The Only One in the Room: Black Entrepreneurs of the Flint Hills

Article originally published on 11/15/2024 by the Kansas Health Foundation here

Sheila Ellis-Glasper had been active in multiple business groups around the greater Manhattan, Kansas, area, but eventually, “I grew pretty tired of being the only one in the room like me,” she said. When starting their own business, she and her husband, Jermain Glasper, had faced plenty of the challenges typical for Black entrepreneurs, notably lack of access to capital or business resources and little mentorship. “We bootstrapped our own social media and branding company, navigating hurdles around securing loans and scaling the business without much external support.”

Building Solutions

That experience drove the business partners to found Black Entrepreneurs of the Flint Hills (BEFH) in 2020. Its mission is to help Black and economically-disadvantaged entrepreneurs thrive with resources, mentorship, and access to capital to create generational wealth. BEFH partners with regional and state entities to provide resources for minority-owned businesses, works to create an inclusive community where members can feel they belong, and promotes member- and other minority-owned businesses.

BEFH’s four-point action plan includes:

• seeking access to funding through a mix of grants, loans, and investments supplemented with technical support with the goal of improving quality of life for Black and diverse communities;

• boosting visibility of Black-owned businesses with targeted media campaigns, events, and social media;

• providing training, resources, funding access, and more through partnerships with culturally competent and relevant businesses; and

• driving conversations around equity challenges, including discussing actionable solutions for wealth disparity and health inequities.

Read the full article here.