The article that I read for this blog post is from Crain’s Detroit Business magazine titled “Southwest Economic Solutions receives $3.5 million from Kellogg Foundation” by Sherri Welch. This article goes on to explain the monetary impact that the Kellogg Foundation has had in aiding the continuation of Southwest Solutions and its entrepreneurial subsidiary, ProsperUS Detroit. The article explains the milestones that ProsperUS Detroit has set for itself by the conclusion of 2019, which includes an additional half a million dollars in microloans and impact in the neighborhood of 500 entrepreneurs through lending, training, and technical assistance. ProsperUS Detroit is unique in the fact that it helps almost exclusively minority entrepreneurs in the great Detroit area. I support this grant funding from the Kellogg Foundation to the greatest degree. I of course seem slightly biased due to the fact that I am interning at ProsperUS Detroit. I do not think anyone can honestly be reading an article like this and oppose such grant funding after seeing the quantitative data that accompanies ProsperUS Detroit’s track record. I however think that I am in a much more credible position to qualify such funding because I have seen ProsperUS Detroit’s qualitative impact. I have seen how far reaching and life changing this nonprofit has been and will continue to be to members of the community. I have talked to an auto repair mechanic who was on the brink of shutting down his shop and seeking another profession until he crossed paths with ProsperUS. Now his business is reaching heights he never could have imagined all because of this various assistance given to him. When you even mentioned the word ProsperUS to him, his face lit up like a kid on Christmas morning. He spoke nothing but high praises and gratefulness for ProsperUS Detroit. Another example of gratitude shown towards ProsperUS Detroit occurred when Ava and I were instructed to call recent graduates of the entrepreneurship training class to get an update on the status of their business. Most people would answer the phone slightly agitated to be receiving a phone call in the middle of the work day. However, by simply saying that I was from ProsperUS the tone of individual on the other end of the line changed immediately. Most people would say similar things: “How are you,” “How can I help,” “I would love to talk to you,” and things of that nature. It was incredibly refreshing to hear such overwhelmingly positive responses. This just further validates the Kellogg Foundation’s grant assistance to such a deserving and impactful organization.
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