AEGiS-BAR: SBA offers training for HIV-poz entrepreneurs

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2001. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

SBA offers training for HIV-poz entrepreneurs

Bay Area Reporter - May 11, 2001
Cynthia Laird

The Small Business Administration and the Positive Resource Center have announced a "How to Start Your Own Small Business" seminar for people who have been out of the workforce due to HIV-related disability and who are now interested in returning to work. The workshop will take place this Tuesday, May 15, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in SBA's Entrepreneur Center, 455 Market Street, in San Francisco.

"The whole world of people living with HIV is changing so powerfully now, we thought it was important to provide the option of business ownership to people whose situation has evolved to allow them to go back to working," said Gary Marshall, economic development specialist for SBA.

The daylong class will provide information on marketing, management assistance, basics of bookkeeping, financing, and resources for small businesses. The seminar also will include a discussion focusing on the effects of business ownership on disability benefits.

"Running your own small business certainly is a lot of work, but it can also provide the kind of flexibility and control important to people with complicated medical regimens and fluctuating levels of energy," Marshall added.

"We're working with many people living with HIV/AIDS whose goals for employment are self-employment," said Mark Misrok, employment services program coordinator for Positive Resource Center.

"Positive Resource Center was already conducting workshops to let their clients consider if starting a small business was right for them," Marshall said. "We wanted to expand on that idea to provide the basic framework of actually getting a company off the ground. And these don't need to be the next Microsofts of the world. The lessons we'll be talking about would apply to plenty of really small businesses, like dog-walking or pet sitting."

Registration for the seminar is free and includes lunch. For more information or to register, call (415) 744-6771.
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