Class 14 prepares for Kick–Off Event!

Class 14 is hard at work preparing for Kick–Off‚ to be held July 30 at the Cleveland Unit. More than 80 men will officially begin the five–month journey to the Business Plan Competition (BPC) and Graduation in December. The Kick–Off event is Class 14’s first introduction to PEP executive volunteers‚ and we’d love for you to join us! If you are interested in attending‚ please visit our RSVP website.

Are you interested in acting as a Business Plan Advisor for Class 14? Click here for more information.

The Importance of Advisors

The Business Plan Advising Program is looking for advisors for Class 14‚ which runs from September to December. The Program is one of the most engaging volunteer activities available through PEP, and has a significant impact on the participant’s experience in the program. Using existing business acumen and encouragement‚ advisors support and accompany a participant through his five-month journey to entrepreneurship.

The advising process is a great way for PEP participants to get conceptual and grammatical feedback on their business plans and it is an excellent opportunity for a businessperson to give back to the community in a way that utilizes existing core skill sets. It takes approximately one hour per week and it is fabulous way to get involved in the program without an overwhelming time commitment. If you are interested or have any questions‚ please visit the advising website (www.pep.org/advisors) to sign–up or email Matthew Blank at mblank@pep.org.

Update on Caleb House

Thanks to many generous donors PEP’s Houston–based transitional home‚ Caleb House is up and running. We have two fully functional kitchens outfitted with brand new‚ bright and shiny appliances‚ cookware‚ coffee pots‚ crock pots‚ flatware‚ tableware and many other useful and necessary items. The gift of the day at our House Warming party was coffemakers – we received eight in all!

The advantage of using Kohls’ Gift Registry is that we can return the coffee pot surplus and purchase other items not received on our list. Caleb House has been transformed into a wonderfully appointed home! We have several participants living on one side of the duplex and will soon be purchasing more items for the other side of the home with funds donated specifically for Caleb House by PEP supporters. The generosity of our constituents is a wonderful blessing –thank you for your support with this effort!

Double your Donation!

PEP will again be participating in the DonorBridge Giving Day on September 8‚ 2010.

DonorBridge and the Giving Day have undergone significant changes since last year‚ all adding up to a simpler way to make your donations to PEP go even further on this special day! Donations can now be made anytime from 7:00a to 7:00p on September 8 to qualify for matching funds and there is no maximum amount allowed.

For this year's Giving Day, there are significantly more funds available to be matched and the way donations are matched has been streamlined - leading to more dollars doing more good. More information can be found at www.donorbridgetx.org.

Look for more details in next month’s edition of From the Inside about this exciting opportunity.

Straight from the Inside

Class 14 is just starting to learn the ropes‚ and it’s already been an adventure. While they are preparing for Kick–Off, take a read through Class 13’s final journal entries to see just what it is Class 14 has in store for them:

"I can remember what I was expecting out of PEP prior to my trip down here. I was expecting an intense education in business, and I was expecting this program to be very difficult to complete. Before I got here, my expectations were pretty much limited to just those two things. By the time I showed up to the Cleveland Unit and saw the living, breathing PEP, I knew that I was in for something greater than I’d ever imagined. "

Read More Journals Here