Small businesses in Brooklyn get a boost every year from a local chapter of the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.
This week, the Kappa Beta Sigma chapter of the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. will host their 4th Annual Dr. Luc El-Art Severe Small Business Recovery Grant Awards Celebration in Brooklyn on July 24 at 6 p.m.
The chapter, also known as the Brooklyn Sigmas, holds this event in honor of Bro. Dr. Luc El-Art Severe, a member of Phi Beta Sigma and an attorney who passionately advocated for the small business community in Brooklyn and throughout the State of New York.
“The Dr. Luc El-Art Severe Small Business Recovery Grant is a testament to our ongoing commitment to supporting and uplifting the Brooklyn small business community, a cause dear to Dr. Severe’s heart,” said Juan Perez, a member of the Brooklyn Chapter. “We are proud to continue his legacy by providing essential resources to entrepreneurs who are the backbone of our local economy.”
Powered by the Brooklyn Sigmas’ Bigger and Better Business Committee, a $2,500 award will be presented during the celebration to Nadege Fleurimond, owner of BunNan, a Haitian-fusion restaurant in Brooklyn where the event is being held.
The grant was established to help Minority- and Women-Owned Business Enterprises thrive.
The Late Dr. Luc El-Art Severe. (Photo courtesy of the Brooklyn Sigmas) 
The Brothers of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. Kappa Beta Sigma Chapter (Brooklyn Sigmas) hosted The Public Advocate Forum @ The Brooklyn Bank. Facilitated by Bro. Raymon Walker Featuring: Jumaane Willams; Melissa Mark-Viverito, Tony Herbert, Dawn Smalls, Rafael Espinal, Michael Blake, and many more other qualified candidates. Wed, February 13, 2019 6PM to 8PM. 
Nadege Fleurimond, owner of BunNan and this year’s recipient of Brooklyn Sigmas’ 4th Annual Dr. Luc El-Art Severe Small Business Recovery Grant Award. (Photo courtesy of Nadege Fleurimond)
According to Tiffany Joy Murchison, the inaugural grant recipient and owner of TJM & Co. Media Boutique, “Receiving the Dr. Luc El-Art Severe Small Business Recovery Grant was a pivotal moment for TJM & Co. Media Boutique. (The grant) provided the crucial support we needed to grow and continue serving our community. I am incredibly grateful for the Brooklyn Sigmas’ commitment to fostering small business success and I encourage all eligible businesses to consider applying in the future.”
Bigger and Better Business became the organization’s first national program in December 1924 when it was introduced during the fraternity’s Tenth Anniversary Conclave in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. website, “When Bigger and Better Business was adopted as a national program, special emphasis was placed on encouraging and promoting Negro businesses. At its inception, the program sought to encourage Negro businesses to improve their business acumen, efficiency and service to the public, to be competitive with other businesses.”
Interested in attending the 4th Annual Dr. Luc El-Art Severe Small Business Recovery Grant Awards Celebration? Visit: bit.ly/LucSevereGrant.
For more information about the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity and the Brooklyn Chapter’s Bigger & Better Business initiatives and the Dr. Luc El-Art Severe Small Business Recovery Grant, visit brooklynsigmas.org.