Continuing to Ensure the Dreams of our Clients
Continuing to Ensure the Dreams of our Clients
On January 9th, BCNA’s Board of Directors met to discuss and adopt BCNA’s Strategic Plan for 2014 to 2016. While renewing our ongoing commitment to achieving scale, efficiency, and quality of services, and setting new goals to ensure continued transparency and accountability in the financial management of our programs, we also reminded ourselves of what truly inspires us and makes our work meaningful: being able to support clients like Esther Varney, a refugee from Liberia, and Shah Yafi, an immigrant from Bangladesh, as they build their own American Dreams.
After fleeing Liberia, Esther Varney lived in a refugee camp in Ghana for 
several years before her family was able immigrate to the US with just the clothes on their back and the dream of making a new life. After completing High School, Esther worked at various jobs, saved money, enrolled at the Empire School of Beauty, and became a licensed hair stylist certified in cosmotology.
A loan of $2,000 from BCNA’s Microloan Program for Refugees (which is funded by the Office of Refugee Resettlement,) enabled Esther to rent a chair at a neighborhood hair salon. After working there for two years and building her clientele, Esther returned to BCNA for help in developing a business plan for a business of her own. A second loan of $6,000 from BCNA’s Loan Fund (which is funded by the SBA) has now enabled Esther to open her own salon. "I know that I have to continue to work hard to make this business a success," she says, "but owning this business and being my own boss gives me the energy I need to do that."
Shah Yafi, who is from Bangledesh, is typical of many of the educated young 
immigrants living in New York who make up the workforce in many of the city’s successful companies. Yafi has always wanted to work for himself, however, and one of his dreams is to own a full-service delicatessen in Queens, that would rival Manhattan’s famous Katz’s Deli. He already had the inspiration, the determination, a solid business plan, and adequate start-up capital. But with construction beginning last September and an anticipated grand opening date in early 2014, the final piece of the puzzle was having sufficient operating capital to support the first six months of operations. "I had my construction and start-up costs," says Yafi, "I just wanted that extra cushion, that peace of mind in knowing I had enough money to keep things going while I built my customer base."
Impressed with Yafi’s business management skills and the investment he had already made with his own savings, BCNA loan officers helped him submit an application to BCNA’s Loan Fund for $25,000. His application was accepted and he received a loan, made possible by a grant from Opportunity Finance Network ‘s Create Jobs for U.S.A. Fund. That loan will give him the capital he needs to open in February of 2014 and to create at least four full-time jobs.
We’re glad that 2014 is off to auspicious start for our clients and are looking forward to helping them with their continued success!