WS Chronicle

Representatives from Mechanics and Farmers (M&F) Bank and Fiserv, made a stop in Winston-Salem to present Dr. Linda McRae, founder of HOPE Counseling and Consulting Services, with a $10,000 check earlier this week.. HOPE, which is an acronym for Healing Our People and Environment, is the second small business in North Carolina to receive funding from the Empowering Growth Small Business Grant.

The grant will provide a total of $50,000 to support small businesses in Durham, Winston-Salem, Charlotte, Greensboro and Raleigh. James Sills, CEO of M&F Bank, said they wanted to embrace small businesses across the state and help them grow into multimillion dollar businesses.

“We want to wrap our arms around the small business winners,” Sills continued. “We just want to create five multimillion dollar businesses a year for the next five years.”According to Sills, Fiserv, which is a global technology and payments company for banking and commerce, approached them with an idea to award $10,000 grants and they jumped at the opportunity. “We said we want to be a part of this program and want to bring it to North Carolina,” Sills said.

Nicole Valentin-Smith, vice president of client engagement at Fiserv, said making investments in small businesses, ensures communities like Winston-Salem contribute to closing the racial wealth gap. “There are two key factors in closing the racial wealth gap, home ownership and entrepreneurship, in communities of color,” she said.

During the event earlier this week, Mayor Allen Joines thanked M&F Bank and Fiserv for investing in Winston-Salem. Joines, who is the city’s longest serving mayor, said he’s a strong believer that small businesses are the heart and soul of the community. “This program that you have is amazing,” said Joines when discussing the Empowering Growth Small Business Grant. “I love the idea of creating multimillion-dollar companies, five per year for the next five years. That’s going to pay dividends for everybody.”

To be considered for the Empowering Growth Small Business Grant, businesses must be a customer in good standing with M&F Bank, have an annual gross revenue of $500,000 or less, have less than 10 employees, have a digital footprint and meet other requirements.

Recipient of the Winston-Salem grant, HOPE, provides programs and supportive services in a respectful manner to improve the quality of life for individuals, families, and the community. HOPE’s mission is to provide programs and services that seek to address the whole person, spirit, soul, and body. Currently, HOPE offers services in Forsyth, Davie, Stokes, Rockingham, and Davidson counties.

After being presented with the $10,000 check on Tuesday, April 23, Dr. McRae thanked everyone who played a part in the grant process, including the staff at the Winston-Salem branch located on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.

Dr. McRae said when she was looking to get a loan to grow her business a few years ago, four different banks, including some that she had banked with in the past, turned her down. But when McRae sat down with Evelyn Acree, senior vice president of M&F’s Winston-Salem branch, she felt right at home. Thanks to M&F Bank, a few years ago, HOPE was able to open its 6,000 sq. ft. corporate office on Akron Drive.

“I am grateful to be seen. When I came to Mechanic and Farmers and I met Evelyn, I was seen,” McRae continued. “I can’t say that about every bank. We go in and we can deposit lots of money and still not be seen.”

Founded in 1907 in North Carolina, M&F Bank is the second-oldest African American-owned bank in the United States. With $453 million in total assets, M&F Bank is the eighth-largest African American-owned financial institution in the United States and is the only Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and minority-owned bank in North Carolina. The bank’s mission is to promote personal and community development by providing capital to small- and medium-sized businesses in its local communities.

M&F Bank serves thousands of customers and operates eight locations throughout Durham, Raleigh, Greensboro, Winston-Salem and Charlotte. To learn more, visit www.mfbonline.com.