Month: October 2023

It’s nice to have 4K4Community — formerly known as 4K4Charity — back in business. The business of raising money for nonprofits and community efforts. The reboot of the event, held on October 10, 2023, managed to hit 5 figures, raising $12,500 for POIC + Rosemary Anderson High School.

Have you been tracking on Expensify, lately…? They’ve had a fairly quiet presence here in Portland for years. Even though they’re one of the newest publicly traded companies in town. But lately, they’ve been making a little more noise. First, they championed the refresh of a classic Portland food cart pod. Then, they started supporting educators more effectively. And now? They’ve officially become both a B2B and B2C company. That’s right. Expensify is now helping with personal expenses, too.

You know I’m a fan of Buzzcutt, the app that helps people find non-alcoholic offerings at local bars, restaurants, and stores. And it’s not just because their idea is timely — and needed. It’s because they’re always down to throw together a solid get together. Which is what’s happening to close out Sober October with the Buzzcutt Buzz-Free Bar Hop.

You know me. I love orgs that talk about supporting founders. But I love it even more when that talk translates into action. That’s why I’m happy to share that Fridie Outdoors — a PitchBlack and PIE alum — is one of five companies selected to participate in the Black United Fund of Oregon Emerging Entrepreneur program, this year.

If you’re interested in podcasting which seems to be having a bit of a renaissance — I mean, even I’m back to podcasting — you won’t want to miss this panel of Portland-based experts sharing their insights and tips on Thursday, October 26, 2023 at Upstart Collective at 9:00AM. It’s free to attend. For more information or to RSVP, visit “Becoming an Industry Thought Leader with Podcasting.”

It was a packed house last night at The Redd for Pitch Latino 2023. And startups weren’t the only ones landing money. The organization behind Pitch Latino — Latino Founder — secured grants for both the organization and the Latino accelerator program it runs. That was a huge win. But the big win on the startup side was Barro, a traditional Mexican bakery which walked away with crowd adulation and $10,000 in prize money.

[Editor: I thought I’d lead by example. But I had ChatGPT write my bio 😂]