GROW Nebraska Among Recipients of $700,000 SBA Grant

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has announced seven awardees of $700,000 in new grant funding for continued projects to promote the development, success, and long-term survival of Native American firms eligible for assistance under the SBA’s 7(j) Management and Technical Assistance Program. Among those seven businesses is GROW Nebraska (BuyNebraska.com), with a funding amount of $100,000! GROW Nebraska will work with partners, Lakota Hope Center and the University of Nebraska–Lincoln (UNL) Extension, to capitalize on the talents and interests of entrepreneurs on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and in the Whiteclay, Nebraska area to create a group of entrepreneurs who work together and support each other as they build scalable small businesses that will generate a livable income for the business owner and his/her family, create jobs, and have a positive impact on Reservation residents. With this grant, GROW Nebraska, Lakota Hope and UNL Extension will create an innovative, entrepreneur-focused program that builds and supports a powerful business strategy for each participant involved in the program. To learn more about assistance provided to Native American small businesses and SBA’s Office of Native American Affairs, please visit www.sba.gov/naa.

GROW Nebraska member, Lakota Hope Center, is a ministry serving the Lakota Nation specifically the Risen Warriors (street people) of Whiteclay and Pine Ridge. Lakota Hope also reaches out in different ways to encourage and promote healthy, economically self-sufficient native individuals and families–helping artists and crafters to make a life-enhancing wage with traditional and contemporary items. Shop Lakota Crafter items on BuyNebraska.com.