By Lisa Pote, Senior Vice President, Seedco Mid-South

Ever since I started at Seedco, I’ve been calling it the best kept secret in the Mid-South. Well, the secret is out.

First, a bit about us …. Our office comprises roughly one-third of Seedco’s total budget.  We have 45 full- time employees and some 150 additional staff on contract through partnerships with local community-based organizations. We serve more than 8,000 welfare recipients a month through operating the Tennessee Families First program.

We also have a well-respected array of partnerships throughout Greater Memphis, through which we provide housing counseling and benefits access to residents in need. In addition we work with the New York City Center for Economic Opportunity and the City of Memphis on the second generation of Family Rewards  in Memphis.  

Our team’s mantra is: “Our number one goal is to keep our promises to our clients, our partners, and our funders, with programmatic and administrative integrity.”  It’s a bold statement, but it belongs to everyone here.  I operate with the fundamental belief that an organization is only as strong as its staff.  Everyone here knows that they are the key to making Seedco shine.  

Just like our Seedco colleagues around the country, we have plans to keep moving forward at a rapid pace.  We feel an urgency in our work, as the families we serve struggle to improve their lives.  Our number one growth strategy is to be excellent at what we do.

As we focus on quality performance, we are now looking toward increasing our meaning to those we serve – clients and partners alike.  In 2012 we successfully launched Seedco’s innovative technology solutions arm through Salesforce, began to explore our role in supporting economic development in our region, and engaged in a broader conversation around increased avenues of access to benefits for those in need.

Keep checking our website for updates on our work and feel free to find me: Lpote@seedco.org or visit the Tennessee page.