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GROW (Grand Rapids Opportunities for Women) has been working with thousands of entrepreneurs since in 1989; all with dreams of becoming economically independent. GROW's entrepreneurial training, business counseling, networking opportunities, and financial resources provide the tools needed to start, run, sustain, and expand the businesses in our community. Whether the topic is finance, management, marketing, or strategic planning, GROW offers professional, high quality training and business counseling. GROW is an SBA certified Women's Business Center and receives a portion of their funding from the Small Business Administration (SMA). The remainder of their funding comes from local foundations, corporation, and individuals. The funds provided are to support our local organization's operational costs as well as helping to underwrite our trainings to further serve our economic disadvantaged markets.

Since 2010, GROW has served 3,068 clients with a result of 167 new businesses opening their doors and an addition of 324 jobs to our community. In 2012, GROW served 93% women, 32% minorities, 47% extremely low to moderate households and 11% single mother households. In addition, GROW provided the following: 983 attendees took advantage of 208 hours of entrepreneurial training and 546 sessions of free business counseling were conducted in 630 total hours. All of that adds up to huge local impact for Grand Rapids!

From this issue

/Kristin%20Revere:%20Channeling%20Heart%20and%20Hard%20Work%20to%20Grow%20Birth%20and%20Postpartum%20Support%20in%20West%20Michigan
When Kristin Revere, MM, CED, NCS, became a mother, she hadn't imagined she'd one day be leading a team of 25 doulas, educators, and specialists through one of the most respected doula agencies in the Midwest.
/Dr.%20Kelsey%20Carpenter:%20Working%20to%20Understand%20Blood%20Cancers
Kelsey Carpenter, Ph.D. completed her doctorate in integrated biomedical sciences at Rush University in Chicago, Illinois, and is currently a postdoctoral researcher in the Grainger Lab at Van Andel Institute's Department of Cell Biology. It's here that Dr. Carpenter studies the origins of blood cancers by focusing on how blood cells develop.
/So%20You%20Want%20to%20Work%20for%20Yourself?%209%20Things%20to%20Consider%20Before%20You%20Do
You've daydreamed about it during long meetings, endless calls, and over your morning coffee: working for yourself. Maybe you have a product or service you can't wait to share; maybe you just want freedom from rigid schedules and micromanagers.
/Why%20Women’s%20Concierge%20Medicine%20Practices%20Are%20Growing
If you've noticed an increase in concierge medical practices in the last few years, you wouldn't be alone. This growing trend in medicine has emerged for a number of reasons. But at its core, it's because medical practitioners have a desire to provide women with the preventative and in-depth care they seek, along with the demand from women also seeking the time, care, and expertise they know they truly deserve.