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December 2017

Message from the President

Last December, I talked about the many

opportunities that would present

themselves in 2017. Here we go again

— 2018 should prove very rewarding for

Tabor 100 members and minority

businesses in general.

Before getting to 2018, I want to congratulate a

dedicated Tabor Member who has worked hard to

ensure opportunities flow to all of us. Our own

Andres Mantilla, who received a Crystal Eagle

Award at the last Gala, is in charge of External

Affairs for new Seattle Mayor Durkan. We know

Andres will be a strong advocate in the Mayor’s

inner circle. And, by the way, Mayor Durkan has

reiterated the city’s commitment to help small,

minority-owned businesses to do well in the city.

While I am on the city, starting in early January,

there will be a new “Business Assistance Center”

offered for firms seeking government contracts.

Thanks to the work of Mayor Murray, the City

Council and the Mayor’s WMBE Advisory

Committee, this service is being funded by the

City. More on this in future newsletters.

At the state level, the Department of

Transportation is proposing a 19% Disadvantaged

Business Enterprise (DBE) goal for its 2018 DBE

program. This number is a significant jump

from the current 11.6%. I urge Tabor 100

members to certify as DBEs by using a new

and improved process for doing so at the

Office of Minority and Women Business

Enterprises (www.omwbe.wa.gov).

For 2018, the Port of Seattle is revamping its

“Small Business” program and creating a “Diversity

in Contracting Program.” The ink on the new effort

has not dried yet, but the objective of the program

is to drive more Port contracting dollars to women

and minority firms. The Port, which operates both

the seaport and airport, will be spending more than

$12 billion in the next several years to upgrade

both facilities and annually shells out millions on

recurring port business. The Port Commissioners

want to do better, especially with minority

contractors.

And of course Tabor 100 is working diligently to

support efforts to overturn I-200. Your help is

needed and you can contact me or Sara Stewart

(sara@sarastewartinc.com or 360-229-8168). The

Legislative session starts January 8.

Lastly, I want to wish all of you a very Merry

Christmas and a prosperous 2018. Thank you for

your devotion and commitment to Tabor 100.

Legislative Update 2

Zak Idan & John Berdes

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Tabor 100 Board

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2017 In Review

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“SHAPING OUR DESTINY”

Tabor 100 is an association of entrepreneurs and business advocates who are committed to economic power, educational excellence and

social equity for African-Americans and the community at large.

Get the newsletter online and stay connected through social media!

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Legislative Update

By Nate Miles, Tabor 100 Member

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS

The 2018 legislative session begins in just a few

weeks ( January 8) and while it is considered a

“short” session (60 days), the amount of legislative

activity will not be diminished. With the

Democrats now in control of the State Senate, the

House and the Governor’s Office, there will be a

flurry of measures considered more

progressive. This will include a renewed effort to

repeal I-200 and restore fair practices that give

minority businesses an even playing field for a fair

share of government contracts.

During the November Legislative Assembly Days,

we heard great feedback from legislators who are

interested in restoring fairness across all state

contracts. Meetings with leadership, key

committee chairs and individual lawmakers (on

both sides of the political aisle) has set the wheels

in motion to introduce legislation early in the

session.

YOU will be the most crucial factor in a successful

repeal of I-200. We are working on a “Tabor Day

on the Hill” in Olympia, but we need you to be

ready at a moment’s notice to call, text, post and

show up in person for key legislative meetings,

hearings etc... Because of the accelerated pace of

the session, we won’t have a lot of notice before

committee hearings or floor action. So, build in

extra time in your busy schedules to reach out to

your legislators.

Our priority messages are important to keep

handy as you contact lawmakers:

• Repeal restrictions that affect equity for small

businesses, including disadvantaged, Minority

and Women-Owned Businesses. I-200 is a

failure – before its passage up to 20-percent of

State Contracts were awarded to Minority and

Women-Owned Businesses, now it’s less than

one-half of one percent.

• Ensure more higher education enrollment

opportunities at state institutions for people of

color. As measures are implemented to

comply with “McCleary”, make sure public

K-12 education lifts up our communities to give

equal access to all children.

• Most of our state’s economic development

and jobs are created by small businesses; they

need the access to capital and technical

assistance to grow.

Please continue to write, call and meet with legislators over the holidays. You can contact Sara Stewart for assistance at sara@sarastewartinc.com or call 360-229-8168.

Jerod Pierce, Mercurio’s Heating & Electrical Riall Johnson, Rule Breakers

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Washington State’s First Somali-American Elected Official

John Berdes honored with Ned Gramlich Lifetime Achievement Award

Congratulations to Zak Idan! He

is Washington State’s First

Somali-American Elected Official.

