CHEROKEE, NC, May 13, 2008 – Cherokee Preservation Foundation announced today that it has awarded a $400,000 grant to the Sequoyah Fund, bringing its total investment in the community development financial institution to $3 million since the Sequoyah Fund’s inception in 2001.
The Sequoyah Fund (www.sequoyahfund.com) works in partnership with Cherokee Business Development to support new business start up, business expansion, and overall community development on the Qualla Boundary. It helps clients through lending, business counseling and coaching. Since it was established, the Sequoyah Fund has made loans valued at $4.7 million to 132 businesses, helping to create 698 full-time, 103 part-time and 229 seasonal jobs as a result.
The new grant from Cherokee Preservation Foundation will enable the Sequoyah Fund to make larger loans. The grant will also enable the Sequoyah Fund to complete a market study identifying the areas of economic strength on the Qualla Boundary that can be leveraged to build the Tribe’s economy. These potential “clusters of innovation” include green construction, clean energy and natural products.
The grant will also support additional training capabilities to help EBCI members obtain business, technical, networking, educational, legal and financial skills.
About Cherokee Preservation Foundation
Cherokee Preservation Foundation (www.cpfdn.org) was established on November 14, 2000, as part of the Second Amendment to the Tribal-State Compact between the EBCI and the State of North Carolina. It is an independent nonprofit foundation funded by the EBCI from gaming revenues generated by the Tribe. CPFdn is not part of or associated with any for-profit gaming entity. Since CPFdn’s inception in 2000, it has made 447 grants totaling more than $37 million to EBCI and regional projects and programs that address cultural preservation, economic development and job creation, and environmental renewal and protection. Every dollar of CPFdn support has been matched by $1.38 in secured grants or other funding or in-kind resources, making CPFdn’s total contribution to the region more than $89 million.
