By Jeff Reynolds, former staff member
The Microenterprise and small business community in Nebraska recently lost a good friend. Rick Wallace passed away on January 4, 2016 after a prolonged illness.
He leaves behind a legacy of helping hundreds of small businesses succeed and shaping the state’s microenterprise development industry. From humble beginnings, Rick helped transform microenterprise into a mainstream economic development strategy to assist startup and expansion of small businesses in the state.
Rick Wallace started the Self Employment Loan Fund of Lincoln (SELF) in 1994 to fill a gap in access to capital resources, technical assistance, and training for low-income, minority and women business owners. In 2001, the organization was renamed “Community Development Resources” (CDR). It has remained a mainstay in the small business and community development field in Nebraska.
I first met Rick when I started with REAP in 1994. We collaborated on many projects including, most recently, forming the Nebraska Small Business Collaborative. Rick was a good friend, a prominent figure in the microenterprise development world in Nebraska, and will be greatly missed. His passion for his work and tireless pursuit of helping others will never be forgotten.
Information about the great work of Community Development Resources can be found at: www.cdr-nebraska.org.
