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PLUS: • BUSINESS MINUTE Page 4 • NONPROFIT NEWS: Womens Fund of Southwest Iowa
WOMEN’S FUND OF SOUTHWEST IOWA Awards $57,250 To Six Nonprofits in largest grant cycle
Pottawattamie County Community Foundation announced that the Women’s Fund of Southwest Iowa, an initiative of the Foundation, has awarded $57,250 in funding to six organizations during its latest and largest grant cycle.
Grants to Applied Information Management Institute (AIM), FAMILY, Inc., Mills County Public Health, Neola Betterment Corporation, Project Pink’d, Inc., and Senior Futures, Inc. will support programming and projects that are focused on improving the quality of life and well-being of women and families in southwest Iowa.
“Over the last year, the Women’s Fund has begun a wave of solutions-based impact because of the generosity of our community,” said Donna Dostal, president and CEO of Pottawattamie County Community Foundation. “We know that when we invest in the success and well-being of women in our communities, the benefits and outcomes have a positive effect throughout our region. During this funding cycle, we are pleased and excited to work with a dynamic group of nonprofit partners as they provide real solutions to create durable positive movement toward helping women and families throughout southwest Iowa.”
- Applied Information Management (AIM) was awarded $13,750 to help recruit and support women in their Southwest Iowa Tech Training Initiative, a program designed to help participants learn the technical foundation needed to gain access to the metro-area’s fastest-growing H3 (high-demand, highskill, and high-wage) technology careers. The Southwest Iowa Tech Training Initiative annually serves over 100 individuals residing in the following Iowa counties: Pottawattamie, Mills, Montgomery, and/or Harrison County.
“We are grateful to have the commitment and support of the Women’s Fund of Southwest Iowa,” said Kandace Miller, president and CEO of AIM. “This funding will allow us to expand the reach of our Southwest Iowa Tech Training Initiative to area schools and do a women-focused recruiting campaign. Through the Southwest Iowa Tech Training Initiative, we will help address the need for more tech professionals in the Southwest Iowa region. By connecting interested parties to a comprehensive training program that aims to connect, develop and transition local talent to resources, mentors, and opportunities in technology, we will create new tech workers that will help the Southwest Iowa area thrive.”
-FAMILY, Inc. was awarded $10,000 to support their Maternal Health Program, a program that provides nursing education and psychosocial support to pregnant women in Pottawattamie and Mills Counties who are on Medicaid through six weeks postpartum. The Maternal Health Program’s explicit goal is to make sure more babies can celebrate their first birthday (prevent infant mortality) and improve birth outcomes, and accomplished through family centered, community-based services. “By supporting the Maternal Health program through FAMILY, Inc., the Women’s Fund of Southwest Iowa made potentially life-saving resources available to women at one of the most beautiful, and yet challenging, moments in their lives,” said Kimberly Kolakowski, executive director of FAMILY, Inc. “The personalized, in-home nursing and social work services provided through this funding will help women through their pregnancy and up to six weeks post-partum with the supports they need to keep themselves, and their child, healthy. We know well that a healthy and whole parent dramatically increases their child’s chances for success in the future. We are honored to partner with the Women’s Fund of Southwest Iowa in making that happen!”
- Neola Betterment Corporation received $10,000 to support First Street Cottages, an affordable and safe senior-friendly housing development in Neola, Iowa. Grant funding from PCCF will help subsidize the program cost of assisting senior citizens as they age-in-place with safe, senior-friendly housing and access to supportive services.
- Project Pink’d was awarded $5,000 to support Healing Heart Survivor Kits. Developed for breast cancer survivors by Project Pink’d survivors, the Healing Hearts program provides kits to individuals who have been newly diagnosed with breast cancer, with hopes of making treatment a little easier. A first within the region, each of the chemotherapy, radiation and surgical kits contain everything needed to make survivors more comfortable, and the personal touch of a hand-written note from a Project Pink’d survivor is sure to brighten their day. From 2019-2020, Project Pink’d provided over 1,489 kits to hospitals throughout Western Iowa and Eastern Nebraska. Breast cancer survivors are faced with many unknowns throughout their treatment journey. While each mode of medical treatment is different and uncharted territory for the patient, Project Pink’d, Inc. wants survivors who are going through the battle to know they are not alone.
