A Thanksgiving story from Mi Casa - Charles

Mi Casa served more than 1,200 people in 2010. One of those people was Charles, a single father of five boys, who found himself in a desperate situation when he lost his job at the end of 2009. Charles is no stranger to struggle, but when he injured his back in 2009 and lost his job at UPS, he found himself on the brink of homelessness and urgently in need of help to get his career back on track.

No longer able to perform the type of physically demanding labor that was once his bread and butter, Charles heard about Mi Casa’s Green Construction & Energy training program and seized the opportunity to launch a career in the fast-growing industry of energy efficiency and weatherization. “Mi Casa gave me the opportunity to build a new skill set from the ground up,” says Charles. “Everyone has struggles inside them and scars from the past. But Mi Casa helped me see my strengths, which helped me start my career – this is much more than a job to me.”

With Mi Casa’s help, Charles secured two interviews and finally secured stable housing. It wasn’t long before Charles accepted a job offer from Veterans Green Jobs to work as an installer on weatherization projects. Though Charles is not a veteran, the nonprofit hired him to work under a state grant to provide home weatherization services to low-income families in Denver. He’s already gotten a raise, and now Charles is training to move up – eventually he wants to be a certified energy auditor.

While at Mi Casa, Charles met U.S. Senator Mark Udall, who visited the Green Construction & Energy class. Charles asked that Congress do more to expand opportunities for ex-offenders once they have paid their debt to society. Speaking for himself and many of his classmates with non-violent felony convictions, Charles pointed out that in a country purportedly in favor of second chances, many ex-offenders struggle the rest of their lives to find work. The conversation ended with Sen. Udall vowing to investigate ways to remove the barriers ex-offenders face, including providing incentives to employers who hire them.

Charles recalls his conversation with the Senator as a highlight from his time at Mi Casa. But the real reward for Charles’ hard work and commitment to Mi Casa’s career pathway program in Green Construction & Energy is undoubtedly his success in launching a promising new career that will enable him to create a better life for his five sons. “It means everything to me to be independent and able to care for my boys the way they deserve to be taken care of,” Charles says. “I’d do anything for Mi Casa, and someday I plan to support them in the same way they supported me.”

Tim Marquez Offers Encouragement to Local Entrepreneurs

Tim Marquez, Founder/CEO of Venoco, Inc., was the keynote speaker at Mi Casa's November 3rd Business Networking and Resource Fair. He spoke about his humble upbringing in southwest Denver and how he managed to build a billion-dollar company out of an initial equity stake of $3,000. "I could list 100 things I didn't have going for me," Marquez said of his early years at the helm of Venoco. "But I'm hard headed, tenacious and persistent - that's what I had going for me."

Marquez went on to say that he thinks starting a business to get rich is a terrible idea. "You have to start with something you are passionate about and build an organization around other people who are fired up and care about what they do," Marquez told the crowd of about 130. "It was two years between the time I started Venoco and when I closed the first deal," Marquez said. "There was a lot of pain and rejection along the way."

"I made a lot of mistakes in business - I continue to make mistakes," said Marquez. "But that's OK, because as long as you don't make the same mistakes, you're good." Marquez encouraged the entrepreneurs in attendance to continue to take advantage of the small business resources offered by Mi Casa and take every opportunity to network with each other and seek advice.

Here are a few photos from the event:

CEO of Venoco to Offer Business Tips to Mi Casa Entrepreneurs

Mi Casa is delighted to welcome Tim Marquez, Founder/CEO of Venoco, Inc., on November 3, as the keynote speaker during Mi Casa's Small Business Resource Fair and Networking Event from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at 360 Acoma Street. Mr. Marquez, one of Colorado's most successful businessmen, will offer tips for entrepreneurial success and talk about the process of growing Venoco, Inc. from a small start up to a publicly traded company worth nearly $2 billion.

In a discussion titled, "Journey to Success: An Inspiring Conversation with Tim Marquez," Mr. Marquez will offer guidance and recommendations to aspiring entrepreneurs with an emphasis on the essential ingredients in his own personal success: passion and perseverance. A native of southwest Denver and a graduate of Lincoln High School, Mr. Marquez attended the Colorado School of Mines and began his career as an engineer, gradually working his way up the management ladder. He founded Venoco, Inc. in 1992, an oil and gas production company based in Denver. The company progressed from a start-up with an initial equity stake of $3,000 to a company with a total enterprise value of more than $1.8 billion. Venoco, Inc. went public in November 2006 and is now a NYSE listed company, with the trading symbol VQ.

"Mi Casa is dedicated to nurturing the natural entrepreneurial spirit of many in Denver's Latino community and also women," said Mi Casa's CEO/Executive Director, Christine Marquez-Hudson. "According to the U.S. Census, the number of Hispanic-owned businesses in increased by nearly 45 percent between 2002 and 2007, and the number of women-owned businesses is up more than 20 percent in the same time frame. Clearly women and Latinos are turning to small business ownership as a means to achieve economic success, and Mi Casa is committed to helping them access the training and resources they need to be successful."

