John Hope Bryant

U.S. Surgeon General to Headline HOPE Forum in Atlanta May 17th, 2013

Operation HOPE 21: Telling The Story of Our Founding

21 years ago, this day, May 5th, 2013, the bold vision of and for Operation HOPE was born in South Central Los Angeles, immediately following the Rodney King Riots of April 29th, 1992.

"Rainbows, after storms.  You cannot have a rainbow without a storm first."

After the Rodney King verdict came down, so many things just went dark in the community I loved so much. The community I still love.  But not all things were negative, in the days and weeks and months that followed.

Congresswoman Maxine Waters and her local leadership group, led by Brenda Shockley as I recall, stood up their vision of and for Community Build. Today, Congresswoman Waters serves on the financial services committee for Congress, continuing to push her agenda for her people.

Then City Counciman Mark Ridkey-Thomas, who today is an esteemed and accomplished lead member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.  I fondly remember Supervisor Ridley-Thomas for so many reasons, but a couple stand out for me.  Mark (as I respectfully call him as a friend) served on our first board of directors for Operation HOPE. I remember our parting conversation. It was our first letterhead. We were committed to "eradicating poverty across America," and Mark (Ridley-Thomas) wanted to eradicate poverty and empower people IN THE 8TH DISTRICT!  We were both right, but Councilman Ridley-Thomas was more right than me.  He was 100% focused on empowering and serving the people in the district he was elected to serve.  This impresses me now, as much as it impressed me then.  I was sad to see Ridley-Thomas leave our board back then, by I so respected "why" he did it.  I also got the phrase "With HOPE," which has become my global signature sign-off statement on all correspondence, from Mr. Ridley-Thomas.  Finally, back then I would say that Ridley-Thomas was the only sitting elected official who really knew and understood community development, community empowerment, and the power of financial dignity in one's life.  

Hurricane Sandy Update from HOPE Coalition America and Project Restore HOPE

HOPE Coalition America and Project Restore HOPE: Hurricane Sandy have already hired staff, and this month will be opening offices in Brick, New Jersey and other key cities impacted by Sandy in the state of New Jersey.

HCA has more than 1,000 professionals committed to provide volunteer financial case management and counseling, along with my team, for those impacted.  The lead volunteer partner for Sandy work is JP Morgan Chase, which has been incredible with more than 600 committed HOPE Corps volunteers leaning into this important work.

A special thank you to the State of New Jersey Relief Fund (for Hurricane Sandy), the Office of the First Lady for New Jersey, Mrs. Mary Pat Christie, the U.S. Department of Commerce and U.S. Economic Development Administration, JP Morgan Chase, Ares Capital Management, the American Red Cross, UPS, Chubb Insurace which donated our 55 Water Street office space in New York, and a range of additional partners engaged here.

HCA is a national partner with FEMA for emergency financial and economic preparedness, response and recovery for the nation.  For more information on our Hurricane Sandy response work, how you can get involved, or get help, contact Fred Smith, division president for HCA.  Also important to the process is Mary Hagerty, CEO of Operation HOPE NYC and my NE leadership officer.

A special tank you to Michael Arougheti, principal of Ares Management of Manhattan, and a national member of the Operation HOPE board of directors.  It was Mr. Arougheti who spearheaded the corporate effort to get corporate leaders engaged and involved in our Sandy recovery efforts in the weeks following the disaster.  His leadership will be forever remembered, and much appreciated.

John Hope Bryant

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Solving Poverty: Dr. King, Wealth and Poverty, from Birmingham, Alabama to the Black Mecca of Atlanta

This past week marked the 50th anniversary of the Letter from a Birmingham Jail by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and his Birmingham Movement of 1963.  Much is known about Dr. King's now famous Letter, but it is generally less known that the Birmingham Movement was rooted in economic justice and jobs.  

And so, it was fitting that this week the organization I founded, Operation HOPE, marked the occasion by hosting a special HOPE Forum at our new HOPE Financial Dignity Center at Ebenezer in Atlanta, featuring U.S. Comptroller of the Currency Thomas Curry. Comptroller Curry regulates national banks with total assets of more than $12 trillion.  

An authentic, thoughtful and caring leader with a direct impact on more than $12 trillion in banking assets, is precisely the sort of transformational leader we need to see more of in inner-city, rural and under-served communities in America. For me, it is all part of a growing movement and body of work, from civil rights justice, to civil rights empowerment for all.  

But the visit to Atlanta and the HOPE Center Ebenezer, located within the larger Martin Luther King, Sr. Community Resource Complex, across from the King Center in Atlanta, Georgia, was not a celebration of the vast economic progress that has been made since Dr. King's Letter From A Birmingham Jail. There has been progress, no doubt. Quite a bit in fact, but grossly uneven in its impact; even amongst African-Americans.  A room full of Black prosperity is to be celebrated, but it not absent the reality of Black poverty and the unbanked which could be found less than 2 blocks away.

Frankly, much of what Dr. King attempted to deal with and address through his Birmingham Movement work, could very well be applied to the economic conditions today in both Birmingham, Alabama and Atlanta, Georgia.

