Chicago Community Ventures Blog

AmeriCorps Week - Manjima's Experience

This is part of a series of posts supporting AmeriCorps Week.  The below post was written by current CCV staff member, Manjima Bose.

I joined the AmeriCorps*VISTA program after graduating from undergrad, not realizing how much being involved with the program was going to influence my professional career and personal interests. I spent my service year here, at CCV, as a Grant Writer. With experience in grant writing, and arts and humanities organizations, I had little experience with the small business world. Unknowingly, I had stumbled into an industry that would become a passion of mine, only later realizing the role small businesses played in my life, and the importance of those experiences.

AmeriCorps*VISTA volunteers have played a tremendous role in CCV’s success. As a small nonprofit, the support our VISTA volunteers provide to staff is integral. From supporting staff working with clients on marketing efforts, financial analyses to formalizing and creating new program initiatives to assisting with CCV’s own marketing and fundraising efforts, VISTA volunteers have been involved in every aspect of CCV.

VISTA volunteers have:

• Directly helped CCV raise over $400,000 in program support
• Provided over 1700 hours in support of CCV’s services
• Created 5 course curriculums for clients, topics ranging from Marketing and Sales to Pricing
• Supported the implementation of our pilot Place-Based Community Initiative in Cottage Grove
• Helped reshape the structure of our loan program leading to higher success rates
• Provided need assessments, market analyses and financial analyses for over 50 clients
• Expanded CCV’s marketing efforts through social media by creating a blog which is viewed by over 500 people monthly and by creating a Facebook page and LinkedIn group for CCV which have helped CCV connect with over 140 individuals

CCV recognizes and greatly appreciates the hard work and dedication of the individuals that take part in AmeriCorps. The value they provide to nonprofits nationally is invaluable. Thank you for the continued support of our past and present VISTAs – we look forward to continuing to partner with these dedicated individuals to serve Chicago’s small businesses!

AmeriCorps Week - Lauren's Experience

This is part of a series of posts supporting AmeriCorps Week.  The below post was written by current AmeriCorps VISTA staff member, Lauren Foukes.

The VISTA experience for me has provided me with both professional and personal growth. I came from a background in corporate marketing where resources were in abundance (as was money).  Needless to say, transitioning to a small non-profit with limited funds was hard at first.  However, what I like about working here is the opportunity to be truly hands on.  If I want to create marketing collateral?  Better start designing.  Create a new volunteer initiative?  Sure, let us know how it would be structured.  Working in a small environment provides flexibility and the opportunity for fast turn around.  Worlds away from the bureaucracy of corporate life.

Easily the best part of working at CCV has been meeting entrepreneurs and learning about the small businesses they run.  I have met several incredible business owners like Faie African Art, Agriculture, Sensual Steps and Bronzeville Coffee & Tea who are working together to create a stronger business corridor in Bronzeville.  I've had the chance to work with social entrepreneurs like The Enterprising Kitchen that is developing the work force through job training.  Further I have seen the impact that businesses like Workforce Language Services can make to bridge the cultural and language gap in the workplace.  Each entrepreneur plays an important role in our economy - creating jobs, economic activity and thriving communities.  I believe firmly in the role of small business to create a stronger economy.

While professionally I have grown over the past nine months, I think the more meaningful part of my VISTA has come from the personal growth.  Something that a lot of people don't know is that VISTA is entirely focused on poverty alleviation and all VISTAs are compensated at the national poverty line (go ahead and look it up, it's not much).  Aside from being very cognizant of my budget, being compensated at this level has allowed me to really reflect on what poverty means in the United States.  Stirring questions like "How are we defining poverty?" and more importantly "What structures are we putting in place to eradicate it?" 

Poverty doesn't look the same here as it does in the developing world.  In many ways, poverty is "hidden" here at home and we need activists, like VISTAs, uncovering these hidden ills.  I had lived in Chicago for two years and felt like I "knew" the city fairly well.  I was wrong.  There were entire neighborhoods I had never heard about, let alone had a sense for what economic activity was going on there.  If anything, being a VISTA has given me a new lens and perspective in which I view the world around me and instilled a greater need to be a part of solutions that make this world better.

