For Immediate Release
Contact: Karen Taylor Bass,
917-509-3061
The Harlem Business Alliance Announces The Lillian Project:
Inspire, Empower & Eliminate Obstacles for Native-Born Harlem Women Entrepreneurs
New York, NY – August 10, 2016 - The Harlem Business Alliance (HBA) of Harlem, New York has always been on the forefront for leading community economic development. Harlem Business Alliance has launched, The Lillian Project, to create an incubator for Harlem women to educate, empower and eliminate the challenges that are unique to low-income and minority business entrepreneurs. Applications for the project are available on the website, www.thelillianproject.org and due by August 23, with finalists selected by August 30.
The project is supported by a $300,000 grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation of Battle Creek, Michigan.
"The Harlem Business Alliance under the direction of executive director, Regina Smith, is a gem in this community. The positive effect the organization has had on individuals and businesses is immeasurable, however, The Lillian Project is extra special in that is it laser focused on a specific demographic. This is about a community of black women charged to put the lives of other black women on a trajectory for success; women who may not have had the opportunity without this program, it's a game changer for all involved,” says Gina B. Ramcharan, project director of The Lillian Project.
With five dollars and a dream, Lillian Dean Harris aka ‘Pigfoot Mary’ became one of Harlem’s wealthiest entrepreneurs, at the turn of the 20th century. She is the inspiration behind the The Lillian Project.
· The project will facilitate and teach an intensive entrepreneurial program for 100 native-born, low income Harlem women, through July 2018.
· Educate, mentor and coach master skills needed to start and grow a business while providing hands-on support with strategic planning, business development, financial aptitude and implementation.
· Concentration on technology to compete in a growing industry; help women entrepreneurs obtain financing from sources other than traditional banks.
The Harlem Business Alliance has pledged its service as an advocate for the preservation and retention of Harlem's business community for over 36 years. Programs included and not limited to: Harlem’s first co-working space; first adult stem program; 10,000 entrepreneurs served through programs and services; 2,000 entrepreneurs received 1-1 counseling and over 1,200 workshops.
Ramchran added, “At the HBA, we have raised the bar and expectations in how business is done. The success of our entrepreneurs to open businesses, showcase their products at tradeshows, secure finance, garner media awareness and win numerous awards speaks volume about the dedication and professionalism of the staff at the Harlem Business Alliance. With this grant, we are able to bolster, build and shape confident women into entrepreneurs providing them with a pathway out of poverty. We all know that once a black woman gets started, she is unstoppable.”
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About the Harlem Business Alliance
The Harlem Business Alliance (HBA), was founded in 1980 by a group of prominent Harlem business leaders who recognized the void that had resulted from years of disinvestment and abandonment in Harlem and the critical need to mobilize the existing businesses and organizations to come together as a collective voice. Incorporated in 1990 as a class 402 501(c)(3) corporation, HBA has worked diligently to establish Harlem as an economically self-sustaining community. For more information, visit www.hbany.org.
About the W.K. Kellogg Foundation
The W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF), founded in 1930 as an independent, private foundation by breakfast cereal pioneer, Will Keith Kellogg, is among the largest philanthropic foundations in the United States. Guided by the belief that all children should have an equal opportunity to thrive, WKKF works with communities to create conditions for vulnerable children so they can realize their full potential in school, work and life.
The Kellogg Foundation is based in Battle Creek, Michigan, and works throughout the United States and internationally, as well as with sovereign tribes. Special emphasis is paid to priority places where there are high concentrations of poverty and where children face significant barriers to success. WKKF priority places in the U.S. are in Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico and New Orleans; and internationally, are in Mexico and Haiti. For more information, visit www.wkkf.org.
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