Mi Casa hosts quarterly business resource fairs to connect aspiring entrepreneurs with each other and business resources in the community. These events are open to the public, free of charge and a fantastic opportunity for aspiring entrepreneurs and small business owners to learn business tips and practice the crucial skill of networking! Lenders, business counselors and other resource providers are on hand to help small businesses connect with financing options, technical assistance, and other small businesses in order to launch or grow operations.

Tim Marquez and his wife, Bernie, are also committed philanthropists and their foundation, the Tim and Bernadette Marquez Foundation, generously supports Mi Casa's business and youth development programs. Mi Casa also receives general operating support from the Venoco Community Partnership program. Additionally, Mr. and Mrs. Marquez are co-founders of the Denver Scholarship Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to inspire and empower Denver Public Schools students to achieve their postsecondary educational goals by providing the tools, knowledge and financial resources essential for success.

Mi Casa Youth Learn about Journalism, Visit 9News

Youth in Mi Casa's afterschool programs visited 9News this week as the culmination of their hard work in the afterschool journalism club at the Mi Casa Neighborhood Center. The students also produced a four-page newsletter called the Mi Casa Post, which features articles about Mi Casa staff, music and much more!

Spirit of Success Luncheon Photos

Thanks to everyone who came out to support Mi Casa's Southern Colorado Women's Business Center on October 6 at Pueblo Community College. The event was a tremendous success, raising more than $11,000 for training and counseling to benefit underserved entrepreneurs in Southern Colorado. Here are some photos of the event!

Make Your Business a Triple Bottom Line Business!

People, planet, profit.

The future of business (not to mention tremendous profit potential) belongs to the companies that commit to sustainable development.

The Greater Good Academy is an 8-week business development course to train low- and moderate-income entrepreneurs in Denver how to incorporate triple bottom line (3BL) business practices of economic prosperity, environmental stewardship and social responsibility in order to become more profitable.

Be part of the next generation of civic-minded businesses!

The fall 2010 Greater Good Academy takes place at Mi Casa Resource Center (360 Acoma Street) Tuesday evenings - 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. - beginning September 21 through November 9.

Click here to view/print the flyer for the fall 2010 Greater Good Academy.

Through the support of sponsors, including the Denver Office of Economic Development and the Colorado Enterprise Fund, tuition costs only $125 for qualified entrepreneurs.

Greater Good Academy focuses on the benefits of including environmental and social factors in running your business. By the end of the course, each entrepreneur has completed a 3BL business plan that lays out the company’s mission, operations, marketing and related growth strategies. See the video.

Greater Good Academy serves a range of small businesses: retail, product design, consulting, health care, construction, graphic arts, marketing, food/urban agriculture, community development, etc.

Whether your company provides an eco-friendly product or service, or seeks to include social and environmental elements into its overall strategy for profitability, Greater Good Academy will provide you with a 360 degree understanding of how to make your business a triple bottom line business.

A network of business mentors assists participants during the program.

For more information, call Richard Eidlin - 303-478-0131.

AT&T Supports Mi Casa's Entrepreneurial Training in Pueblo

Mi Casa Resource Center is happy to announce that the organization has received a $5,000 contribution from the AT&T Foundation in support of its business development programs for underserved entrepreneurs in Southern Colorado. AT&T presented the contribution at Mi Casa’s Pueblo office on September 8 at an event to kick off the fall entrepreneurial training classes and celebrate the new name for Mi Casa’s training room - the AT&T Entrepreneurial Training Center.

Through AT&T’s contribution, Mi Casa will be able to equip entrepreneurs with the skills needed to successfully launch a new business, including developing a business plan and accessing capital. Mi Casa also provides consulting services to existing businesses to help them sustain or grow operations.

“AT&T is dedicated to improving education and workforce development in our Pueblo community. Supporting Pueblo business entrepreneurs is one of the many ways that our local economy can continue to grow. We are proud to be here today with Mi Casa as they lead the way in providing the needed resources in Pueblo and Southern Colorado to take those first steps as business owners” said Bill Soards, President, AT&T Colorado.
Mi Casa runs the only two Women’s Business Centers funded by the U.S. Small Business Administration in Colorado – in Denver and Southern Colorado. Mi Casa’s business development programs target underserved entrepreneurs – particularly women and Latinos – and include introductory workshops for the business curious, 13-week comprehensive entrepreneurial training courses in both English and Spanish, as well as individual technical assistance, mentoring and networking opportunities.

“Mi Casa is grateful to have the support of AT&T for our business development activities in Southern Colorado,” said Christine Marquez-Hudson, Executive Director of Mi Casa. “AT&T’s strong commitment to corporate responsibility and community engagement will serve as encouragement to Mi Casa business students as they work toward their dreams of financial stability and self-employment.”

Mi Casa’s Business Success training program teaches aspiring entrepreneurs and established small business owners the basics of finance, lending, insurance, strategic planning, daily operations, marketing, market research and legal structures. The course combines in-depth financial literacy training with individual business counseling. In order to successfully fulfill course requirements, students must submit at least a draft of a viable business plan. For established small businesses, Mi Casa offers technical assistance to help sustain or grow operations.