CNote | Blog | Where Finance Meets Impact
Blog
Where finance meets impact.
How Terri-Nichelle Bradley is Bringing People of Color Representation To Target’s Toy Aisles
Terri-Nichelle Bradley used to be frustrated with her job. What had begun as an exciting career with Sesame Street Live had shifted to working for a multi-national public relations agency. If handling corporate crisis communications wasn’t enough, Terri-Nichelle also had to carry the burden of being the senior-most Black woman at the company. She was…
Meet Kaua’i Federal Credit Union, The CDFI Investing In Its Island Community
“I never thought I would end up working in a financial institution,” says Ivory Lloyd of Kaua’i FCU. Samoan born and raised on Kauaʻi, in her college years, she worked in non-profits mainly focused on sustainability. With an undergraduate degree in political science and an international master’s degree in sustainable development and corporate social responsibility,…
How Metropolitan Economic Development Association Is Scaling Itself To Shrink Minnesota’s Racial Wealth Gap
Over the course of their careers as inpatient nurses, Murwo Elmi, Ikraan Abdulle, Farhia Abdulahi, and Faiso Abdulle have seen a bit of everything. From their first shifts, the Minneapolis-based health professionals have cared for patients struggling with mental health, chemical dependence, physical and cognitive limitations, and homelessness. After 10 years, however, the group shared…
Meet Lorain Francis, Whose Full-Time And Volunteer Jobs Are To Fight Food Insecurity In Maine
Although Lorain Francis hasn’t always worked on the frontlines of food insecurity, she’s been surrounded by volunteerism for as long as she can remember. Lorain grew up in Fairport, New York, where both of her parents were active volunteers in the community. Unsurprisingly, when Lorain grew up and owned a local retail business, she started…
Easy As C-C-C: How Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs Uses Capital, Coaching, and Connections to Help Georgia’s Small Business Owners Thrive
Martina Edwards knows what it’s like to be given an opportunity to break down barriers. Thanks to a nonprofit that helps place high-achieving graduates of color in Wall Street firms, Martina started her career in 2001 and became Merrill Lynch’s first Black female broker on the floor of The New York Stock Exchange in 2004.…
Authentic and Shareable Impact: Best Practices for Credit Unions
On May 24th, 2022 CNote hosted a webinar alongside CUNA Strategic Services where they discussed best practices for credit unions to follow when measuring impact and sharing their impact stories. Title: Authentic and Shareable Impact | Best Practices for Credit Unions Brief Summary: Credit unions and other mission-driven depository organizations create financial inclusion and further…
How Toni Hopkins Embraced Her Entrepreneurial Side To Open Cool J’s Apparel During The Pandemic
In the years leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic, Toni Hopkins and her husband talked about moving from their home in Springfield, Illinois to North Carolina to pursue what she describes as “something different.” They’d even gone as far as to meet with a real estate agent to explore selling their house. Ultimately, the couple…
How Project Fighting Chance Is Going Beyond The Boxing Ring To Build Trauma Resiliency In San Bernardino’s Youth
When Terry Boykins was first approached to serve on the board of directors for a nonprofit called Project Fighting Chance, the social entrepreneur politely said “thanks, but no thanks.” It wasn’t because Terry wasn’t aligned with Project Fighting Chance’s mission to function as a viable safe space and trauma resilience support system for youth in…
Meet Mellaney Williams, The Big Dreamer Behind American Home and Commercial Services
When Mellaney Williams and her husband graduated college and moved to South Carolina in 2001, Mellaney’s husband got himself involved in the irrigation installation trade. However, what started as a side hustle quickly turned into something much bigger, as demand for him and his services grew. Soon, American Home and Commercial Services LLC was doing…
Investing In Black-owned Small Businesses To Close the Racial Wealth Gap
There is a staggering disparity between the wealth of Black communities and their white counterparts in the United States where wealth is the difference between financial and social mobility and terminal economic insecurity. In 2019, Black households, on average, had 14.5 percent of the wealth of the average white household. This disparity is reflected throughout…