A Personal Letter from Operation HOPE Founder, Chairman, and CEO John Hope Bryant and Ambassador Andrew Young

Operation HOPE is "the private banker to the working poor, the underclass, and the struggling middle-class," and the impact of our work can be felt on-the-ground, everywhere we operate.  Our mission is 'silver rights,' or making free enterprise and capitalism work for all.  Financial literacy is the tool, financial dignity is the goal and financial inclusion is the way. 

2012 marked new heights for HOPE's silver rights movement as it continued to reach out and empower underserved populations in new and innovative ways. HOPE divisions currently serving the community include:

 

• Banking on Our Future, focused on keeping the most at-risk youth from repeating the cycles of poverty and despair that has trapped so many in their families and communities by teaching them basic financial literacy, or what we call "the global language of money." 

 

• HOPE Business-In-A-Box/Gallup-HOPE Index, focused on inspiring a generation of young people to become future American assets of economic energy, small business and entrepreneurship.

 

• HOPE Financial Dignity Centers, including our newest HOPE Financial Dignity Center at Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr''s Ebenezer Church in Atlanta, Georgia, are where we approve clients day one, subject to the resolution of their primary denial factors, and raise credit scores on average 120 points over 18 months of active counseling. We call it the 700 Credit Scores Communities Initiative.  The HOPE Center at Ebenezer marks our 11th HOPE Center across the nation, and is the proud anchor for the new Martin Luther King. Sr. Community Resource Complex next to Ebenezer Church.  Most people know that Daddy King, as he was lovingly called, co-pastored Ebenezer Church with his son, Dr. King, but what they don't know is that Daddy King served on the board of a bank for 40 years.  Even more than 50 years ago, the King legacy was alive with civil rights, and silver rights empowerment, too. A special thank you to our HOPE Center signature partners, including Bank of the West and Union Bank on the west coast, E*TRADE FINANCIAL in New York City and Washington, DC, and at Ebenezer in Atlanta, FINANCIAL SERVICES ROUNDTABLE members SunTrust Bank, State Farm Insurance, LPL Financial/NestWise, Wells Fargo Bank,MasterCard, and BMO Harris Bank, along with supporting partners including the Coca-Cola Company,Kaplan University, Equifax, the United Way of Greater Atlanta, amongst others.

 

• HOPE Coalition America, which is the national partner with FEMA around emergency financial disaster preparedness, response and recovery, or the "economic Red Cross" for the nation.  HCA responded to, and served, more than 200,000 survivors following Hurricane Katrina, and we are responding to Hurricane Sandy now. 

 

• HOPE Government Relations & Public Policy, and HOPE Forums, which both advance responsible public policy and help to shape, engaged public opinion.  The recent HOPE Global Financial Dignity Summitfeaturing U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, with more than 1,500 delegates from 30 countries, covered by 50 major media outlets, is but one example of our focus here.

Read the complete personal letter on the HOPE Blog here.

Operation HOPE and Private Sector Join to Provide Disaster Financial Recovery to Individuals Affected by Hurricane Sandy

Ares Capital, Allstate, Aon, HSBC, and Transunion among corporate partners joining commitment

NEW YORK, Jan. 28, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Operation HOPE, Inc. (HOPE) is pleased to announce it is joining forces with private and public sector organizations to provide long-term financial recovery information, guidance and empowerment services to small businesses, families and individuals devastated by Hurricane Sandy. Ares Capital, Allstate, Aon, HSBC, and Transunion are among the initial group of companies making a commitment to help the HOPE recovery initiative - Project Restore HOPE: Hurricane Sandy.

Project Restore HOPE is a collaboration of Operation HOPE's disaster preparedness and recovery division, HOPE Coalition America (HCA), private sector financial institutions and government agencies. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has also been an avid supporter and team member of Project Restore HOPE. The goal of the team project is to provide long-term economic revitalization and empowerment services and programs to survivors of Hurricane Sandy in New York and New Jersey on-the-ground, and via a toll-free hotline in the District of Columbia and the other 11 recovering states. The effort will provide financial guidance to the survivors of the hurricane, including:

• Recovery budget preparation and emergency credit management 
• Working with individuals to help them understand and complete the insurance claim process
• Referrals to government and private agencies providing assistance 
• Assistance with obtaining copies of lost or destroyed documents 
• Assistance completing applications for grants and loans 
• Assistance with modifying and restructuring credit and loan obligations

The announcement comes following a meeting hosted by Michael Arougheti , president of Ares Capital, in New York City on December 11. Executives from the country's top financial services firms, accounting firms, law firms, as well as public sector leaders from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) attended to discuss Hurricane Sandy recovery and their commitments. The meeting included a presentation by FEMA Deputy Administrator Tim Manning , who briefed corporate partners on the status of recovery efforts in the areas most impacted by the hurricane and on the need for more private sector support for individuals and small businesses.  

"The destruction that was experienced by hundreds of thousands of residents in the tri-state area due to Hurricane Sandy was felt deeply within the business community," said Michael Arougheti , president of Ares Capital. "This meeting was a first step in our effort to demonstrate the business community's commitment to help impacted families and individuals get back on their feet. I am pleased with the working partnership that has been formed with Operation HOPE, FEMA, Ares Capital and other partners, as we are deeply invested in this recovery effort."

