Sacramento, Calif. – After fans and members of the community cast over 2,600 ballots, narrowing the field from over 50 local, Latinx-owned small businesses to five finalists, Republic FC has announced the winners and grants for the second Republic FC Kickstart Program. With the help of Suncrest Bank and the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Republic FC will distribute another $10,500 – building on its first set of grants in October – to minority-owned businesses, facing economic challenges as a result of the pandemic.
The five finalists as selected through public voting were reviewed by a panel of community leaders including Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Board Members Mary Flores and Esmeralda Peña, Lisandro Madrigal of Chando’s Tacos – a proud Republic FC partner, and KCRA 3’s Lisa Gonzales, as well as representatives from Republic FC and Suncrest Bank.
Sacramento, Calif. – After fans and members of the community cast over 2,600 ballots, narrowing the field from over 50 local, Latinx-owned small businesses to five finalists, Republic FC has announced the winners and grants for the second Republic FC Kickstart Program. With the help of Suncrest Bank and the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Republic FC will distribute another $10,500 – building on its first set of grants in October – to minority-owned businesses, facing economic challenges as a result of the pandemic.
The five finalists as selected through public voting were reviewed by a panel of community leaders including Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Board Members Mary Flores and Esmeralda Peña, Lisandro Madrigal of Chando’s Tacos – a proud Republic FC partner, and KCRA 3’s Lisa Gonzales, as well as representatives from Republic FC and Suncrest Bank.
The second set of Kickstart grant recipients are:
Grand Prize Grant: Custom Fitness, $5,000
Second Place Grant: Todo un Poco, $2,500
Third Place Grants: Casa de Español, Health Bridges of Northern California, and Paquitas Mexican Grill, $1,000
Next week, Custom Fitness Owner Hugo Brambila will appear on the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s weekly web series, Juntos to talk about the program and his business. Tune in on Wednesday, December 23 at Noon at Facebook.com/sachispanics.
“The Republic FC Kickstart program was amazing,” said Custom Fitness Owner Hugo Brambila. “It was a greatreflection on the past eight years of helping our community. I’m beyond thankful to the Sacramento Republic FC and Suncrest Bank for providing this opportunity.”
“This year more than ever has been about standing by our neighbors and supporting our community during the toughest of times,” said Sacramento Republic FC President and COO Ben Gumpert. “Through the tremendous collaboration with our partners and the votes cast by our generous supporters in the community, we’re thrilled to award these Latinx-owned businesses grants to help them not only survive, but to thrive in the future and make our region better for all.”
“We are thrilled to support another group of amazing small businesses through the Kickstart Program,” Suncrest Bank President and CEO Ciaran McMullan said. “Not only did we have a spectacular group of finalists, all based on votes from the public, but as a whole, the entire group of nominations shows just how much of an impact Latinx-owned businesses have on our local communities. Suncrest Bank believes in the critical importance of economic inclusion and the power of small businesses and entrepreneurs to drive economic growth. Along with our partners, the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber and Sacramento Republic FC, we are truly pleased to shine a light on these five remarkable businesses and contribute to their ongoing impact and success.”
“Supporting our neighbors and the small businesses that we love in our communities is what makes the Sacramento special,” said Cathy Rodriguez Aguirre, President & CEO, Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce“To partner with Suncrest Bank and Republic FC to show the crtical impact of Latinx-owned small businesses on our local economy has been wonderful. The challenges 2020 brought forced businesses to pivot in new directions and the Kickstart program was a great opportunity for the community to see that they are still open for business. Thank you to Suncrest Bank and Republic FC for acknowledging the importance of our diverse small businesses to our region.”
Throughout a week of open voting, over 2600 votes were cast for the 50+ nominated businesses, representing a diverse set of industries including restaurants and culinary creators, service providers, education providers, health and fitness, retailers, and more. To help provide more resources for local businesses, Suncrest Bank made additional, free educational services and consulting resources available to every business nominated.
For more information about Republic FC Kickstart, visit www.sacrepublicfc.com/SuncrestBank.
The second set of Kickstart grant recipients are:
Grand Prize Grant: Custom Fitness, $5,000
Second Place Grant: Todo un Poco, $2,500
Third Place Grants: Casa de Español, Health Bridges of Northern California, and Paquitas Mexican Grill, $1,000
Next week, Custom Fitness Owner Hugo Brambila will appear on the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s weekly web series, Juntos to talk about the program and his business. Tune in on Wednesday, December 23 at Noon at Facebook.com/sachispanics.
“The Republic FC Kickstart program was amazing,” said Custom Fitness Owner Hugo Brambila. “It was a greatreflection on the past eight years of helping our community. I’m beyond thankful to the Sacramento Republic FC and Suncrest Bank for providing this opportunity.”
“This year more than ever has been about standing by our neighbors and supporting our community during the toughest of times,” said Sacramento Republic FC President and COO Ben Gumpert. “Through the tremendous collaboration with our partners and the votes cast by our generous supporters in the community, we’re thrilled to award these Latinx-owned businesses grants to help them not only survive, but to thrive in the future and make our region better for all.”
“We are thrilled to support another group of amazing small businesses through the Kickstart Program,” Suncrest Bank President and CEO Ciaran McMullan said. “Not only did we have a spectacular group of finalists, all based on votes from the public, but as a whole, the entire group of nominations shows just how much of an impact Latinx-owned businesses have on our local communities. Suncrest Bank believes in the critical importance of economic inclusion and the power of small businesses and entrepreneurs to drive economic growth. Along with our partners, the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber and Sacramento Republic FC, we are truly pleased to shine a light on these five remarkable businesses and contribute to their ongoing impact and success.”
“Supporting our neighbors and the small businesses that we love in our communities is what makes the Sacramento special,” said Cathy Rodriguez Aguirre, President & CEO, Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce“To partner with Suncrest Bank and Republic FC to show the crtical impact of Latinx-owned small businesses on our local economy has been wonderful. The challenges 2020 brought forced businesses to pivot in new directions and the Kickstart program was a great opportunity for the community to see that they are still open for business. Thank you to Suncrest Bank and Republic FC for acknowledging the importance of our diverse small businesses to our region.”
Throughout a week of open voting, over 2600 votes were cast for the 50+ nominated businesses, representing a diverse set of industries including restaurants and culinary creators, service providers, education providers, health and fitness, retailers, and more. To help provide more resources for local businesses, Suncrest Bank made additional, free educational services and consulting resources available to every business nominated.
For more information about Republic FC Kickstart, visit www.sacrepublicfc.com/SuncrestBank.
