of the project and that much work remains to be done, but they’ve already made substantial progress thanks to the years they’ve invested in building community partnerships. “The Silent Genomes Project has exposed what we need to do better,” she says. “It was a good start, and if we can spend a bit of time using our individual expertise to open doors, that’s going to make a massive difference. We need to consider who’s being left out and why. Justice matters, and when people are being left out and we have the ability to open doors, we have an obligation to do so.”

Learn more about how Illumina is working to increase genomic data diversity here.

Originally published on U.S. company blog

Four U.S. Bank clients had a special reason to celebrate this year during National Small Business Week. The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) named them Businesspeople of the Year for their contributions as entrepreneurs and small business owners who are creating thriving businesses and helping their community by doing so.

National, state and territory award winners are celebrated during National Small Business Week during a ceremony in Washington, D.C.

Abdirahman Kahin, Afro Deli & Grill 
National Small Businessperson of the Year, National SBA

For Abdirahman Kahin, the owner of Afro Deli & Grill in St. Paul, Minnesota, the recognition of being named the National Small Businessperson of the Year by the SBA and meeting with President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and SBA Administrator Isabella Guzman in Washington, D.C., in May is proof of one thing.

“It shows just how important small businesses are for the economy of this country,” said Kahin, whose Afro Deli & Grill fast-casual restaurant serves fresh African cuisine.

Kahin, who immigrated to the U.S. in 1996, said he “had a dream and an ambition to grow the business and that came from a lot of sacrifice throughout the years.”

Kahin opened his first Afro Deli & Grill in 2011, and today operates four brick-and-mortar locations along with offering grab-and-go products at more than a dozen other locations in the Twin Cities area. Kahin employs more than 70 people and provides home-delivered meals to vulnerable community members in partnerships with Meals on Wheels and Kitchen Collision.

“In the beginning, my challenge was how to convince non-Africans to eat African food,” Kahin said. “It was new ground for most Minnesotans. They didn’t know what to expect. I am thankful to those who trusted me and tried my food for the first time.”

When asked about his relationship with U.S. Bank, Kahin said that “we’re neighbors, the bankers are always helpful, and I can say nothing but good things about the partnership I have with U.S. Bank.”

Taveesak “Dang” Chanthasuthisombut, Dang Thai Cuisine and Mr. Dee Sushi Bar 
Idaho Small Businessperson of the Year, SBA Idaho

Chanthasuthisombut, whose restaurants are located in Hailey, Idaho, was named Idaho Small Businessperson of the Year. He was nominated by Benjamin Mitchum, SBA business development officer for U.S. Bank.

“Dang embodies the pursuit of a dream and the tenacity to achieve one’s personal and professional goals,” Mitchum said. “As a first-generation immigrant to the United States, Dang brought his hopes and dreams for what his new life would be. He set a goal to own his own restaurant within five years of arriving here and coming from a rich food culture, he brings something special to the tables of his customers every time.”

Mitchum also said he admires the way that Chanthasuthisombut supported his employees through the pandemic.

Chanthasuthisombut is a first-generation citizen, having immigrated to the U.S. from Thailand in 2000. In addition to operating two restaurants in Hailey, he has also built strong community ties.

He said he didn’t expect to be nominated. “I was very surprised; I just do my job and what I can for my community and the people of Hailey. But I’m really happy.”

Of his experience as a U.S. Bank customer, Chanthasuthisombut said that the bank treats him like family.

“Everyone has been really nice, and when I have a question, they always try to find an answer,” he said.

Kenny Blakeslee, APEX Site Solutions 
Veteran-Owned Small Business of the Year, SBA Sacramento District Office

The SBA Sacramento District office honored Apex Site Solutions, founded by former United States Navy avionics technician Kenny Blakeslee, as the Veteran-owned Small Business of the Year. Blakeslee, who co-owns the Elk Grove, California, business with his wife and business partner Brooke Blakeslee, has grown their wireless telecommunications services company to employ more than 100 people.

