Oakland CARES Act: Business Outreach and Support

To provide linguistically and culturally appropriate business outreach and support, EWD contracted with community-trusted business organizations at Council direction.

Posted: February 4th, 2021 2:20 PM

Last Updated: March 23rd, 2021 4:52 PM

Program Overview

The following organizations provided intensive outreach and case management to small business owners in their respective communities to bolster awareness and ensure equitable participation in various city, county, and state grant programs. Their outreach efforts were multi-pronged, combining phone calling, emailing, social media posting, and minimal in-person contact. Many provided one-on-one support to help owners complete the various grant applications and helped businesses owned by immigrants, non-English speakers, and minorities. Combined, these organizations assisted more than 1,600 small businesses.

  • The Unity Council ($100,000)
  • Latino Chamber of Commerce ($100,000)
  • Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce ($100,000)
  • Chinatown Chamber of Commerce ($100,000)
  • OCCUR ($100,000)
  • African American Chamber of Commerce ($100,000)
  • East Oakland Community Development Corp/Entrepreneurship Forum ($100,000)

Testimonials

"Gracias al Oakland Latino Chamber of Commerce pude salir de muchos apuros. Estaba atrasada de renta, de pagos de cuentas y facturas. La verdad no lo podía ni creer cuando me llego el email que me iban a dar el CARES Grant de $10,000. ¡Cuando yo vi un mensaje en mi teléfono, estaba en Ingles, y vi Los $10,000 y fue lo único que entendí! ¡Pero, yo me alegre!" "Thanks to the Oakland Latino Chamber of Commerce, I was able to get out of many problems. I was behind on rent, behind on paying invoices, and bills. When I saw the message on my phone, it was in English. It said $10,000 and that was all I understood, but still I was so happy! It was something incredible!" Maria Ponce, Owner, Estética Unisex Mary’s

"A la Oakland Latino Chamber of Commerce gracias por venir a mi restaurante y por darme la ayuda para llenar la aplicación. Recibir Los $10,000 fue muy emocionante porque Los necesitaba muchísimo." "Thank you to the Oakland Latino Chamber of Commerce for coming to my restaurant and giving me help with how to complete the CARES Grant application. To receive the $10,000 CARES Grant was very exciting because we needed it very much." Estrellas de Sinaloa, owner, Elizabeth Cárdenas

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