Page 153 - 1-Entrepreneurship and Local Economic Development by Norman Walzer (z-lib.org)

142 Deborah M. Markley

at the right time can smooth the path to business creation, however. Rural
entrepreneurs face important obstacles in accessing the full range of capital
resources necessary to finance idea generation and development, business
start-up, operations, and growth.
Part of the challenge for a community is to build an entrepreneurship
support system that can create new sources of capital locally and help en-
trepreneurs tap into sources of capital outside the local region. Fortunately,
innovative models for addressing the capital needs of entrepreneurs, even
in rural markets, exist and can serve as a guide for rural communities and
regions.
Meeting the capital needs of entrepreneurs, however, is only one part of
the challenge for local leaders. The other challenge is to build sustainable
systems of support for entrepreneurs that match the long-term needs of en-
trepreneurship development. While local and state public sector resources
may continue to be limited, communities can look inward to their own
charitable resources. The model of community philanthropy linked to en-
trepreneurship development described here offers hope for even small rural
communities that are seeking the resources to create a more sustainable
economic future.

REFERENCES

Anft, Michael. 2003. Nebraska charities hope local wealth will help revive main
street. Chronicle of Philanthropy (December 11).
Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO). 2005. Microenterprise Fact Sheet: Mi-
croenterprise Development in Rural United States. www.microenterpriseworks.org/
microenterpriseworks/files/ccLibraryFiles/Filename/000000000288/Rural%20Mi
corenterprise%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf. Arlington, VA.
Bailey, Jon, et al. 2006. Wealth building in rural America: Programs, policies, and re-
search. St. Louis: Center for Social Development, Washington University at St.
Louis.
Batog, Jennifer. 2006. Angel investments spurred by state tax credit program.
Business Journal of Milwaukee (March 3). http://milwaukee.bizjournals.com/
milwaukee/stories/2006/03/06/story6.html. (April 21, 2006).
Bhide, Amar V. 2000. The origins and evolution of new businesses. New York: Oxford
University Press.
CDFI Coalition Website. 2006. About us. www.cdfi.org/aboutus.asp (April 21, 2006).
CEI Community Ventures, Inc. 2006. www.ceicommunityventures.com/ (April 21,
2006).
CFED. 2005. Assets Newsletter (Number 1). www.cfed.org/publications/assets/Assets
%202005%20Number%201.pdf (July 22, 2006).
Center for Rural Affairs Website. 2006. Rural Enterprise Assistance Project Loan Pro-
grams. www2.cfra.org/reap/loan_programs.htm (July 22, 2006).