Number 213 March 10, 2023 St. Louis
JP Celebrates Women’s History Month
The month of March is designated to honor the people who somehow always find a way to juggle it all: women! Specifically, this past Wednesday, March 8th, marked International Women’s Day, which was first officially recognized in 1977. Despite the tremendous strides women have made in the workplace and beyond in the over four decades since, a great deal of progress still needs to be made to realize true gender equity. For instance, according to a recent study, in 2022 only 63% of women were using the Internet compared to 69% of men. When women are unable to utilize the Internet, it creates barriers to independence such as freely accessing their bank account and other financial assets. Having access to such resources allows women to adequately care for their household, and grow wealth through becoming home and business owners. In that spirit, here are a couple of our female clients who made that happen for themselves.
Lacie Liabraaten of Elevated Events
With a background in hospitality management, Lanie Labraaten came to Justine PETERSEN so she could do more of what she loves: help people make their events more memorable. Elevated Events offers a variety of services in the Greater St. Louis Area such as party packages with balloon designs that includes setup, balloon-filled party favors and gifts, and machine rentals.
Kalonda Cloyd and Tashauna Parker of Gamers Island
In their second business venture with JP, Kalonda Cloyd and Tashauna Parker (pictured here with JP’s Chief Partnerships Officer Shawna Collier and Asset Building Counselor Franchot Cunningham) are bringing female representation to the male-dominated industry of gaming. Located in Downtown Ferguson, Gamers Island has a number of different gaming stations for open play, events, or private parties.
JP African American Business Clients Recognized on Billboards
If you’ve been driving around the Greater St. Louis Area the last few weeks, some new billboards may have caught your attention. From February 23rd thru March 10th, 11 of Justine PETERSEN’s clients were featured on digital billboards to celebrate African American business ownership. Outfront Senior Account Executive Barbara Sills, a previous JP client, wanted to pay it forward for newer JP clients by getting the word out about their businesses. JP’s Business Assistance Manager Marcus Bolden, who supported efforts on this project, said the most fulfilling aspect was twofold, “what really struck me was how a client came back to us wanting to help other clients, and then had the vision to get their names out into other areas and communities that maybe wouldn’t otherwise know of them this early stage into their business journeys.” The billboards these businesses are featured on were in Metro East Illinois, South County, West County, Highway 170, and Kirkwood. In addition to the two pictured here, Fallin Artis’ Lanett Good Eats and Mandela Welch’s Mandela’s Soulfood Cafe, the other JP clients featured were:
- Ameer Walker’s Celano’s Family Pizzeria
- Ashley Fisher’s Virtuous Properties
- Georgia Haynes-Lee’s Mistory Dance Company
- Kalonda Cloyd and Tashauna Parker’s Under Grace Home Health Agency
- Laurie Harris’ Harrisville Cleaning Company
- Lawanda Davis’ Armor of Love Home Healthcare
- Lindsey Wold’s Amygdala Co.
- Shannon Ladd’s Simply Chic Locs
Justine PETERSEN’s Business Assistance Team is designed to support our small business clients in a variety of ways. While often taking an individualized approach to an entrepreneur’s needs, they also host a number of virtual group programming with guest presenters. These presentations are free, and we encourage all to attend to gain new insights. Below are a few coming up soon..
Mortgage Assistance for Illinois Homeowners
As a HUD certified counseling agency, Justine PETERSEN is here to support. We encourage anyone interested in learning more about mortgage assistance and the application process to contact us by emailing JPHomeTeam@justinepetersen.org. More information can also be found here.
Happy Birthday, Tatiana!
Justine PETERSEN wishes a most delightful birthday to our Asset Building Manager, Tatiana Gillum! Tatiana brings enthusiasm where ever she goes – whether it’s connecting with her colleagues, meeting with clients, or forging new partnerships. We hope she’s felt celebrated in the same way this week..