I encourage anyone who truly wants to make an impact on the community around them to explore the organizations that are a part of the AmeriCorps VISTA program.  The VISTA year has provided me with invaluable life lessons.

AmeriCorps Week - Hussain's Experience

This is part of a series of posts supporting AmeriCorps Week.  The below post was written by current CCV staff member, Hussain Bhanpuri

My VISTA year

My VISTA year at Chicago Community Ventures was a learning experience. I was able to obtain exposure to various small businesses and entrepreneurs and gain a much better perspective of Chicago’s neighborhoods. When I first started as a VISTA at CCV, I assisted in a new program called Small Business Development Initiative, a program designed to help 11 businesses located in the mid-south and near-west neighborhoods of Chicago. The goal was to help develop these businesses to achieve a higher level of growth, which in turn would allow them to create jobs, bring money into the communities they resided through taxes, and bring in more traffic to these communities. I helped put together training workshops that dealt with various issues regarding running a business. We also offered technical assistance on a one-on-one basis to the businesses within the program.

The Small Business Development Initiative was essentially a pilot program which was a great learning experience. Through this program, I was able to meet many of Chicago’s entrepreneurs that help make-up the character of this city. While I did have previous small business experience as I’ve helped my father run a business for several years, I did learn a great deal more working with the individual businesses and learning of the issues and obstacles they face as a small business. I was able, along with other co-workers, to establish existing relationships with these businesses and really work with them on a hands on basis. Throughout the year, I felt a good sense of community involvement, as I was able to collaborate with other community development organizations that had the same goals of promoting economic development. It also made me realize what resources are out there for small businesses, but at the same time, how challenging it is to gather those resources in an efficient manner to be effective.

I also assisted in managing CCV’s loan portfolio for our small business loan fund. Working in this capacity provided me with good insight into the challenges of community lending and maintaining relationships with borrowers to make sure payments are made and provide the technical assistance many businesses owners don’t receive when obtaining financing.

By the end of my year as a VISTA, I was still working on the same programs, and due to the great relationship I had with Chicago Community Ventures, I stayed on as a paid employee of the organization. This helped a lot, as the organization still had someone who knew the programs and familiar with the businesses we were already working with.

How VISTAs have benefited CCV over the years

VISTAs are a crucial component to Chicago Community Ventures. They add value in offering fresh perspectives combined with the eagerness and compassion to make a difference, of which is CCV’s bottom line. VISTAs come from all facets; some straight from school and some who are in the middle of their professional careers. The VISTAs that have been with CCV have come with experiences from the business, banking, and also community development fields, all of which are important to help CCV reach its goals and objectives. As with many nonprofits, CCV has the responsibility with having funds and grants go towards actual program expenses and always posing a challenge to obtain quality people. Through the VISTA program, that was never really an issue, and many of the VISTAs have actually stayed on as employees after their year of service. In addition to that, many of the VISTAs have stepped up to the various responsibilities bestowed upon them through their year of service. This flexibility and wide array of skill sets has been a great asset to the organization.

CCV Supports AmeriCorps Week

At CCV we spend most of our time focusing on the small business community here in Chicago, but given our non-profit status we can't help but be energized by some of the legislation that has recently come from the White House.

One piece of legislation that affects us in particular is the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act which expands the national service programs administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service.  The Corporation engages four million Americans in result-driven service each year.

One of The Corporation's programs that CCV has been able to take advantage of for several years is the AmeriCorps VISTA program.  Each year we receive highly talented individuals who commit a year to helping CCV expand its services as well as provide our clients with professional consulting and financial services.  Through the VISTA program we have access to talent and resources we might not otherwise have been able to afford. 

This week marks the third annual AmeriCorps Week which aims to spread the word about the AmeriCorps service programs.  As a way of showing support, we will be posting personal stories from current and past Chicago Community Ventures VISTAs here on our blog throughout the week.  We also will keep the widget on the left panel up to provide the most recent news from The Corporation.  We're grateful for The Corporation for their continual support of CCV and look forward to future years with AmeriCorps VISTA volunteers!