From The AMERICAN BANKER ~The Circuit: Operation HOPE's Global Financial Dignity Summit

At Operation HOPE's Global Financial Dignity Summit, there wasn't much controversy to be found-the premise that everyone, regardless of socioeconomic status, is deserving of dignity in their financial lives doesn't leave much to argue about.

And yet you could be forgiven for leaving the event feeling slightly conflicted: motivated, on the one hand, by the uplifting speeches and the evidence of widespread interest in spreading financial literacy throughout low-income communities and beyond, and unsure on the other hand that any such effort could be both scalable and effective enough to make much of a difference.

But any skepticism would have to wait until the end of the conference to surface, after the final rush to swap business cards with banking executives and the heads of nonprofits, on the last pass through the convention hall as the FDIC and CFPB booths were shutting down, on the airplane trip home from Atlanta. The summit itself was squarely focused on the positive, with an agenda that ranged from a keynote address by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke to a Q-and-A session with rapper-turned-businessman Russell Simmons.

A pre-conference program at Atlanta's famed Ebenezer Baptist Church lent an additional sense of purpose and history to the proceedings. Ebenezer is where Martin Luther King Sr. and Jr. preached, and two members of the King family (Martin Luther King Jr.'s only living sibling, Christine King-Farris, and his daughter, Bernice King) appeared over the two days of events, reminding delegates that their fathers saw economic justice, and financial education, as a civil rights matter.

"Dad was all about financial literacy," said King-Farris, who recalled that her father, affectionately known as "Daddy King," encouraged many of his congregants to realize the dream of home ownership.

Operation HOPE describes itself as the "largest national urban delivery system for financial literacy empowerment in the nation." It organized the gathering at Ebenezer to cut the ribbon on its newest Financial Dignity Center, housed within the church's Martin Luther King Sr. Community Resource Complex. In seminars and one-on-one sessions, counselors at Operation HOPE Financial Dignity Centers around the country offer advice on cleaning up bad credit, purchasing a home or obtaining a small-business loan.

The summit (American Banker was a media sponsor) officially kicked off back at the convention hotel, with a timely address by Don Graves, head of the President's Council on Jobs and Competitiveness. Graves had been with President Obama that day for a heavily publicized meeting with corporate CEOs invited to the White House to discuss the fiscal cliff and its impact on hiring.

The dignity that employment can provide was a key theme that carried into the second day of the summit. Michael Arougheti, the president of Ares Capital, triggered a wave of applause during a panel discussion when he cited a recent observation made by Operation HOPE founder John Hope Bryant: "The new philanthropy is a job."

But it takes more than a job to fully participate in, and benefit from, the financial system. For that, you need to know the vocabulary of money. You need someone to show you, through formal training or just by example, how to responsibly manage your finances. On this, every speaker who addressed the issue agreed wholeheartedly.

"Forty percent of the population wouldn't know what to do if they had a $2,000 emergency," noted SunTrust CEO Bill Rogers, who didn't hesitate to answer in the affirmative when he was asked whether financial literacy should be a required course in high school or college. "I would say actually middle school is the best place to start," Rogers said. "By the time you get to college, you sort of already had to have had it happen."

Join the Operation HOPE Family for the Holidays at the new HOPE Financial Dignity Center Atlanta, at Ebenezer

Ben Bernanke, Andrew Young, Russell Simmons Come to Atlanta for HOPE

John Hope Bryant's 20 year quest to create equity and access in free markets and capital all over the world is bringing Ben Bernanke, Andrew Young and Russell Simmons together in the name of financial dignity.

The Operation HOPE Global Financial Dignity Summit comes to Atlanta this week bringing 1,000 delegates from 50 nations to bank the unbanked, create opportunities for childhoodfinancial literacy and increase access to capital for all.

Portions of the two day summit will be streamed live courtesy of KaplanUniversity

The Future of Global Jobs: The Local Atlanta Economic Miracle
Wednesday, Nov. 14 from 6:00pm - 8:30pm ET
Opening General Plenary: an official listening and action field session for the White House Council on Jobs and Competitiveness moderated by Ambassador Andrew Young.

Read complete story here.

 

Ebenezer Church Cuts Ribbon to the Martin Luther King, Sr. Community Resource in Atlanta, Georgia

 

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I was honored to stand with my friend and partner, Reverend Dr. Raphael Warnock and members of the King and Ebenezer families as we cut the ribbon to the new Martin Luther King, Sr. Community Resource Complex at the historic Ebenezer Church in Atlanta, Georgia.

Next week we will cut the ribbon to the new HOPE Financial Dignity Center, Atlanta at Ebenezer, which is the anchor for the new Martin Luther King, Sr. Community Resource Complex.  The global community is welcome to join us here on November 14th, 2012, for the first day of our global summit, as we celebrate "community."

Finally, I am honored to report that my friend Reverend Dr. Bernice King, the daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., will give remarks at the close of the global summit, just prior to the closing plenary entitled, WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE: Chaos or Community, which is also the title to her late father's final book on the movement.