On a cold Wednesday night last year, 450 people walked through the historic Dunbar Pavilion to kick off Black History Month alongside local nonprofits and vendors.
It was the inaugural Merchant and Mission-Focused Marketplace, a celebration of Black-owned businesses organized by (ABC).
鈥淲hen we did it last year, it was an energy of happiness but also a hunger to want to continue,鈥 says Trehon Cockrell-Coleman, who runs ABC with his wife Carmishun Coleman.
The pair are planning to do it all over again this year 鈥 but this time, it鈥檚 not solely the result of the very community-driven couple. The event is made possible because of the gracious help of the folks at 鈥檚 nonprofit coalition, along with the title sponsor .
Carmishun Coleman and Trehon Cockrell-Coleman are the founders of A Better Community.
鈥淚t started with a seed but now people in the community are coming on board,鈥 Cockrell-Coleman says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not just a Trehon and Carmishun show anymore. Last year, it was a husband and wife putting things together, but this year a business and nonprofit helped pull it off. A community bonded together to make it possible.鈥
This year鈥檚 will take place 5-7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 5 featuring more than 30 vendors at The Dunbar, . You can shop candles and rice krispies all while meeting the people behind community services including doctors, DJs and the . Poems will be read to kids and 聽will perform.
鈥淲hat makes it so genuine is everything you see in those two hours is for 蜜柚直播 by 蜜柚直播,鈥 Cockrell-Coleman says. 鈥淭he outcome is beautiful when you see so many people come out on a Wednesday 鈥 just to get people to come out after a long day of work or school, when you have work the next day and kids have school the next day.鈥
Nearly 500 people attended 2024鈥檚 Merchant and Mission-Focused Marketplace.
Vendors don鈥檛 have to pay a dime to participate in the market, thanks in part to the sponsorship of APS and access to The Dunbar that the Colemans call 鈥渢he glue鈥 to their programming. The Colemans don鈥檛 make any money from the event either.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 want a percentage (from the vendors) or anything 鈥 we just want someone rooting for them,鈥 Cockrell-Coleman says. 鈥淲hen Carmishun and I really talked through it, one of the main reasons we wanted to do it again is because we wanted a space of unity to kick off Black History Month. It wasn鈥檛 that we just specialize in a vendor space. It鈥檚 what we can do to show unity and give people an opportunity to come together and meet people they may not know even existed.鈥
While this is ABC鈥檚 largest event of the year, the organization hosts monthly happenings, mostly at The Dunbar, that range from mixers to bingo nights to a backpack giveaway during back-to-school season to philanthropic outings at the Community Food Bank of Southern 蜜柚直播.
鈥淲hen Carmishun and I started this, we wanted to make sure people who had been longing for community could arrive at that,鈥 Cockrell-Coleman says. 鈥淲e remember coming to 蜜柚直播 10, 12 years ago looking for community and couldn鈥檛 really find it. These events are community starters, or igniters, to say you鈥檙e not the only one at your job or at school. Every community needs community. There are people in 蜜柚直播 really looking and longing for community.
鈥淚f you don鈥檛 have somebody galvanizing, you can easily fill your own island by yourself,鈥 he says. 鈥淏ut I think life is better in community.鈥
The Merchant and Mission-Focused Marketplace is a celebration organized by A Better Community.