“This Is Why We Do It”
Gina L. Kinchlow, MBA
Interim President
Big Bend Minority Chamber of Commerce
I was sitting at home one night a few weeks ago looking for something good to watch on television. As I was mindlessly flipping through the dozens of channels available with basic cable, I stumbled upon a Ken Burns historical documentary on the PBS channel. His name caught my attention as I have always enjoyed his meticulous pursuit of the American story. This time, the topic was jazz. I felt like I had hit the jackpot.
I love history. I love music. I love jazz. I enjoy the PBS channel. With that, I put the remote control down and settled in to watch and learn.
One of the great jazz musicians featured in the documentary was the great African-American jazz composer, bandleader and pianist Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington. Ellington is arguably the greatest American composer of all-time; particularly jazz. Not only was he a gifted musician, he was also a gorgeous man: tall and handsome, well-dressed, articulate, intelligent, and charming. He was a renaissance man who seemed to live in a world where the harsh racism of the day did not impact his rise to success.
And yet, at the same time, he was keenly aware of America’s relentless mistreatment of its African-American citizens. At one point during the documentary a reporter interviewed Ellington and asked him why he wrote music that often sounded dissonant, or disconnected. Duke Ellington replied by saying, “My music represents the life of my people here in America.” He said, we’re here, but we’re not really here. He said, you know we’re here because you see us, but we’re not included in the mainstream of life here in America.
At the Big Bend Minority Chamber of Commerce, we exist because we know there are businesses in this community that are here, but they’re not really here because they are often not included in mainstream. We know these businesses are here because we see the business owners and their goods and services. Sadly these are business owners who often don’t feel like they are really here, because they are often not included in the mainstream of the economic ecosystem here.
It is unfortunate that many of the businesses that fit into this category are owned by minorities and women. They are considered disadvantaged in many respects because historically they have struggled to get a foothold in the wealth-building doors of business opportunity.
Our membership at the Big Bend Minority Chamber of Commerce is comprised largely of minority-owned and women-owned small businesses. We do three things for these businesses. We advocate for them at the city, county, state, and federal levels. That means we speak up and speak often on their behalf. We provide opportunities for our members to make their businesses better by offering workshops, seminars, networking opportunities, technical assistance, and more. We match our member businesses to wealth-building opportunities by reaching out to public and private companies to make them aware of the great businesses represented in our membership.
The Big Bend Minority Chamber of Commerce is part of this community and we are here to stay. We are socially responsible, and we are committed to the economic empowerment of all businesses in the five-county area we serve. But we have a laser-like focus on minority-owned and women-owned businesses.
Times have changed a bit since Duke Ellington’s heyday, but there is still much work to be done. You can count on the Big Bend Minority Chamber of Commerce to work tirelessly to ensure that all of our members know that they are here, and that they are part of the mainstream community.
BBMC UPCOMING EVENTS:
June 17: BBMC Women’s Business Council Mocha-in-the-Morning Legacy Center for the Performing Arts 105 North Madison Street – Quincy, FL
June 23:*tentative BBMC Hispanic Business Council Leadership Team BBMC Offices (528 East Park Avenue) 3:00pm
Christic Henry and Erika Rojas participated in the luncheon orientation at the Big Bend Minority Chamber of Commerce Council Leadership Teams Retreat.
Sean Pittman, Chairman of the Board for the Big Bend Minority Chamber of Commerce, talks to Council leadership team members