- Mills County Public Health was awarded $13,500 for their Wits Workout Curriculum, a brain health program developed by the University of Illinois Extension. Drawing on brain health and aging research, the Wits Workout program focuses on brain exercises for all adults ages 50 and older. The interactive program provides increased socialization and promotes intellectual engagement, all of which complement current aging brain health research.
- Senior Futures, Inc. received $5,000 to support the purchase of lawn and snow removal equipment to be used when providing services for lowincome senior citizens in Harrison and Pottawattamie counties. The mission of Senior Futures, Inc. is to provide a multitude of services to the elderly and disadvantaged, including but not limited to: health services, home maintenance, repairs and chore services, transportation and escort services, and telephone reassurance services.
as featured speaker at the Impact for Women Summit on October 28
As the Women’s Fund of Southwest Iowa initiative continues to grow and build tangible solutions for issues facing women and their families throughout our communities, Pottawattamie County Community Foundation is hosting the inaugural Impact for Women Summit on Thursday, October 28 at Ameristar Casino Hotel Council Bluffs.
The hybrid event that will be a mix of in-person and virtual attendees, will include special guest speakers, Debi Durham, Director of Iowa Economic Development Authority and Iowa Finance Authority, and Dawn Oliver Wiand, Executive Director of the Iowa Women’s Foundation, to address the observable and real gap in funding of women’s initiatives and childcare in southwest Iowa. The event will conclude with keynote speaker, Elizabeth Smart – a survivor, New York Times best-selling author, and national advocate for change related to child abduction, recovery programs, and national legislation.
The abduction of Elizabeth Smart was one of the most followed child abduction cases of our time. Elizabeth Smart was abducted on June 5, 2002, and her captors controlled her by threatening to kill her and her family if she tried to escape. Fortunately, the police safely returned Elizabeth Smart back to her family on March 12, 2003, after being held a prisoner for 9 grueling months.
The Founder of the “Elizabeth Smart Foundation”, she has also helped promote The National AMBER Alert, The Adam Walsh Child Protection & Safety Act and other safety legislation to help prevent abductions.
The Women’s Fund of Southwest Iowa has tremendous sponsorship support from business leaders and individuals in our community to make this year’s Summit a reality. Extended appreciation goes to Premier Platinum Sponsor, Brunow Contracting and Tamara Brunow, for her generosity, enthusiasm and strong commitment in support of the Summit at the top sponsorship level.
“As a woman business owner, I feel that I have a duty to support the Women’s Fund of Southwest Iowa’s Women’s Summit as a way to give back to our local community,” said Tamara Brunow, founder and president of Brunow Contracting. “It is imperative that Southwest Iowa protects, identifies, and supports women, at all stages of life, education, and career. Keeping the women of Iowa empowered and healthy makes for stronger families and strong female role models for our future generations to look up to.”
The Women’s Fund of Southwest Iowa also recognizes the generosity of the following Diamond-level supporters for this year’s event: Ameristar Casino Hotel Council Bluffs, Jeff and Cristy Ballenger, and US Bank; and Sapphire-level supporters: Jerry Banks Group, Hoy Kilnoski Funeral Home & Crematory, Jennie Edmundson Foundation, Methodist Physician’s Clinic, and Cutler-O’Neill-Meyer-Woodring Funeral Homes & Crematory. Special thanks also goes to Andee Hoig and her team at Metro Magazine as the official media sponsor of this year’s Summit.
A limited number of in-person tickets are available for purchase on Pottawattamie County Community Foundation’s website for $50 each. Additionally, as a Covid-19 precautionary measure for individuals and businesses unable to attend in-person, PCCF will be offering $30 virtual tickets for guests to support the event from the comfort of their office or home, as well as join from across the state of Iowa.
