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As we lean into the final quarter of the year and continue to celebrate holidays with friends, families, and colleagues, I am thinking about the gift of quality relationships. Oklahoma is unique in that many of our circles not only overlap, but they go deep – especially here in the OVF community. I don’t think I could count the number of times that I have called someone in the ecosystem and asked for help for myself or an incubator client where I did not receive an abundance of resources or connections. During GEW, I had the opportunity to represent OVF on a VC panel. One of the takeaways from the conversation is how important it is to be present and systematic with the seeds we plant today so that we get to see how they blossom, are harvested and sown again throughout our careers and lifetime. As we nurture our relationships, we are able to advocate for each other and to give back. OVF power lunches provide an avenue to grow those relationships and be exposed to new companies, technology, and information through intentional programming. When you register, you can even let us know a type of resource or the name of someone you need to connect with and our membership committee will facilitate an introduction. How cool is that?
On December 13 at MetroTech Springlake we will host Part 2 of the SSCBI funding panels where we will hear from Boyd Street Ventures and Cortado Ventures as part of the Oklahoma Venture Capital Investment Program facilitated by OCAST. This builds on what we learned in October when we heard from FortySix Venture Capital, the Oklahoma Life Science Fund, and TEDC Creative Capital which represents the Oklahoma Business Lending Partnership Program.
The Oklahoma Venture Capital Investment program is set to strengthen the state’s economy and incentivize the growth of private venture capital in Oklahoma by investing nearly $49 million of SSBCI dollars in Oklahoma based venture funds. The Oklahoma Business Lending Partnership Program will provide up to $32.7 million in nondilutive loans through CDFIs and local banks. How amazing that these funds allocated to Oklahoma will remain in Oklahoma – and even more incredible is that they are inclusive. These funds touch several different industry verticals and are intentionally positioned to fund socially and economically disadvantaged individuals (SEDI)-owned businesses and very small businesses (VSB) that have 10 employees or less. The cherry on top is the people distributing those funds and delivering technical assistance are all part of the OVF community and dedicated to Oklahoma’s growth. It is a gift to be your chair. I hope I can count on your presence on December 13th as one the presents I receive this holiday season!
Register to attend the December 13th OVF Power Lunch