Their business focuses on the evolving needs of carriers, tower owners, building owners, public safety radio users and any other sector requiring wireless solutions – from building towers, coverage testing and troubleshooting network problems to improving cellular and two-way radio coverage inside buildings.

At the heart of their business is putting people first – including on-the-job training and career development opportunities to empower their employees and help them succeed to his community-focused work in the industry and within their hometown.

“Kenny is a second-generation tower climber who fondly remembers joining his father on the job during Take Your Child to Work Day, his first taste of the tower construction life,” said Louis Lane, a U.S. Bank SBA business development officer who nominated Blakeslee for the recognition. “The business he has built out of his passion and commitment to create meaningful jobs and successful careers in the Sacramento area is inspiring.”

The Blakeslees also became active and involved in a local nonprofit focused on preventing human trafficking after a local incident of child trafficking rocked their tight-knit community. Together, the Blakeslees work with the 3Strands Global Foundation to develop key initiatives and free training and certification courses to mobilize communities to combat human trafficking through prevention education and reintegration programs.

Apex Site Solutions hosts an annual fundraiser to support the nonprofit’s mission and programs.

Lane and seven other U.S. Bank colleagues joined Brooke Blakeslee during a special recognition event as part of the Capital Region Small Business Week in Sacramento.

“We appreciate U.S. Bank for their scale and scope because it allows us to live our value of ‘better every day,’ Kenny Blakeslee said. “Having access to world-class banking products, infrastructure and experts for a business of our size has really helped us improve our financial processes and risk management.”

Denise Cotter and Michelle Marino, Houndstooth House 
South Dakota Small Business of the Year

For Denise Cotter and Michelle Marino, destiny brought them together hundreds of miles from their hometowns to start Houndstooth House, their growing interior design and retail store in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

While Cotter and Marino grew up just 90 minutes from each other in Kansas, they didn’t meet until they were working at a mall in Sioux Falls.

“We then had three kids each and, when we were ready to go back to work after having them, we decided to start a business that would be flexible enough that we could continue to put our families first,” Marino said.

Marino and Cotter have grown Houndstooth House in the last 20 years from an independent interior design firm to having a 10,000-square-foot building with retail space and eight employees.

“Really, the changes happened fast these last five years when we were selected as the preferred designers for a four-story, multi-use development downtown,” said Cotter, who added that both Houndstooth House and her family have business and personal banking accounts with U.S. Bank.

“We built out 17 $1-million condos on top of keeping our day-to-day business going with other clients.”

Within the last six months, they opened their new retail space. As they look toward the future of their business, they are focused on growing that arm of their business and hiring top talent to support their thriving business.

“A couple of years ago, we told people we were the up-and-coming interior designers in Sioux Falls,” Cotter said. “I feel like we put it out into the universe and now look at where we are today.”

 

CLEVELAND, July, 18 2023 /3BL/ – KeyBank Community Development Lending and Investment (CDLI) provided $9.9 million in low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) equity to finance the conversion of the Margaret Wagner Senior Apartments in Cleveland Heights, OH to 80 low-income housing senior units (62+). This development will create 20 new apartments through the adaptive re-use of the first floor of Margaret Wagner House and preserve 60 apartments on the upper floors.

Built in 1960 as a nursing home by the Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging, the facility offers HUD 202 PRAC subsidy for 100% of its units. In addition to creating 20 new one-bedroom units, the project will renovate existing units with updated kitchens and bathrooms, improved accessibility, central air conditioning, elevator modernization, new roofing, and site improvements.

The project’s total cost is $18.7 million. Other financing sources include a HUD 202 Capital Advance, Cuyahoga County HOME and Affordable Housing Gap funding, Affordable Housing Program Grant funding through Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston and seller financing.

The project is being co-developed by CHN Housing Partners (CHN) and Benjamin Rose, both organizations are headquartered in Cleveland, OH. Margaret Wagner Senior Apartments will provide much needed senior affordable housing in a market where demand far outstrips supply.

