In mid-November the Gulf Coast Citizen Diplomacy Council welcomed 11 visitors from across Latin America as part of a U.S. Department of State International Visitors Leadership Program (IVLP) project highlighting entrepreneurship in the U.S. and ways to expand the small business network across the Americas. These distinguished visitors came to us from Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay; and although they spent only three days in Pensacola, they enjoyed several productive meetings with local organizations and companies dedicated to helping small businesses and start ups.
The visitors’ first meeting in Pensacola took place at Pensacola City Hall where Councilman P.C. Wu welcomed them and gave them an orientation to the area’s history, economy, demographics, and local government. He also surprised our visitors by presenting them with certificates of honorary citizenship to the city. After receiving this honor, the group was excited to explore the resources their new honorary city has related to entrepreneurship and small business support.
Their first stop was the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at the University of West Florida. Here, Julia Montgomery, Dan Cavanaugh, Carl Quesinberry, Laura Subel, and Dorian Zwierewicz explained the programs of the SBDC and shared best practices on how to successfully start and sustain an SBDC.
Next up was a meeting at Community Enterprise Investments, Inc. (CEII) where Executive Director Percy Jackson and Business Development Officer Grover Brown highlighted CEII’s financial services for start ups and small businesses.
Wrapping up the group’s professional meetings in Pensacola was a visit to the Gulf Coast Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) where they met with FloridaWEST Director of Entrepreneurial Development Kelly Reeser. Ms. Reeser highlighted how the CIE helps startups to grow in a supportive environment and took the group into CIE’s co-working space. She also discussed the Pensacola Chamber’s Young Entrepreneur’s Academy (YEA!) for students interested in become entrepreneurs.
Meetings were not the only thing on the schedule. The group also enjoyed some southern hospitality when they were hosted for dinners at several Gulf Coast Citizen Diplomacy Council members’ homes. We appreciate Michael and Tara Jones, Paula Drummond and Joe Hemmer, Liz and Basil Yelverton, Solange Garcia Alonso, and Maria and David Chavez for opening their homes to these international guests.
Breaking bread together: Having dinner in an American home adds a wonderful hospitality component to our international visitors’ schedules.