Hello there!  

We are celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday this year with deep gratitude for you. 

This year alone, the support you have given us has directly impacted the lives of 321 individuals struggling to open or grow their businesses.

We just completed our first ever Start Something New Jersey celebration, our most successful Global Entrepreneurship Week ever. With the help of a wide range of visionary sponsors, we were able to reach thousands with our message of supporting local entrepreneurs to grow their businesses and hundreds more with the information, access to resources and new opportunities they need to start something particularly in low-income communities. Educational panels and seminars, opportunities to meet and hear from key leaders, networking events, a resource fair, an online video competition, and a full-blown arts festival and marketplace were just a few of the highlights from the week. We are grateful for all the distinguished speakers and panelists who volunteered their time to share valuable information, give feedback and encourage entrepreneurs at every level - from idea-stage to start-ups to mom-and-pops to those looking to grow fast. Not only did the turn-out surpass our expectations, but we are grateful for the fantastic feedback we continue to receive on the events. In the coming days and weeks, stay tuned for updates and reports on this special initiative via the Start Something NJ social media on Twitter and on Facebook.  

I am typing these words to you on this holiday eve surrounded by boxes as we move to our new headquarters at 334 Martin Luther King Drive in Jersey City. Not only is this new space large enough to comfortably host our expanding team, but it is also large enough to afford us more space for our entrepreneurs to be able to use a computer or have a private business meeting. This is a major milestone two years in the making. We are especially thrilled to stay in our founding neighborhood that resonates so deeply with our mission.

As we approach the end of the year, I know that there will be much more to look forward to... the graduation of our newest entrepreneurs from the Community Business Academy and the culmination of our first ever Essex County CBA session for a total of 500 entrepreneurs served!

There are not enough words to express our gratitude other than to say thank you for joining us on this journey! 

I also want to extend a heartfelt thank you on behalf of our Board of Trustees to the staff at RTC who work tirelessly to execute on our mission at the highest level possible, to our funders and supporters who are integral to making all of this work possible, to all of the partnering organizations we work with day in and day out, and above all, to our entrepreneurs for carrying on the torch that guides our efforts. 

Happy Thanksgiving! 

Sincerely,
 
Alfa Demmellash, CEO

Rising Tide Capital