Award Honors the Works and Memory of Noel Cunningham; Given to Beverly Grant, Triple Bottom Line Business Owner and Food Educator in Five Points Community

Denver, CO, November 30, 2012 – At the fall 2012 graduation and public showcase of the Greater Good Academy (GGA), Richard Eidlin, executive director, and Tammy Cunningham, owner of Strings Restaurant, announced the first recipient of the Cunningham Award. Awarded to a graduate of the GGA for a food-related, community-minded business exemplifying the ideals of Noel and Tammy Cunningham, the winner of the Cunningham Award is Beverly Grant, founder of Mo’ Betta Green Marketplace.

“Receiving the Cunningham Award is a distinct honor for me,” said Grant, after the presentation at Mi Casa Resource Center. “It motivates me to continue to support the mission of providing fresh, locally grown food and to educate and serve the Five Points Community. The Cunningham Award embodies commitment and vision for a better community.”

Cunningham notes, “I am, and know Noel would be, honored to have a connection with the Greater Good Academy. It helps folks with a hand up rather than a hand out and empowers, encourages, and promotes entrepreneurial skills, while caring about the community. All of which Noel was about.”

The GGA began in 2010 with the goal of supporting early-stage low- and moderate-income entrepreneurs build triple bottom line (people, profit and planet) businesses. During the eight-week business planning program, the GGA trains civic-minded entrepreneurs to create companies and social enterprises that make money, while positively impacting the environment and communities within which they operate. The goal is to create economic self-sufficiency, create jobs and improve the quality of life in Denver.

Eidlin adds, “We have always seen food as a means of building community. A good number of students have started food-related businesses and many restaurants have contributed dinners, including: Strings, Watercourse, SAME Café, Chipotle, Stueben’s, Avenue Grill, Mercury Café and The Saucy Noodle.

Over the past two years, more than 90 entrepreneurs have completed the program. Support for the GGA comes from the City of Denver’s Office of Economic Development, the Colorado Lending Source, UMB Bank, Colorado Enterprise Fund, Accion and Mi Casa Resource Center.

Two Academies are planned for 2013. For more information, contact: Richard Eidlin, 303-478-0131.

Contact:
Richard Eidlin
The Greater Good Academy
Denver, CO
(303) 478-0131
Richard@greatergoodacademy.org
http://www.greatergoodacademy.org