On April 4, 2024, the U.S. Small Business Administration announced three recipients of its annual Phoenix Awards, recognizing a small-business owner, a public official and a volunteer for disaster-recovery work. The SBA said the awardees would be honored during National Small Business Week, scheduled for April 28 through May 4 in Washington, D.C. [story-s1]
The small-business award went to Jacqueline Bernetta Tate Smith, owner of The Coffee Shoppe in Selma, Alabama. The release says she opened the eatery and specialty coffee shop in November 2011. After receiving an Economic Injury Disaster Loan during the pandemic in 2020, she sought SBA assistance again following the Jan. 12, 2023 tornadoes that struck Selma. The SBA described the second loan as supporting the shop’s continued operations and community engagement. [story-s1]
The public-official award recognized Terrebonne Parish Councilman Dirk J. Guidry of Chauvin, Louisiana, for work tied to Hurricane Ida recovery. The SBA says he helped create an ongoing recovery center after the hurricane and worked with the agency’s recovery-assistance programs. The release also identified Arkansas resident and volunteer honoree whose nonprofit work began after a 2023 tornado, underscoring how the awards span business recovery and local community response. [story-s1]
The announcement framed the awards as examples of disaster recovery involving small businesses, local government and volunteers. It also reported that the SBA’s disaster-assistance team delivered nearly $1.8 billion during the prior year to help small businesses, renters and homeowners rebuild; that figure is the agency’s own reported total. [story-s1]
Source documents
- SBA Recognizes 2024 Phoenix Award Winners of the Year for Outstanding Disaster Recovery Effortshttps://legacy.sba.gov/article/2024/04/04/sba-recognizes-2024-phoenix-award-winners-year-outstanding-disaster-recovery-efforts