CBA Hosts Community Enrichment Meeting for Northern Ireland Group
The Chatham Business Association (CBA) hosted the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action (NICVA) at the QBG building, 806 E. 78th St., last week for a special meeting constructed around NICVA’s desire to learn more about CBA’s community, economic development and youth engagement programs.
NICVA is a collection of organizations from Northern Ireland that provide lobbying, research, fund raising, and a host of other community services. Governed by its Executive Committee, the NICVA has well over 1,000 non-profit, for-profit-organizations and independent agencies and has been in existence since 1933 when it was formerly known as the Northern Ireland Council for Social Services (NICSS).
Before traveling to Chicago, the NICVA group of over ten, visited Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, MD. Seamus McAleavy, Chief Executive of NICVA, told the Chicago Citizen Newspaper that the the trip required six months of planning. In Chicago alone, NICVA scheduled to meet with City of Chicago officials, the Chicago Police Department, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and at least twenty other organizations.
Upon arriving in Chicago, Seamus McAleavy, Chief Executive of NICVA stated that he heard about CBA through a recommendation of another Chicagoland non-profit. Apparently, CBA’s reputation of excellence proceeded itself.
“I learned about CBA through another non-for-profit organization actually through Teen Living,” said McAleavy. “A contract I had there directed [me] to CBA as an organization that was doing some good stuff.”
During the meeting, CBA’s Executive Director Melinda Kelly highlighted CBA's Micro-lending and Get Connected IT Ambassadors programs.
“We were trying to compare models and see what we have in similarities, what models we can create and replicate, and sharing information on regulation and government to make it easier to help this disconnected group of folks economically independent, “said Kelly.
The Micro-lending Program provides small loans of $1,000 up to $20,000 to small businesses which are payable over a two year period. Since the program began, 29 businesses have received loans explained Kelly.
“I think the Mirco-lending was important because I think we recognize that for small, very small, emerging businesses access to finance is absolutely critical,” said McAleavy.
Samia Malik, Project Manager of CBA’s explained that CBA's Get Connected IT Ambassadors program provides website development and social media network development with personal assistance to area businesses.
“The problems that Chicago faces are global problems, they aren’t isolated to Chicago,” said Jamie L. Rhee, Chief Procurement Officer, City of Chicago Department of Procurement Services who also attended the meeting. “No one has all the right answers to the problems and by coming together and sharing information, sharing different programs that we have, and getting input from others, is critical to helping address the issues that we all face.”
The meeting concluded with a Q&A session between the NICVA members and CBA leaders. Following the meeting McAleavy stated, “After we go home, this group will reassemble and assess the information we’ve had.”
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