Greater Hazleton is well-known as an area full of generous businesses and individuals who never hesitate to lend a hand to others when times are tough. That sense of community has been on full display during the COVID-19 pandemic as more than 60 patrons have donated to the Hazleton Area Small Business Emergency Relief Microgrant Program.

The Greater Hazleton COVID-19 Recovery & Resiliency (R&R) Task Force, which is constructed of business and industry leaders from throughout the area, established the microgrant program to help sustain small businesses in Greater Hazleton through this difficult time to ensure the resurgence of a vibrant local economy.

The crowdfunded donor campaign has raised more than $50,000 from local individuals, families, loyal customers, and other private corporations, including Cargill Meat Solutions, Mericle Commercial Real Estate Services, Lehigh Valley Health Network-Hazleton, the Hazleton Standard Speaker, the Hazleton Rotary Club, CAN DO and First Federal Charitable Foundation. Due to the generosity of the Greater Hazleton area, the Task Force was able to fund 85 small businesses within the region with microgrants, 59% of which were located directly in the City of Hazleton.

Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce President Mary Malone said, “The Emergency Relief Microgrant was a great example of what I experience in our community. It showed multiple organizations working together for the common good. It was caring individuals and companies who delivered the donations to provide for the grants and that’s the definition of community for me. As tasking as COVID-19 has been, the silver lining has been the sense that together we will get through this.”

The Recovery & Resiliency Task Force includes members from the Downtown Hazleton Alliance for Progress, Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce, CAN DO/CAN BE, Penn State Hazleton LaunchBox, Discover NEPA, Wilkes University Small Business Development Center, PA CareerLink-Hazleton, Luzerne/Schuylkill Workforce Development Board, the City of Hazleton’s Department of Community and Economic Development, the Greater Hazleton Civic Partnership, Society of Hispanic Professionals of the Hazleton Area, and BB&T Bank. Members of the task force were individually selected to serve on a Grant Committee based on their personal and professional position within the community. These selections were made carefully to avoid conflict and bias regarding applicants that may be clients or members. Additionally, the Task Force worked tirelessly to create an objective and quantifiable scoring system to ensure businesses were scored according to need and funds were allocated based on those scores.

Funding applications were accepted in May and grants were awarded to several businesses throughout the month of June. All funds raised were given to local, small businesses within Greater Hazleton that have been greatly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The grant funds ranged from $500 to $1,500 and could be used to offset any business-related expense, such as: employee wages and benefits (such as health insurance), rent, utilities, and business insurance, as well as new investments in a website, e-commerce platform, a delivery service, or necessary Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) purchases, such as masks for employees and plexiglass screens for registers.

While nearly all applicants stated that they would use the funds for Personal Protective Equipment, or PPE, and sanitization protocols, 92% said they needed the funds for every day operational expenses such as rent, mortgages, utilities, and payroll. This is not surprising considering 74% of the businesses that received funding experienced a revenue loss of 75% or more.

Small business owners throughout Greater Hazleton who were forced to shutter their operations due to Pennsylvania’s COVID-19 restrictions were thankful to receive the microgrant funding at a time when their businesses needed it the most and felt an extra sense of gratitude that it came from businesses and individuals in the community.

Emily Finer, owner of Keystone Ballet Academy, said, “I was very surprised to hear about the program because I thought it was unique for the businesses to gather together like that. I thought it was great because so much was donated that could help so many small businesses. It was very helpful to me because I lost pretty much all my income for three months. It gave me a boost to pay some expenses. I thought it was great how the local businesses could donate their own money to help their own community and keep the small businesses going.”

Gladysh Felix Almonte, president of ACE Construction, Maintenance & More, said, “I’m really grateful for the microgrant I received. It has given me a sense of security knowing that our local associations and businesses care about us small businesses, and somehow came together to give us a helping hand. I think this is a great contribution to the community in general. It helps us to stand stronger together through these difficult times.”

Wilfrida Heredia, who owns a daycare center in Hazleton, said, “We are truly grateful. This helps us to reopen so that the economy takes the lane it has to take. Anything that helps us reopen is fabulous because for this help we are not starting as individuals, it is more like a society.” 

Rachel Quinn, owner of Powder & Ink Permanent Cosmetics, said that although she had some savings, that money only went so far and she was desperate for the grant money to help offset increases in supply costs as well as pay her rent and business insurance.

“I cried my eyes out because I was so happy. This grant will help me reopen and stay open until business picks up again. This grant will help me get the supplies I need to continue to operate my business. This grant also gave me back my sanity from worrying about losing my business, especially since I am a brand new business owner since September 2019,” Quinn said. “Knowing that there are options like this out there, knowing I have a community that wants to see my business succeed and knowing my community has my back is mind blowing. I never felt so much support before and because of this support, it drives me to pursue the bigger vision I've always had for my business. It drives me to want to do more for my community. I don't think I can ever thank The Chamber enough for gifting me this grant. Thank you for giving me not only this grant but my sanity and my hope.” 

In announcing the results of a survey it conducted of small businesses in Greater Hazleton, Recovery & Resiliency Task Force officials found that nearly 69% of the respondents reported that their business will be at risk of closing permanently within six months without financial assistance. A large majority of these respondents have been in business more than 10 years, and nearly all of them have fewer than 20 employees. To correlate that data, 38% of the businesses that received a microgrant have been in business for 10+ years.

“These statistics highlight the profound impact of the current crisis on the smallest, long-standing, locally-owned businesses that are the backbone of the Greater Hazleton community,” task force officials said. “These are our businesses, our neighbors, classmates, families, friends and colleagues. These are the businesses that help in fundraising efforts for our nonprofits and schools and community initiatives. In this unprecedented time, it will take all of us working together, and they need your support.” 

Businesses and individuals are encouraged to continue making contributions to the microgrant program, as the amount of funding will determine when future rounds of grants can be distributed. Anyone interested in donating to the campaign can send a check directly to the Greater Hazleton Civic Partnership at 8 W. Broad St., Suite M-1490, Hazleton PA, 18201. A printable pledge form is available on the Downtown Hazleton Alliance for Progress website: www.downtownhazleton.org. All donations are tax-deductible.