For additional information about tickets and sponsoring this year’s Summit, visit the Foundation’s website at www.ourpccf.org or contact 712.256.7007.
POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION
October 28, 2021 8:00am - 1:30pm Ameristar Casino Hotel Council Bluffs $50 In-Person Tickets LIMITED AVAILABILITY! $30 Virtual Tickets www.ourpccf.org
Special keynote speaker Elizabeth Smart Jeff and Cristy Ballenger
GUIDING principles
FOR STARTING A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS
There are many ways to start a business but for the company to succeed, entrepreneurs must keep certain guidelines in mind.
The first is to ask the right questions, according to Julian Young, founder and CEO of Julian Young Business Advisors.
“What problem are you solving?” he said. “Who are you solving the problem for? How painful is the problem to your customers? A pain point is something that lessens the quality of life for someone. If on a pain scale of 1 to 10, a problem is a 2, they might pay you one time, but you can’t build a business on that.”
One thing successful entrepreneurs have in common is a desire to continuously improve, to create, and gritty determination, according to Joseph Frost, founder and CMO of yorCMO and Frost Media Group and a board member of EO Nebraska.
Young suggested finding a business adviser or consultant.
“They aren’t there to do all the work for you,” he said. “Advisers are like a business co-pilot — they help the entrepreneur steer the plane and navigate the journey. A consultant will help you organize your thoughts and understand [how to execute] your creative plans. They’ll save you time, money, resources, and a ton of mistakes.”
An entrepreneur must determine whether bringing on an outside partner — be it a bank, angel investor or fund — is critical to the growth of their business, according to Erica Wassinger, general partner of Proven Ventures, a Burlington Capital fund.
“Many entrepreneurs forget that raising money means returning that same money with some type of multiple,” she said.
When determining whether to raise money, an entrepreneur must consider alignment and the end game.
“Make sure you seek investors that add more than dollars to your account in a one-time wire transfer,” Wassinger said. “Look for partners that will help with your scaling of sales, recruiting of employees, and coaching as you grow the business. Above all, make sure you follow the money when seeking outside investors. Know how they get paid back and ensure you’re on board with that direction.”
Young said one mistake new entrepreneurs make is not taking the time to turn their assumptions into evidence.
“A lot of entrepreneurs confuse a startup with an existing business,” he said.
“As a startup, you’re searching for a scalable and repeatable business model.
Wassinger sees a common mistake of entrepreneurs seeking validation from anyone but their customer base. “Entrepreneurs that carefully choose how they spend their time and money, specifically in ways that generate real growth — like sales — win every time,” she said. “Those that enjoy big crowds and bright lights often get so distracted with vanity metrics that the businesses languish.”
Growth should be based on how the market is performing, based on the firm having done its due diligence, Young said.
“Understand the size of the market as it pertains to where you are doing business,” he said. “If you’re doing an online economy business and have a
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national market, you need to understand the industry and the footprint of that market. If the business is local, you need to understand the market size and opportunity of that community.”
Frost suggested growing as fast as the market will allow.
“Beware that growth is cyclical so don’t think it will always be scaling,” he said. “There will be a slow-down and cash crunch. Hire slow [and] fire fast.
Determine the key roles [for employees], what you love to do and don’t. Hire others that love what you don’t love.”
Wassinger said entrepreneurs should seek scale without losing sight of sustainability.
“Growth at all costs can be damaging to a startup,” she said. “You lose focus, and you lose ownership of the business.
Entrepreneurs should make sure that the values and mission of the business are aligned with the values they live in their daily lives.
“The business will always grow you before you grow the business,” Young said. “It’s not about the business you’re growing but who you’re becoming in the process. The process of growing a business is committing to the process of becoming a better person, a better leader, and, hopefully, becoming a better business owner.”
MBJ
