Coastal Communities Consulting Inc

Causes: Human Services, Personal Social Services

Mission: Coastal communities consulting, inc. (ccc) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that provides technical assistance and social support services to rural entrepreneurs and their families. Our guiding principle is that rural economies depend on the intersection between strong businesses and strong families. Rural enterprises are often staffed or financed by family members, and their proceeds primarily fund asset-building with familiar structures. Therefore, placing an equal emphasis on both is central to a vibrant rural economy.

Programs: Technical assistance to disadvantaged entrepreneurs: the ccc provides one-on-one technical assistance to small business owners on a daily basis. The program was designed to assist and educate minority, non-english speaking, and american business owners with limited formal education improve in all areas of their business. This includes small business licensing, permitting, and compliance; credit packaging for business loans; and application assistance for grants or other federal, state, local, or corporate support programs for small businesses. Under this program we also initiated the fishermen wives association to empower and educate the women behind the commercial fishing business for their husbands. The ccc is in the recruiting stage for the association and hopes to be able eventually established an ongoing independent association in the future.

family support services: this program extends services to the business owners as well as their family members. The ccc provides translation services for non-english speaking accessing public assistance or legal services; reading and explaining child support or other family related government/legal correspondence to clients with literacy issues; making referrals to below-market rate legal, medical, educational, or other services; and providing assistance with mental health, first time home-buying, or childcare services. Under this program, the ccc also provides immigration services such as applying for and renewing permanent residency, gaining citizenship through naturalization, securing passports, and other national documents.

economic development in rural communities: the ccc collaborates with industry task-forces seeking to market rural products and create jobs by partnering with universities and other organization to provide new technologies that improve efficiency and profitability for rural enterprises; and disaster response and relief. In addition, the ccc works with state and local agencies to provide job training and computer skills.