Rosalinda Birrueta es una empresaria local y una orgullosa graduada del Acelerador de Negocios de Fuerza Local de la 16a Generación de la ciudad de Avondale, Az.

El sueño de ser empresaria nació cuando era pequeña y conoció el arte de la paletería artesanal michoacana, una tradición que ha pasado generación tras generación en su familia, y que hoy en día sigue floreciendo en Arizona. Un sueño que tomó forma después de 25 años de paciencia y superación.

Es así como nació Paleta’s La Michoakana LLC al abrir sus puertas por primera vez en junio de 2018, se especializan en la producción y venta de paletas artesanales con frutas frescas, además de ofrecer nieves y antojitos mexicanos….

Through the Maricopa County Small Business Resilience Program,

Local First Arizona (LFA) in partnership with the Arizona Community Foundation (ACF) is facilitating stability grants for nonprofit and for-profit small businesses and micro-enterprises. These stability grants of up to $25,000 are now available to small businesses that can demonstrate revenue declines or unanticipated operating cost deficits from July 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020 as compared to July 2019 through December 2019.

The new episode of Project Greenprint focused on Conservation by Social Television Network is available on the free STN App starting November 3rd. In this episode, host Kristen Keogh introduces several advocates for conservation in Arizona who offer opportunities to get involved and speak up for our few remaining wild spaces.

Following an 18-month crisis response that provided more than $13 million in support to more than 1,400 small businesses across the state, Local First Arizona has been awarded a contract that will expand aid to local small and micro-enterprises in Maricopa County. With this award, Maricopa County joins Local First Arizona’s growing list of community partners offering support to the state’s most vulnerable businesses.

Late last month, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) released data showing that Arizonans have now deposited 11.5% of their money into local banks. This is a significant jump up from 3% in 2013 and 8.5% recorded in June of last year.

With only 13 banks headquartered in Arizona, the state has been called a “banking desert,” leaving eight counties with no community bank representation at all and small businesses with fewer borrowing options.

We are excited to announce the latest businesses to become certified through the Arizona Green Business Program. Read on to discover Local First Arizona members SWIYYAH, LLC and Wok This Way; two businesses whose sourcing and operating standards prioritize clean air, zero waste, water conservation, and sustaining livable communities for generations to come.

In late July 2021, Local First Arizona’s Rural Development team held a meeting with the US Forest Service to discuss potential volunteer opportunities to address the devastation of the Telegraph fire in Superior. With the recent merger of Local First Arizona and Keep Arizona Beautiful, this was the perfect opportunity to engage in rural Arizona.

Water – Plant It Wisely is your handy resource to provide landscaping guidance, advice, and ideas on what to plant. What you plant affects more than your yard; it helps create a more sustainable future. By selecting low-water-use plants, you help conserve our precious water supply for generations to come.

We Rise’s business model development curriculum features two modules that helps participants attain these skills: introduction to business model development and understanding your value proposition and target customer. By the end of both modules, participants have refined their respective business models to ensure maximum product-market fit, in collaboration with their mentors, instructors and fellow entrepreneurs.

This month, we began hosting capacity-building workshops for Gila Valley producers starting with a ‘Funding for Farmers’ workshop. Hosted at the Eastern Arizona College Discovery Park Campus with a beautiful backdrop of Mt. Graham, community members gathered in the early morning to learn about funding opportunities to start an agriculture business or improve their existing business. Speakers from the USDA, Small Business Development Center, Arizona Economic Recovery Center, Graham & Greenlee Microloan program, University of Arizona Cooperative Extension, Prestamos CDFI, Graham County Government, and Farm Credit West delivered short rapid-fire presentations to the crowd before transitioning to individual tables as community members walked around to network and find out more about different organizations. 

The business finance portion of the We Rise Accelerator Program focuses on three main topic modules: personal finance; debt, equity, and grant financing; and understanding credit and creditworthiness. The purpose of these modules is to expose entrepreneurs to different financing options for small businesses -- including the less familiar ones like equity and grants -- and to come together to develop strategies to improve both their personal and business creditworthiness.

The We Rise business plan curriculum guides participants through identifying effective ways to communicate their voice from paper to action. Once finished, the participant can successfully use the plan as a blueprint for day-to-day operations, obtaining funding, and overall growth.

Blanca Abarca es una orgullosa mexicana del estado de veracruz, graduada como enfermera profesional por la facultad de enfermería de la universidad veracruzana y orgullosa residente de Sur Phoenix por más de 20 años.

Su pequeña empresa Blanca 's Alterations & Creations LLC nació para dar formalidad a todas sus ideas y proyectos que ha realizado desde hace muchos años, con la intención de poder extenderlo y que la comunidad pudiera conocer más de su trabajo y labor.

The Sustainability Team at Local First Arizona is committed to connecting local businesses to more advocacy opportunities and to telling the stories of those across the state who are advocating for beneficial environmental policies. Read about some of the ways LFA has gotten involved in environmental advocacy.

The Little Colorado Foundation is rolling out a new soft skills training program that will be open to those seeking to start or enhance their career in any industry in Apache County. The program - called “UP (Unleash Your Potential)” - utilizes the National Retail Industry Fundamentals curriculum, providing students with an understanding of the retail industry, job readiness skills, and building basic customer service skills. UP is a 5-week hybrid training program that incorporates self-guided, online training and onsite community engagement activities to enhance customer service and soft skills in the Apache County workforce.  

The Florence Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with Local First Arizona and the Arizona Office of Tourism, gathered local residents and business owners to collectively create a community brand. This brand will represent the Florence business community and be utilized to promote events and other local activities. Community members who were a part of the meetings were there to be the most authentic voice for Florence. The group provided invaluable information about the history of the region, what makes Florence so special, colors that best represent their town, and more. This input helped to ensure that the final brand outcome would be representative of the community, its residents, and its businesses.