skip navigation

Dream Big

By Jam Hops, 10/28/20, 8:45PM CDT

Share

Our mission at Jam Hops is to inspire kids to become life champions. We’re in the business of transforming the lives of children by giving them a place they can learn, explore, and grow. In our efforts to do that, we also uniquely impact our community by preparing the children and young adults who are part of our jamily for success beyond the walls of our facility. The big dreams to make a larger impact on our community translated to a national honor that not even Jam Hops CEO Brenda Nolby could have dreamt of.

From more than 700 applicants, Jam Hops was named the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Dream Big Small Business of the Year at an award ceremony on October 15. The award recognizes a small business that exemplifies the spirit of innovation, entrepreneurship, and individual initiative. Our jamily impressed the Dream Big judges with our demonstrated success and leadership in business growth, innovative strategies, community engagement, and customer and employee relations. 

“The main factors that have contributed to the success and growth of Jam Hops are the focus placed on our culture, and the passion we have for what we do,” Brenda wrote in the initial award application. She also shared that the Jam Hops Gives Back program, created in 2013, and the more than $350,000 in contributions given since the program started was something that sets Jam Hops apart from many other small businesses.

Finding out we were a finalist for the award at the beginning of September was such an amazing surprise for Jam Hops staff. Brenda said of being recognized as a finalist, “I’m always proud to showcase my staff and what we do. The tenacity that our staff has shown over the past 7 months through the COVID-19 pandemic is really what small business is all about.”

Following the announcement of Jam Hops as the winner of the Dream Big Award, Brenda’s immediate reaction was “Really? Did they really just say Jam Hops? I didn’t believe it until I heard all the staff that was watching live with me cheering and celebrating.” It was a celebratory feeling like no other, not only because being recognized nationally is a huge honor, but also the prize of $25,000 can be used to help our business recover from the pandemic and continue serving our jamily and community. “The rollercoaster we’ve been on the last several months has been hard. This award means so much to me and the entire Jam Hops staff, and this feels like we’re coming out on the other side, and we have more to look forward to,” Brenda said.

We want to say thank you to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, our incredible staff, and our entire community who have supported our big dreams and recognized our hard work. We are so grateful for our jamily, and we’re excited to keep making big dreams come true!