Today we’d like to introduce you to Sabrina Conner.
Sabrina, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
BRIDGE was founded in 2012 by 8 black young professionals at varying stages of their career, as a result of there being no professional organization for black young and emerging professionals in Tarrant County (Tarrant County is the 16th largest county in the nation). Our three main focus areas are community involvement, professional development, and education. It is a membership driven organization led by an executive board and fully voluntary. In 2014 we established ourselves as a 501c3 nonprofit, and have since become the premier organization for black emerging professionals in Tarrant County.
I am one of the co-founding board members and current president. Under my leadership we have developed a college scholarship fund, a scholarship for African American students to participate as a Youth Ambassador within the Fort Worth Sister Cities International program to increase diversity, established a financial award for nonprofits, established awards to recognize black young professionals in Tarrant County for their community work and business achievements, established a number of member initiatives, and established our annual gala to celebrate our culture and achievements.
Through leveraging our resources and networks within the community and galvanizing our membership, we have been able to progress and fill a much-needed gap in our community.
Has it been a smooth road?
With any grassroots organization, there will be bumps in the road, and we were no different. As a new organization, we struggled to create our own identity and worked with limited funding. It forced us to be resourceful and think outside the box to accomplish our goals. We had to build as we grew creating our everything from the ground up including by-laws policies and procedures that govern our organization.
As a fully voluntary organization with no paid staff or major funder, our board serves as both staff and board. This means that we create, develop, plan, and execute which requires time commitment. As busy professionals, it is definitely a sacrifice, especially when we have set a standard of excellence for the events and initiatives we provide.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
BRIDGE is an avenue for black professionals to become connected in the community and business world, as well as expand their professional network. As the president, my job is to serve as board chair, set the vision and goals for the board and committees, and oversee administrative processes.
I am proud of the collaborative spirit of our organization and being able to be flexible enough to create events and initiatives that make sense for our audience. As a founder and president, I can provide insight on the intent of our mission, vision, events, and initiatives which helps to ensure that we stay true to the original intent.
I value collaboration and input from all and prefer not to dictate unless absolutely necessary to achieve a goal.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
I believe there is work to be done, but Fort Worth is a great urban area for businesses. We are the 15th largest city in the nation with a diverse population and need for more business that caters to a diverse population.
Pricing:
- An annual membership for BRIDGE is $50
Contact Info:
- Website: theBRIDGEconnect.org
- Phone: 817.330.9827
- Email: BridgeFW@gmail.com
- Instagram: Bridge.FW
- Facebook: BridgeFW
- Twitter: @BridgeFW
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