Minority Leaders Play Key Role in SW Indiana
Published Apr 16, 2008
The Four Freedoms Monument in Evansville is a reminder of the city’s inclusive values.
Diversity is key to any successful venture, and Southwest Indiana leaders are making a concerted effort to cultivate minority businesses and foster an inclusive community.
“It just makes sense to embrace diversity, especially if you’re selling some type of product or service,” says Connie Robinson, president, CEO and owner of HMR Enterprises, which relocated to a larger facility in the Garvin Business Center in July 2007. The company distributes paper, plastic and janitorial supplies from several manufacturers.
“I felt like I was nurtured by people I was trying to do business with,” she says. “They saw that I was out there, that I was trying.”
Robinson launched HMR in 1993 with just one employee.
“Now I’m proud to say that I have a staff of 11 people,” she says, “and I really need more.”
Robinson says the area’s diversity is stimulated by the growth of small companies like hers and the success of large corporations, especially corporate headquarters, which bring diverse people into the community.
An Evansville city councilwoman, Robinson was involved at the inception of the city-county Minority- and Women-Owned Business Enterprise Program, established to open doors for people interested in doing business with local government. She co-chairs The Chamber of Commerce of Southwest Indiana’s Minority Business Owners Council along with Alfonzo Vidal, president of H.O.L.A. – Hospitality and Outreach for Latin Americans. Vidal helped found the nonprofit organization in 2002 to encourage the integration of Evansville’s Latinos into the community and link Latinos with the services they need to be productive citizens.
“We think there has to be a comprehensive approach to create awareness within both cultures,” Vidal says. “People tend to stay within their own parameters and their own comfort zones.
By bringing awareness on both sides, we’re going to be more successful.”
Vidal estimates that about 15,000 Latinos live in Southwest Indiana, and he points to education as the key to moving forward through challenges.
“We need to start thinking about the second generation and how we’re going to get that second generation to college,” he says.
H.O.L.A. worked with Nativity Catholic Church and a host of other community organizations to establish the Juan Diego Community Center, which offers centralized pastoral and social services to help improve Latinos’ housing, health care and education.
Leaders in Southwest Indiana are also seeking to raise awareness and understanding of diversity through a new lecture series.
The Diversity & Family Friendly Conference and Awards, sponsored annually by the Evansville-Area Human Resource Association and The Chamber of Commerce of Southwest Indiana, features expert speakers and recognizes businesses that are making a difference. In April 2007, the Evansville Celebration of Diversity Distinguished Lecture Series presented a free address by former Secretary of State Colin Powell.
“Through a discussion of new ideas and the sharing of messages we may not have heard before, I am hopeful that the Diversity Lecture Series will encourage all of us to think creatively about the future of our community,” Evansville Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel says. “That new, creative thinking, in turn, can be taken back into our homes, schools and workplaces to educate and inspire others.”
Story by Sharon H. Fitzgerald
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