ABOVE: Jerome Love, Texas Black Expo Founder and CEO
Houston was recently represented in a major way in the nation’s capital, as local entrepreneur and Texas Black Expo Founder and CEO, Jerome Love, took the stage with national dignitaries and corporate leaders as a featured speaker at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s 7th Annual Building Resilience Through Private-Public Partnerships (PPP) Conference in Washington, D.C., July 24-25.
Love joined a group of high-profile leaders from the private and public sectors including Airbnb, Nextdoor, Insperity, FEMA, UPS, Booz Allen Hamilton, Johnson & Johnson, IBM and others. The conference focused on preparing, responding and recovering from catastrophic disasters and the cooperation necessary between sectors to aid in recovery.
“It was an honor to represent the city of Houston and small businesses from across the state at this event,” said Love. “Having been on the front lines of disaster recovery with small businesses after Hurricane Harvey, I can say with certainty there needs to be additional programming and training that teaches entrepreneurs how to survive in business as well as consistent financial support. We strongly believe businesses build communities, and we want to do our part to advocate for Texas entrepreneurs in order to improve the quality of life for all Texans.”
The PPP Conference examined best practices and lessons learned among public and private sectors as well as the opportunities for the private sector’s continued support to build a culture of resilience.
As an example of that resiliency, Love spoke about how the Texas Black Expo’s founding of the Hurricane Harvey Small Business Relief Fund immediately after the storm supported small businesses in the greater Houston area impacted by the devastation. Through grassroots efforts, the organization raised and distributed $27,000 worth of micro-grants to small businesses and continues to raise funds in hopes of helping companies on an ongoing basis, whether during a natural disaster or other crisis.
During the Texas Black Expo Summer Celebration this past June, Love announced the creation of the Texas Small Business Emergency Micro-Grant Source, an initiative that will act as a reserve for local businesses in need of sources for equipment, supplies and financing to help these firms stay afloat.
The Texas Black Expo (TBE) has a mission to foster business growth and development, educate and expose youth to the world of entrepreneurship, and provide events to inform, economically empower and establish the local community. TBE is best known for its two major events: its Black Expo Summer Celebration and its Lunch and Learn business development seminars.
For more information, visit www.TexasBlackExpo.com.