RDF Moves to its Roots in South Phoenix, the Heart of the Community: Join Us To Celebrate!
It’s time! We’ve been sharing the news and construction updates over the last year, and the time has finally arrived. We are moving to our new headquarters in the heart of South Phoenix. As a national CDFI nonprofit, RDF’s mission is to responsibly invest capital into the community and we recognize that in order to do that, we must be where the community needs its capital. For us, South Phoenix more than made sense. It brought us back to our roots, where the inspiration for a Hope Fund, now RDF, was given life. You’re invited to a community Grand Opening. …
Meet Candice Gonzales: Former RDF Intern Turned Small Business Owner
Once a part of the RDF team, you’re always a member of the Familia! That’s why we love reconnecting with our former interns. In the spirit of National Women’s Small Business Month, we are proud to cheer on Candice Gonzales, owner of the House of RemiRose bridal boutique. She interned for three summers, and she is now a part of the South Phoenix small business owner community. “I am very proud of her and what she’s accomplished,” shares Star Reyes, RDF’s Client Services Manager, Candice’s intern supervisor. “She’s a fighter and I am so glad to have had her as my …
Supporting the Healing Power of Music: Reflections from David Clower, RDF’s Chief Investment Officer
“Music can change the world because it can change people.” – Bono Music is a way to heal. It’s a tool used to develop creative, collaborative, and communication skills; but more than that, it enhances social awareness and eases anxiety. But the best thing is when you teach someone music, it’s a gift they’ll have forever. At the Raza Development Fund, we strive to create better opportunities for Latino and poor communities – and especially our youth. Every day we look for new and innovative ways to support our young people by investing in schools, education initiatives, and other programs …
Public Servants Supporting Our Community with PPP Loan Forgiveness
Our Small Business Initiatives team at Raza Development Fund consider ourselves public servants who strive to do everything we can for our clients and our community. Now that the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program is over, we are assisting our PPP clients through the loan forgiveness process. To date, at least 50% of RDF’s 489 PPP clients have either received full loan forgiveness or submitted for forgiveness. For our clients, this allows them to continue stabilizing their business with peace of mind. For us, it brings us a sense of accomplishment knowing we were able to help a small …
RDF Supports Small Businesses With 3 Major Challenges to Accessing Capital
Raza Development Fund’s Small Business Initiatives team is committed to supporting our micro and small businesses. Due to recent pandemic closures and constant changes, our small businesses have been hit hard, with many struggling to keep their doors open. According to the Small Business Administration, SBA, small businesses are the lifeblood of the U.S. economy creating two-thirds of net jobs. It’s imperative to support our small business owners, especially during these turbulent times. At RDF, we’ve supported 489 small businesses through the SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan process. Last year, our Hope Fund provided grants to 111 small businesses. …
RDF Celebrates Hispanic Heritage
At the Raza Development Fund, our Familia is thrilled to celebrate Hispanic Heritage month. Just as we are passionate about serving our Latino community, we enjoy spotlighting our heritage and culture. The Latino culture is rich and vibrant – our language, food, art and music – brings beauty to our families, to our communities and to the country as a whole. In our Latino community, we stick together and help each other out. We carry this into our work every day at RDF as we strive to provide capital, capacity and cariño into our community while having pride in our roots. This is the energy we’ll carry into our new building. As a national nonprofit, …
RDF Invests In Its Familia: Meet Fernando Ortega, Jr.
Raza Development Fund is proud to welcome Fernando Ortega, Jr., RDF’s Loan Operations Specialist, to our team of experts. Fernando brings experience in client relations, loan documentation processing and administration, portfolio management and Small Business Administration lending. He joined the Familia earlier this month with passion to serve his community and contribute to RDF’s mission. Just as RDF invests capital in its community, it invests in its Familia. Fernando looks forward to overcoming obstacles and pursuing his dreams of attaining higher education– with RDF’s support. Join us as we get to know Fernando and cheer on his upcoming education journey …
Lessons From the Field: Best Nonprofit Leadership Style to Support Growth
Throughout my career, I have helped educate and inspire nonprofit organizations to maximize their potential. While working with these nonprofits, I’ve observed a few similar styles in leadership that may limit the nonprofit’s growth, as well as a best practice to strengthen the organization’s ability to fulfill its role in communities. My experience has shown me that a nonprofit’s value and growth trajectory is often linked to its commitment to maintaining a continuous connection to the voice of their communities to inform and shape their work with them. Common Nonprofit Leadership Styles: The Inspirational Leader: They know they have a …
RDF Listens & Continues to Build Trust with Small Business Owners
The Raza Development Fund listens to our small business clients and strives to continue to support them. Last May, RDF hosted a series of Focus Groups with COVID-19 Hope Fund grantees and PPP loan recipients where we took the time to listen to their needs and learned from them. In 2020, we realized early on that we had a responsibility to support immigrant and minority business owners overcome the challenges of the pandemic. To meet the need, our Small Business Initiative (SBI) went from a two-person team to a seven-person team in the matter of less than twelve months. After …
RDF Lends Support to UnidosUS Affiliates
The pandemic has exacerbated longstanding issues for organizations serving under-resourced areas. In our commitment to our communities, the Raza Development Fund strives to support nonprofits through these challenges to come out stronger. As a support organization of UnidosUS, RDF has sought to fill this need during and beyond the pandemic. In May of 2020, RDF brought together a select pool of talent to support UnidosUS affiliates and launched the Affiliate Support Program (ASP) initiative – aimed at empowering affiliates to better understand their organizational dynamics (e.g., governance, program-service financial flows, information streams, and community positioning) and unique value proposition to …
