SBA, partners to host Aug. 16 event for entrepreneurs over the age of 50

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Entrepreneurs over the age of 50 who want to start or grow their small business can participate in an event scheduled for Aug. 16.

The Syracuse district office of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), AARP, and the WISE Women’s Business Center will host what they are calling an “Encore Entrepreneurship” event at the Syracuse Tech Garden on Aug. 16 from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.

The event is part of the “Summer of Encore Mentoring,” a collaboration between the SBA and AARP to promote entrepreneurship among individuals age 50 and older.

The session will provide attendees the chance to “learn the basics of business planning,” the SBA said in a news release issued Monday.

They’ll also hear presentations from the SBA, the WISE Women’s Business Center, AARP, and Lisa Eklund, a local “encore” entrepreneur.

“The face of entrepreneurship is changing in America and more of those faces today belong to entrepreneurs over the age of 50. Here at SBA, we are focused on building ladders of opportunity that are open, accessible and available to all entrepreneurs,” Bernard J. Paprocki, director of the SBA Syracuse district office, said in the release. “We are fortunate to have great partners in the WISE Women’s Business Center and AARP to help Central New Yorkers over 50 take control of their future through small business ownership.”

The event is free to attend, but the organizations suggest advance registration.

For more information and to register, visit https://encoreeship2016.eventbrite.com or call the WISE Women’s Business Center at (315) 443-8634.

The SBA and AARP joint partnership on “Summer of Encore Mentoring,” which began in 2012, has educated and trained more than 475,000 “existing and promising encore entrepreneurs,” the SBA said.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com