At age 11, Idan and his family,

fled war and famine in Somalia,

for refuge in Kenya. They later

immigrated to the US settling in

Tukwila, WA.

Idan graduated from the University of Washington

and has been working as a Project Manager for

the King County. As an active member and

contributor in his community he made the

decision it was time that he ran for an elective

office in Tukwila.

Tukwila being a city roughly 40 percent

foreign-born citizens, it is a surprise that he is the

only city council member to have been

foreign-born. With Idan having won with 55

percent of the votes during his first run for office it

is a wonderful achievement.

Photo and information courtesy of www.SeattleTimes.com

On September 27, the late John

Berdes, Former Tabor 100 Board

Member, was posthumously

awarded the 2017 Ned Gramlich

Lifetime Achievement Award for

Responsible Finance by the

Opportunity Finance Network. The

award is the highest honor in the Community

Development Finance Institution (CDFI) industry.

John co-founded Craft3 and passed away in June

2016 after a short battle with cancer. The award

was presented by Adam Zimmerman, our current

President and CEO, to Berdes' sister Madelyn

Golliher in Washington, DC at the annual

Opportunity Finance Network conference.

John dedicated his life to helping those around him;

the world will be less well off without him. Our work

continues in his memory though - and with every

impact Craft3 makes, we will think fondly of our

friend and all the good that he did during his time

with us. Watch the ceremony at

http://bit.ly/BerdesGramlich.

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Tabor 100 Board

We are pleased to announce that Christina VanMiddlesworth and Riall

Johnson will join Tabor 100’s Board serving as Membership and Government

Affairs Chairs respectively.

Christina is currently a Program

Specialist in the Business Diversity

Program at the University of

Washington. She has been a Tabor

100 Corporate Member since February

2017 and volunteered as member of

the 18th Annual Captains of Industry

Gala Committee.

Riall is a new Tabor Member and was a

guest speaker at the September Tabor 100

Meeting having presented information

about De-Escalate Washington, the

initiative measure he directs.

Welcome Christina and Riall and join them as they both reinvigorate

their committees and create even more opportunity for Tabor

Members. More on them to come.

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2017 in Review

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INTERESTED IN HAVING YOUR

BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTED IN THE

NEWSLETTER?

DROP AN EMAIL TO

Staff@Tabor100.org or

PublicAffairs@Tabor100.org

OR CALL

(425) 882-4800 Ext. 107.

Nu Black Arts West Theatre’s

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Like our Facebook Page @ Nu Black Arts West Theatre and enter to win our Dark Divas contest

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THE TABOR 100 BOARD

President: Ollie Garrett President@Tabor100.org Vice President: Brian Sims VP@Tabor100.org Treasurer: Aundrea Jackson Treasurer@Tabor100.org Secretary: Sherlita Kennedy Secretary@Tabor100.org Membership: Christina VanMiddlesworth Membership@Tabor100.org Education: Kevin C. Washington Education@Tabor100.org Public Affairs: Henry Yates PublicAffairs@Tabor100.org Economic Development: Edson Zavala EconomicDevelopment@Tabor100.org Government Affairs: Riall Johnson GovernmentAffairs@Tabor100.org Fund Development: Abdul Yusuf FundDevelopment@Tabor100.org Business Development: Anthony Burnett BusinessDev@Tabor100.org TABOR OFFICE 2330 130th Ave. NE #101 Bellevue, WA 98005 425-882-4800 x 107 Staff@Tabor100.org Newsletter Editor: Kalea Perry KaleaPerry@Hotmail.com 2017 In Review Photo’s courtesy of Flyright Productions 206-860-9813 flyrightproductions.net

WE ENCOURAGE YOU

TO REACH OUT!

UPCOMING EVENTS

Dec. 16: Tabor 100 General Meeting, 10am-12pm, Central Area Senior Center Jan. 7: “Dark Divas”, 7-10pm, Triple Door Dinner Theater Jan. 16: Business Issues Forum: January 2018, 8 - 9:30am, Microsoft Event Center at the Seattle Metro Chamber Jan. 17: Executive Speaker Series: Seattle’s Conscious Food Scene, 12 - 1:30pm, Microsoft Event Center at the Seattle Metro Chamber Jan. 18: Alaska Business Forum: Rebuilding Anchorage Docks at the Port of Alaska, 8 - 9:30am, Microsoft Event Center at the Seattle Metro Chamber of Commerce Jan. 18: Tabor 100/ESN Committee Meeting, 5:30 - 7pm, Lake Chad Cafe Jan. 27: Tabor 100 General Meeting, 10am - 12pm, Central Area Senior Center

COMMITTEE MEETINGS

Education Committee meets after the Tabor General Meeting, the last Saturday of the month from 12-2pm at the Central Area Senior Center Combined Library and Computer Room

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