For more than a century, Benjamin Rose has been providing care for Cuyahoga County’s senior population, and, in partnership with CHN, will continue to manage the property and provide supportive services to its residents. A service coordinator will meet with each new tenant during orientation and offer to discuss the individual’s needs with emphasis on behavioral health, preferences for socialization activities, linkage to community-based partners, and primary health care providers when appropriate. Benjamin Rose has also coordinated with the City of Cleveland Heights Office of Aging to provide low-cost transportation for seniors within a 5-mile radius.

“Affordable housing development is never easy, but a strong development team allowed us to overcome the many challenges we faced while getting this project to the construction stage, and we are particularly grateful for KeyBank’s financial support,” said Mike Bier, Senior Project Manager for CHN Housing Partners. “The Margaret Wagner facility has a storied past in Cleveland Heights, and CHN is glad to be a part of its revitalization.”

“Since our founding in 1908, Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging has worked to ensure that older adults have a place to call home,” said Orion Bell, President and CEO, Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging. “Margaret Wagner House has been part of that legacy since 1960 and we are excited to see the property evolve to meet the changing needs of the people we serve and the neighborhoods in which they choose to live. We are grateful for KeyBank’s investment in this project and the community.”

“We are thrilled to be working with Benjamin Rose and CHN Housing Partners to provide affordable housing for our seniors,” said Derek Reed, Vice President, KeyBank CDLI. “KeyBank is committed to the communities we serve, and this investment is a key part of our efforts to build on the success of our National Community Benefits Plan.”

Derek Reed structured the tax credit equity investment and Tara Miller served as the Underwriter for the transaction.

About Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging

Founded in 1908, Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging is a Cleveland-based nonprofit whose mission is to support caregivers and empower all people to age well through research, consumer-responsive services, and client advocacy. Our work is accomplished by deepening the understanding of their evolving needs in a changing society; developing and delivering innovative, high-quality solutions; and promoting effective public policies. The following programs and subsidiaries operate together to fulfill our mission: Eldercare Services Institute, LLC; Rose Centers for Aging Well, LLC; Empowering and Strengthening Ohio’s People (ESOP); Margaret Wagner Apartments; Center for Research and Education; and Community Advocacy. For more information visit:www.benrose.org.

About CHN Housing Partners

Founded in 1981, CHN Housing Partners is a large-scale affordable housing developer, housing service provider and residential lender that works with its partners to solve major housing challenges for low-income people and underserved communities in Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and New York. CHN partners with utility companies, financial institutions, and public agencies to manage and deliver large-scale housing resources. CHN also partners with people—low-income individuals, families, seniors, the disabled and the homeless—to improve their housing stability. CHN’s impact in Cleveland includes 3,200 new homeowners, the housing stability services it provides annually to more than 50,000 individuals, and the development of 7,000 new homes. CHN is a chartered member of the NeighborWorks America network. http://www.chnhousingpartners.org   

About KeyBank Community Development Lending and Investment

KeyBank Community Development Lending and Investment (CDLI) finances projects that stabilize and revitalize communities across all 50 states. As one of the top affordable housing capital providers in the country, KeyBank’s platform brings together construction, acquisition, bridge-to-re-syndication, and preservation loans, as well as lines of credit, Agency and HUD permanent mortgage executions, and equity investments for low-income housing projects, especially Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) financing. KeyBank has earned 10 consecutive “Outstanding” ratings on the Community Reinvestment Act exam, from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, making it the first U.S. national bank among the 25 largest to do so since the Act’s passage in 1977.

About KeyCorp

KeyCorp’s roots trace back nearly 200 years to Albany, New York. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Key is one of the nation’s largest bank-based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $198 billion at March 31, 2023. Key provides deposit, lending, cash management, and investment services to individuals and businesses in 15 states under the name KeyBank National Association through a network of approximately 1,000 branches and approximately 1,300 ATMs. Key also provides a broad range of sophisticated corporate and investment banking products, such as merger and acquisition advice, public and private debt and equity, syndications, and derivatives to middle market companies in selected industries throughout the United States under the KeyBanc Capital Markets trade name. For more information, visit https://www.key.com/. KeyBank is Member FDIC.