Three U.S. Bank small business clients among winners of Sacramento SBA awards

The 2024 Sacramento District Small Business Week Award Winners included Asian Resources Inc., COLETTI and Vantage Point Center for Psychotherapy.

In celebration of National Small Business Week, U.S. Bank bankers in Sacramento had the honor recently of seeing three of their clients recognized by the U.S. Small Business Administration.

At an event held by the SBA's Sacramento District, Asian Resources Inc. took home nonprofit of the year, COLETTI earned Veteran-owned business of the year, and Vantage Point Center for Psychotherapy won woman-owned business of the year.

SBA business development officer Peter Kim, business banking relationship manager Karissa Garrison and business banking relationship manager Jason Vivet were on hand to introduce their clients as they collected their awards.

"These business owners wear so many hats as they work to serve their clients each and every day," Kim said. "If we are able to help them and be resources to make their jobs a little easier, that's what makes this job so much fun."

Here is a closer look at the three winners.

Sacramento SBA nonprofit of the year: Asian Resources Inc. (ARI)

Sacramento experienced a huge influx of Vietnamese newcomers following the fall of Saigon, sparking the creation of the nonprofit Asian Resources Inc. (ARI) in 1980 to provide social services, job assistance and English classes to the fast-growing community.

Some 44 years later, ARI has grown to 27 employees who provide services in at least 20 languages, serving refugees from Afghanistan, Ukraine and Venezuela along with Asian countries. The nonprofit's Asian Resources Job Center, which opened in 1985 with funding from partner Sacramento Employment and Training Agency, continues to provide vital workforce development and on-the-job training. To help empower students from low-income people of color families to pursue higher-paying jobs as executives and supervisors, ARI recently launched its Youth Executive Academy.

"One of the things we saw during COVID was a lot of the people who lost jobs were refugees, immigrants and low-income workers because they were often in the lower levels at their employers and those are the first to be let go," said Rejie Marie Baloyos, executive director of ARI. "We're working with our first cohort of 31 youth to change their mindset about going into leadership roles, building their connections and finding that motivation for them to flourish as executives."