All you need when you come to Wolfpack is an idea: KB has a knack for pulling an idea out of a client’s head and creating the perfect design

Pies are a fun challenge for her, and she loves finding ways to make anything and everything into a pie.

Anissa Keyes, President and Founder, started Arubah Emotional Health Services to address the complex emotional and mental needs of individuals in this community. Some examples of complex trauma or needs includes children in the Child Protective system, individuals out of incarceration, children falling behind school and unemployment. This means that their clients have bigger barriers and disparities to receiving proper mental health services. Arubah, which in Hebrew means the

Chanida Phaengdara Potter, Founder and Community Architect, started The SEAD Project to address the needs and issues of local Southeast Asian diaspora communities (Hmong, Lao, Khmer and Viet). These communities historically have been impacted by the Vietnam War and share many similar experiences. Chanida ventured into starting a nonprofit organization to address war and generational trauma that the community faces. The SEAD Project is dedicated to service and uses community e

With over 20+ years of catering and bartending experience under her belt, Wendy Puckett always had a passion for cooking for others and decided to make her dream a reality by starting her own business, Wendy's House of Soul. Wendy embarked upon the journey of entrepreneurship with a desire to own something for herself and her family; while realizing that she could do something that would make her happy for the rest of her life. Wendy's House of Soul has been supported by comm

A portrait of Jaequan Faulkner, Mr. Faulkner’s Old Fashioned Hot Dogs by Mecca Bos The first time I meet Jaequan Falkner, he’s setting up his hot dog stand in front of the Fire Station 14 on North Minneapolis’ Lowry Avenue. Like any good business person, he’s on his cell phone, troubleshooting: he needs extension cords and he’s out of onions. Would-be customers are already milling about waiting for a crack at a Mr. Faulkner’s Old Fashioned Hot Dog. From the Star Tribune to t

Sammy’s Avenue Eatery is a coffee shop with a small town feel located in the heart of the business district in north Minneapolis. The menu includes coffees, artisan sandwiches and soups, and desserts. Since opening in 2012, owner Sammy McDowell has been building the business from the ground up. After working in and managing restaurants as well as running a full-service catering company for almost two decades, Sammy knew he could create his own restaurant. As an experienced ch

By: Aleli Balagtas NEON and Metro Blooms started working together in 2016 as partners providing growth opportunities for businesses seeking to enter the field of landscaping. “Metro Blooms has been our champion – familiarizing us with landscaping techniques and walking us through the process of how to do it,” says Sheltonn Johnson, Project Manager of NEON Property Maintenance (social enterprise). The first project between two organizations was a clean water and environmental

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Northside Economic Opportunity Network (NEON) | September 20, 2018 Minneapolis, Minnesota - The Northside Economic Opportunity Network (NEON) received notice of receipt of the CDFI Program Award for Technical Assistance from the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI), September 19, 2018. This year CDFI awarded 264 organizations with $187,041,119 in financial and technical assistance awards (nationally).

Maria Little-Arnold had a dream to pursue entrepreneurship after being inspired by her children. After becoming an "empty nester" when her children were older and started their own lives, Maria was motivated by her daughter after being in discussion about television and entertainment and how it portrayed women. Maria is passionate about changing her life and the lives of her children, future, family and community and decided to start Acronym Village to promote positive words

Minneapolis, Minnesota - The Northside Economic Opportunity Network (NEON)’s Board of Directors is pleased to announce the appointment of Warren McLean as President effective August 20, 2018. McLean comes to NEON with over 30 years experience and an extensive background in fundraising, finance, strategic planning and innovative program development. Prior to joining #TeamNEON, Warren led the Community Reinvestment Fund (CRF) as the Vice President of Development, where he led

Crystal Lerma loves to dress and has a keen eye for fashion. After realizing how infrequently her clothing was worn, she ventured into entrepreneurship to open a upscale thrift store so that her customers could take advantage of the California retail market - in the midwest. Crystal has built her business model on accommodating her clientele, offering extended business hours and appointments to make customers feel special from the time they walk in to the time they walk out.

Ousman Camara grew up around businesses and entrepreneurs as a child. After gaining operational experience from a friend who owned a store, Ousman decided to venture into entrepreneurship. K's Grocery is a "one stop shop" - with a business model aimed at serving the needs of many customers seeking neighborhood convenience. K's Grocery strives to serve those looking to spend within the north Minneapolis community to ensure wealth is circulated within the northside. In the futu

Today we have the pleasure of welcoming Anna Schmiel to #TeamNEON! Anna is excited to work at NEON this year. Last year, Anna was an AmeriCorps member at College Possible, and is excited to learn more about the programmatic side of nonprofits. Anna graduated from Carleton College in 2017 with a degree in Political Science/International Relations. During her time at Carleton, she conducted field research on post-dictatorship economic development in Southeast Asia and the econo

Watch Fox 9 News special by Dawn Stevens: http://www.fox9.com/home/entrepreneur-turned-hardship-into-a-successful-business "My biggest reason for starting my own business was that I never wanted anyone being in control of my DESTINY! Not saying that there’s anything wrong with working a typical “9-5” but everyone is different and I enjoy the feeling of being my own boss! I love being independent so I figured it was time for me to step up my game and take a chance at becoming

In 2011, Nausheena Hussain entered the nonprofit world as a newly minted grant writer. She observed in the Muslim community that there was an abundance of charitable giving and wealth, but it was all individual donor based. She also noticed women were donors, doing the work, but never acknowledged or in leadership roles. Coupled with anti-Muslim rhetoric, a rise in discrimination and hate towards Muslims, she realized something needed to be done. So, in September 2015, Naushe

Typically, it’s a shared love of food that bring food business partners together, but for Trio Plant Based, that’s only the beginning. After Sarah and Dan Woodcock decided as a couple to go vegan in concern for animal welfare, their journey took them deeper into social justice issues than they could have imagined. As the Woodcocks became increasingly concerned and active community members, they joined a group of activists in a Black Lives Matter march. As it turns out, the ma

We are excited to announce that Kenneth Caldwell will be exclusively featured during the FLOW Northside Art Crawl in NEON Spaces on Thursday, July 26 and Friday, July 27 from 4-8 p.m. and Saturday, July 28 from 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. (Register for FLOW at https://caldtoartpainttime.com/special-events). Get to know Kenneth Caldwell Through many artistic mediums, Kenneth focuses on catering to the community and black culture by utilizing a combination of images and music to create a

When Juan Lozano was a kid, he worked as a migrant worker with the rest of his family, traveling from Texas to Washington to work in produce fields. As far as he was concerned, it was a normal childhood. “I didn’t know any better. To me, this was life.” But still, it was work. Hard work. One day, his aunt called him inside to eat. “Pansa llena, corazon contento,” she told him in Spanish: “Full belly, happy heart.” “It was a feeling of comfort when she told me that,” says Loza

Ineye Bobmanuel embarked on his entrepreneurial journey with hopes to leverage his skills and talents through real estate opportunities that lead to wealth-building strategies fueled by financial knowledge and education. Bobmanuel's ideal tenants are those who desire to rent property or individuals motivated to sell an existing property. As a member of NEON Spaces, Bobmanuel has a passion to continue to expand his business within the next 12 months, hiring 2 employees while w