The Department of Justice Gave Over $500,000 to 'Hookers for Jesus.' I Wish I Was Joking

I believe in hookers.

Read more...

from The Root https://ift.tt/2HaTeDJ

This Husband-and-Wife Couple are Building the First Black-owned Bourbon Distillery in Kentucky

Power couple Sean and Tia Edwards are set to launch the first bourbon distillery in Kentucky. Their company, Fresh Bourbon Distilling Co., has announced that they plan to build a $5.4 million distillery in downtown Lexington. Nearly three years after the company’s launch in 2017, the Edwards embark on their biggest venture to date. This past December, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) preliminarily approved a 10-year incentive deal with Fresh Bourbon Distilling through the Kentucky Business Investment Program. The contract is performance-based and can provide up to $200,000 in tax incentives based on the firm’s investment of $5.4 million and the meeting of a number of yearly targets. The targets include the creation and upkeep of 15 local full-time jobs across 10 years and paying an average wage of $18 an hour including benefits across those jobs.

The married couple entered a space that is rarely occupied by black business owners, per The New York Times, since white people make up about three-quarters of all bourbon consumers in the United States, according to a survey by the media company Gravity. African Americans are the most likely demographic group to prefer spirits like whiskey or cognac over beer or wine, according to Nielsen research. Although they constitute roughly 13% of the total population, they are just 9% of bourbon drinkers. They can tap into a bourbon market that is steadily growing at 6% or more a year, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States.

The KEDFA has also approved Fresh Bourbon Distilling Co for up to $125,000 in tax incentives through the Kentucky Enterprise Initiative Act (KEIA), which can be used to recoup Kentucky sales and use tax on construction costs, building fixtures, equipment used in research and development, and electronic processing, according to distillerytrail.com.

Fresh Bourbon Distilling Co. is making strides in progress as the company recently completed its first round of financing, with a second-round near finalization.

from Black Enterprise https://ift.tt/38iENcD

I Only Appreciated Kobe in His Totality After His Death

It has been two whole weeks since Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, and seven others perished in a helicopter crash near Los Angeles. I have spent the entire time trying to put my thoughts on his death together in a sensible way. So many of my friends and colleagues have said it much more eloquently than…

Read more...

from The Root https://ift.tt/38k5r4K

This Husband-and-Wife Couple are Building the First Black-owned Bourbon Distillery in Kentucky

Power couple Sean and Tia Edwards are set to launch the first bourbon distillery in Kentucky. Their company, Fresh Bourbon Distilling Co., has announced that they plan to build a $5.4 million distillery in downtown Lexington. Nearly three years after the company’s launch in 2017, the Edwards embark on their biggest venture to date. This past December, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) preliminarily approved a 10-year incentive deal with Fresh Bourbon Distilling through the Kentucky Business Investment Program. The contract is performance-based and can provide up to $200,000 in tax incentives based on the firm’s investment of $5.4 million and the meeting of a number of yearly targets. The targets include the creation and upkeep of 15 local full-time jobs across 10 years and paying an average wage of $18 an hour including benefits across those jobs.

The married couple entered a space that is rarely occupied by black business owners, per The New York Times, since white people make up about three-quarters of all bourbon consumers in the United States, according to a survey by the media company Gravity. African Americans are the most likely demographic group to prefer spirits like whiskey or cognac over beer or wine, according to Nielsen research. Although they constitute roughly 13% of the total population, they are just 9% of bourbon drinkers. They can tap into a bourbon market that is steadily growing at 6% or more a year, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States.

The KEDFA has also approved Fresh Bourbon Distilling Co for up to $125,000 in tax incentives through the Kentucky Enterprise Initiative Act (KEIA), which can be used to recoup Kentucky sales and use tax on construction costs, building fixtures, equipment used in research and development, and electronic processing, according to distillerytrail.com.

Fresh Bourbon Distilling Co. is making strides in progress as the company recently completed its first round of financing, with a second-round near finalization.

from Black Enterprise https://ift.tt/38iENcD

Vanessa Bryant says her ‘brain refuses to accept’ that Kobe and Gigi are gone

Vanessa Bryant says she is still having a tough time processing both her husband’s and daughter’s deaths.

READ MORE: Vanessa Bryant breaks silence after tragic loss of husband Kobe and daughter Gianna

In a heart-wrenching Instagram post, Bryant said her “brain refuses to accept” that both her husband, Kobe Bryant, and 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, are no longer here.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

I’ve been reluctant to put my feelings into words. My brain refuses to accept that both Kobe and Gigi are gone. I can’t process both at the same time. It’s like I’m trying to process Kobe being gone but my body refuses to accept my Gigi will never come back to me. It feels wrong. Why should I be able to wake up another day when my baby girl isn’t being able to have that opportunity?! I’m so mad. She had so much life to live. Then I realize I need to be strong and be here for my 3 daughters. Mad I’m not with Kobe and Gigi but thankful I’m here with Natalia, Bianka and Capri. I know what I’m feeling is normal. It’s part of the grieving process. I just wanted to share in case there’s anyone out there that’s experienced a loss like this. God I wish they were here and this nightmare would be over. Praying for all of the victims of this horrible tragedy. Please continue to pray for all.

A post shared by Vanessa Bryant 🦋 (@vanessabryant) on Feb 10, 2020 at 11:14am PST

“I’ve been reluctant to put my feelings into words,” Bryant wrote in the post. “My brain refuses to accept that both Kobe and Gigi are gone. I can’t process both at the same time. It’s like I’m trying to process Kobe being gone but my body refuses to accept my Gigi will never come back to me. It feels wrong.”

“Why should I be able to wake up another day when my baby girl isn’t being able to have that opportunity?! I’m so mad. She had so much life to live. Then I realize I need to be strong and be here for my 3 daughters,” Vanessa Bryant posted. “Mad I’m not with Kobe and Gigi but thankful I’m here with Natalia, Bianka, and Capri.

Kobe and Gigi were killed on January 26 after the helicopter they were riding in tragically crashed in Calabasas, California. Seven other people, including a few of Gianna’s teammates and their parents, were also killed. The passengers were headed to a tournament at Bryant’s Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks when their helicopter went down. The cause of the crash is still under investigation.

Bryant said she is also heartbroken for the other victims and their families and that she hoped her post might provide comfort to them in their time of grief.

“I know what I’m feeling is normal. It’s part of the grieving process. I just wanted to share in case there’s anyone out there that’s experienced a loss like this,” she wrote. “Praying for all of the victims of this horrible tragedy. God, I wish they were here and this nightmare would be over. Praying for all of the victims of this horrible tragedy. Please continue to pray for all.”

READ MORE: Date set for Kobe Bryant and Gigi’s public memorial service at Staples Center

Last week, Bryant announced that a memorial service for Kobe and Gianna will be held on February 24 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

The post Vanessa Bryant says her ‘brain refuses to accept’ that Kobe and Gigi are gone appeared first on TheGrio.

from TheGrio https://ift.tt/38mjnLy