Celebration, Reflection, and High Energy Mark the Entrepreneur Summit!

Senior Network Builder Carmen Hernandez spent weeks planning the December 9 Entrepreneur Summit. The event, hosted in the social hall of Hughes United Methodist Church in Wheaton, was the closing event of IMPACT’s 2023 Community Trade Academy (CTA). Last year, 116 community members completed one or more academy courses—all focused on gaining the knowledge and skills to start their own small business. The goal of the December 9 summit was to celebrate that achievement and generate excitement for CTA offerings in 2024.

The five-hour summit was a medley of dancing, story-telling, introspection, reviewing of lessons learned, evaluation, and a graduation ceremony. The evening wrapped up with a festive dinner prepared by CTA cooking class students. During the summit, Carmen shared an empowering quote worth sharing here, “Your customers do not buy products or services, they buy stories, emotions, and your magic.”