A partnership between your Community Foundation and the Boulder Chamber is heeding the call for assistance to sustain small, local businesses as they fight for their survival.
We know the crucial roles small businesses play in building inclusive communities and a healthy economy.
Yet the impact of COVID-19 on small businesses in Boulder County and beyond is devastating. To bounce back, also in ways that advance a more equitable future, we need to prioritize small businesses in our recovery efforts – especially while, as reported by Forbes, the federal response to the pandemic has been uneven.
A partnership between your Community Foundation and the Boulder Chamber is heeding the call: together, we’re responding to the urgent need for assistance to sustain small, local businesses as they fight for their survival.
Says Lynda Ricketson, the foundation’s Vice President of Philanthropic Services, “The Boulder Chamber reached out to us to help them respond to the plight of small businesses in Boulder. We quickly established a fund and a corresponding fundraising page to raise funds for small grants to small businesses. Part of this was establishing an independent and objective advisory committee to review the requests and recommendations.”
Our mutual goal? To expedite financial support for temporary relief for small for-profit and nonprofit organizations facing unexpected expenses, which are extra challenging to cover during this period of business inactivity.
Community impact
Among the recipients of the Boulder Chamber COVID-19 Small Business Relief Fund is Boulder County Farmers Markets. We checked in with Executive Director Brian Coppom recently to find out how the Chamber’s small business grants – up to $2,500 per business, totaling about $400K – are making a difference for his organization:
“With the grant from the Small Business Relief Fund, we were able to purchase equipment and supplies needed to safely open the Boulder Farmers Market,” says Brian. “From hand-washing stations to cones needed for guiding foot traffic, these investments are critical in continuing to support the local food system.
“Having the support of the Boulder Chamber and Community Foundation Boulder County makes a world of difference to us in these difficult times.”
All told, 148 grants have gone out to Boulder businesses, helping to cover unexpected, one-time expenses due to COVID-19 that aren’t eligible under other grant and relief programs.
“The impact of the Small Business Relief fund is testament to the positive progress we can make when the City of Boulder works in partnership with our business leaders to achieve critical community goals,” says John Tayer, President and CEO, Boulder Chamber. “It’s this same partnership that will get our economy back on its feet, return essential revenue to our municipal budget and address the devastation we’ve all experienced, particularly vulnerable populations, due to COVID-19.”
While the Boulder Chamber and the Community Foundation were pleased to spearhead this initial critical support effort, both organizations recognize that there are many ongoing pressures as impacts of the pandemic evolve, and as local businesses reopen.
