I had the privilege to meet Don Maxwell early in 2019 while working on an Opportunity Zone project for the Kauffman Foundation. He sat down with me and told me his entrepreneurial journey in the urban core and along the Prospect Corridor. I was fascinated to learn of his history and of the obstacles he faced and overcame as a black businessman. That is when he shared with me his vision to found the Prospect Business Association and that is when I joined as soon as I could. Ever since then, my journey with the PBA has been an enriching and rewarding one, meeting wonderful entrepreneurs and visionary leaders such as Simone Curls who just earned the title CEO of the Prospect Business Association (even though she has already been in charge of it since Don hired her years ago)! Too often, there are too many deserving entrepreneurs left out of Kansas City's entrepreneurial support ecosystem. Too often, there are too many successful and accomplished entrepreneurs left out of Kansas City's business narrative. The PBA is overcoming those legacy obstacles which makes me very proud to be an active member of the PBA!
PBA helped me get all my legal documents in order to file my LLC in Missouri. They’ve also connected me with resources and job opportunities and are always looking for ways they can support. To have something like this available for FREE really makes a difference for small business owners like myself