Sowing seeds of opportunity in northwest florida

A new citizen-led initiative for Northwest Florida families will provide free personal finance and wealth building classes. These classes will offer financial coaching and an optional community investment club component that will provide grants for small business startups, all using a crowd-funding campaign every 90 days. Fall registration is now open for chapters in each of the five counties of northwest Florida. Classes will begin in September.

Roughly two-thirds of Americans dream of opening a small business, according to UPSStores' Inside Small Business Survey. The Census Bureau reports that approximately one fourth of our population is on some type of government assistance program. By 2023, the Bureaus of Labor Statistics predicts that an alarming number of our elderly will not be able to leave the workforce or will be forced to return to the workforce because they can’t pay for their basic necessities of food, housing and healthcare.

Local resident Nancy Gaskins found those statistics appalling and created this program to promote entrepreneurship, raise awareness, increase financial literacy and provide affordable options for everyday families to build wealth.

"Our focus areas of learning will be how to increase income, decrease debt, become automated savers, investors and philanthropists by creating multiple streams of passive income. This can all be accomplished by education, coaching and provide affordable opportunities to collaborate to fund and launch small business startups in communities across America," Gaskins said in a press release.

To support this project as a donor, sponsor, grant applicant, participant, volunteer or training site, email Nancy.Gaskins@operationHSH.com or call 499-7149.

This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Sowing seeds of opportunity in northwest florida