With the help of the Four Bands Community Fund, Kali Hale was able to work at the Cheyenne River Youth Project and save money for college. Photo from FBCF
Loans to create jobs
CRST’s Four Bands Community Fund to invest $750,000 in business development By Talli Nauman
Native Sun News
Health & Environment Editor EAGLE BUTTE –– The Four Bands Community Fund received a $750,000 loan to help create jobs and spur rural development on the Cheyenne River Sioux Indian Reservation and in Native American communities around the state of South Dakota, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced Jan. 23. "These loans will help businesses create jobs, expand their operations, invest in materials and equipment, and promote their success and growth,” Agriculture Under Secretary Lisa Mensah said in announcing a total of five awards worth an overall $2.55 million in loans to non-profits around the country. "Helping rural businesses get access to investment capital is one of the most effective ways to help rural economies grow," she said, noting that the loan program prioritizes access to credit for small businesses in poor and underserved areas. USDA Rural Development is providing the money through the Intermediary Relending Program (IRP), destined for local organizations that create revolving loan funds for businesses. The Four Bands Community Fund is on a mission “to create economic opportunity by helping people build strong and sustainable small businesses and increase their financial capability to create assets and wealth.” Founded in 2000, it has a portfolio of thousands of rural entrepreneurs, including graduates of its CREATE (Cheyenne River Entrepreneurial Assistance Training and Education) Program and participants in its Youth Entrepreneur Internship Program, among other initiatives. For example, Robi Miller, a recipient of Four Bands support, opened The Daily Bread Bakery on the prairie of the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation, to offer homemade breads, rolls, pastries, and decorated cakes that avoid use of preservatives, artificial flavoring, and coloring, which characterize mass-produced baked goods in grocery and convenience stores. Alexia Ziegler opened a Maui Wowi Hawaiian Franchise, with a Four Bands loan that enabled her to set up a vendor’s cart offering coffee and smoothies at events around the Rapid City area. Kali Hale received a paid internship to work the community garden and in other capacities at the Cheyenne River Youth Project; and used the money for college. Aaron Runs After secured a Four Bands Credit Builder Loan to improve his rating 90 points, making him eligible for a mortgage, and allowing him to buy a home in Eagle Butte for his five children. After completing a financial literacy course, working with the staff at Four Bands for six months, Jeremy Bollinger was able to obtain a microloan to start Anytime Heating & Cooling on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation. He then enrolled in Four Bands’ Green Cheyenne River, a program designed to help entrepreneurs adopt environmentally friendly practices, reduce energy bills, increase profits, and strengthen local economy. Altogether Four Bands Community Fund has served about 5,000 clients. It has approved 278 Credit Builder Loans and 433 business Loans for a total of more than $4 million. It claims to have created and retained 440 jobs as the result of its lending packages. Some 350 people have graduated from the CREATE class. Another 520 individuals learned how to improve their financial literacy. At least 120 youth gained life skills, got work experience, and set up matching savings funds through the Youth Entrepreneur Internship Program. The Fund also exposed 2,500 students to concepts of financial literacy and entrepreneurship through its Making Waves program. The other four organizations that received USDA funds for their revolving loan programs in 2015 are: Mississippi's North Central Planning and Development District, selected to receive a $600,000; Iowa’s Newton Development Corp., to receive $200,000; New Hampshire’s Coastal Economic Development Corp., receiving $500,000; and the Missouri Agricultural and Small Business Development Authority, receiving $500,000. (Contact Talli Nauman at talli.nauman@gmail.com) Copyright permission Native Sun News
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