Nonprofits for North Omaha Businesses
Nonprofits for North Omaha Businesses
By: A student at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, as part of Heather Nelson’s Service Learning class.
With the state of the economy the way that it is, small businesses are especially taking a hit. However, there are various nonprofits in the Omaha Metro area where their mission is to support smaller, more local businesses particularly in Northern Omaha.
Nebraska Enterprise Fund
The Nebraska Enterprise Fund Organization launched back in 1994 with a mission to help provide financial need and mentoring to smaller businesses in Nebraska. According to their website, they have supported “2,000 small businesses, created over 5,000 jobs, as well as successfully loaned over $150 million total.” Their number one goal is to help underserved communities and give them an equitable representation. This work has also been done within the North Omaha area too. Back in 2021, Nebraska Enterprise Fund hosted their From Startup to Success event for the seventh time, in Omaha. ‘It’s significant to be here in the North Omaha area because this is an area that is mostly undeserved, so we want to get that information out there to them,” said BC Clark, Director of Training for Nebraska Enterprise Fund’ (Omaha KMTV, 2021) Not only does this have a positive effect for North Omaha, but that then ripples all throughout Nebraska.
For more information, visit them at https://nebbiz.org/
GROW Nebraska Women’s Business Center
Established in 2021, GROW Nebraska Women’s Business Center set into motion to support underrepresented, women owned businesses in Omaha. “Entrepreneurial density for urban and suburban start-ups presents a unique challenge and opportunities that are presently unmet for women-owned businesses in the Omaha Metro area… The GROW Nebraska Women’s Business Center (GNWBC) is focused on intentionally creating a community of aspiring and established women entrepreneurs to connect, grow and prosper together.” Businesses thrive when they can collaborate and support one another, and GROW sees this. With a focus on veterans and minority groups, this organization makes it their mission to aid marginal groups reach a new level of success.
For more information, visit them at https://gnwbc.org/
SPARK
SPARK is a nonprofit organization that was founded in 2016 by Jamie Berglund. Their mission is to help underdeveloped neighborhoods by filling financial gaps, promoting community engagement, and marketing to investors/developers about these said areas. A little goes a long way and this company is doing what they can to reverse the effects of long-term redlining, especially in areas of North and South Omaha. “The North Omaha Trail will provide a critical transportation, economic, recreational, and public health link that will tie into the Paxton Boulevard Trail and connect several North Omaha neighborhood anchors including the North Omaha transit station at 30th & Ames, the Kennedy Square redevelopment, the 24th & Lake Historic District, and eventually North Downtown.” SPARK continues to keep the spark and culture alive in Omaha.
For more information, visit them at https://www.sparkcdi.org/
What You Can Do to Support
Nonprofits such as these and many more have shown their gratitude for the Omaha Metro area and have given back especially to the North Omaha community. Like these organizations, you can help as well! Shopping small and locally is crucial. Even if you cannot afford to shop locally, donating your time to volunteer for these organizations also would be extremely beneficial. Smaller businesses are still recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic and considering that micro-businesses make up more than 75% of all organizations in Omaha, it is important that we do what we can to support our community.
For more information visit Freedomtainment.
Works Cited
Davis, D. (2021, October 22). Moving forward: Nebraska Enterprise Fund helps take North Omaha businesses to the next level. KMTV 3 News Now Omaha. Retrieved March 1, 2023, from https://www.3newsnow.com/news/moving-forward/moving-forward-nebraska-enterprise-fund-helps-take-north-omaha-businesses-to-the-next-level
Filing, S. (n.d.). Microbusiness funding: Small business mentoring. Nebraska Enterprise Fund – “Partnering for what’s possible.”. Retrieved March 1, 2023, from https://nebbiz.org/
GNWBC. (n.d.). Retrieved March 1, 2023, from https://gnwbc.org/about/
Spark. (n.d.). Retrieved March 1, 2023, from https://www.sparkcdi.org/