Story - ProsperUs Detroit

Valerie Brock | Women’s History Month

Valerie’s choice to carry on her family’s legacy in learning and education made her realize just how much our society undervalues early childhood education. She believes our culture has devalued our children’s capacity to learn at a young age, as evidenced by her struggles to secure funding. Appealing to funders with a model like this when education “is so often wealth-driven instead of human-driven” has made it difficult to gather capital for the construction of the school building and space.

Women’s History Month 2021 Intro

Celebrating Women’s History Month is an acknowledgement of the amazing accomplishments of women despite the unique barriers we face, often in intersectional ways depending on the culture and body we are born into.

Nezaa Bandele | Black History Month

And, although she has struggled as a Black woman, having to “work twice as hard to navigate structural challenges”, she has found the support to expand her network and continue her journey in feeding her community. She is a natural-born go-getter and doesn’t let barriers hold her back.

Lester Gouvia | Black History Month

Lester struggled with the funds to get his business on its feet at first due to being an immigrant, he felt lenders did not take him seriously. He applied for many loans with other lenders and was denied on numerous occasions but after a short conversation with our Senior Loan Officer, Matthew Bihun, he was met for the first time with the same passion and commitment he felt for his dream of owning his own business.

Words of an Entrepreneur: Lanay Gilbert

I could not answer simple questions about my spending at first, but by the end of our first session, I could see exactly what was happening with my finances. She reviewed my credit report and bank statements with me to help me to see my pattern of spending. I was absolutely amazed!

Tramaine Seay | Black History Month

As a young Black woman and entrepreneur, she has learned to take pride and confidence in what she does. When she first started, she heard a lot of “Oh you’re the photographer?” type of comments in disbelief that she could be great and self-taught.

Merrit Family | Black History Month

During the pandemic, the coffee shop has received support from people in the community who made a conscious effort to support Black-owned businesses. The neighborhood lacked a coffee shop before The Narrow Way Cafe & Shop, so folks were sympathetic to the cause of keeping the business afloat.

Word of an Entrepreneur: Regina L. Ward

Upon meeting with her and taking a look at all of my information together, I began to see that it wasn’t as bad as I thought. Don’t get me wrong, my credit score is not good, but the road to fixing it would be a journey, but as long as I stuck with it, I would be fine.

Jennifer Lyle | Black History Month

Although she lost four pitch competitions in a row, Jennifer made sure every loss came with a learning opportunity and she came back to win over fourteen pitch competitions and grants which allowed her to debut her own production facility in Eastern Market. Lush Yummies Pie Company pies can now be found in national chain grocery stores, local markets, and she ships her pies nationwide through online sales despite recent struggles and adaptations around COVID-19.

Jerome B. Brown & Samuel VanBuren | Black History Month

Jerome and his brother Samuel took the time to get to know the community in the neighborhood where they planned on establishing their business to better understand their needs, and Detroit Soul was born. A farm-to-table soul food restaurant with healthy food options made available to folks who often lack access to these choices.

Category: Story