You Can JumpStart
Our Success

When I saw Petr Bezman’s smile as he signed the promissory note for a loan to expand his janitorial business, I felt honored to be the director of the JumpStart Fund.

To date, JumpStart has given loans to more than 26 Seattle area refugees and asylees to help them start, strengthen or expand their small businesses. Each bakery, daycare, restaurant, and janitorial service we assist becomes an integral part of its community and a step toward self-sufficiency for our clients.

We want to do more. Our biggest challenge is in identifying the refugees who can most benefit from our services and providing these individuals with a streamlined process to quickly put money in their hands to help them with their businesses.

To meet these challenges, we’ve expanded our community outreach and marketing efforts. As a result we’ve seen a steady increase in the number of inquiries about our program. In addition, we’re improving our internal processes and working to build partnerships with other organizations serving the refugee population.

All of this work is made possible by the efforts of our donors, staff members, volunteers, and partner organizations-all working together to fulfill JumpStart Fund’s mission of helping refugees create viable businesses in the greater Seattle area.

If you’d like to make a cash or in-kind donation to JumpStart Fund, please email me.

Greg Hope, Director

P.S. Your donations directly help Puget Sound area refugees and asylees create viable businesses and positively impact their communities. Be sure to read our client success stories here.