Small business owners treated to special Bucks watch party at Fiserv Forum

 

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- The Bucks held a watch party at Fiserv Forum Thursday night, May 27. You needed an invite, and those invitations were only for small business owners who were hit hard by the pandemic. 

Thursday was a night for them to kick back, celebrate and say "we made it!"

The watch party for Game 3 was a celebration put on by Fiserv Forum's Back2Business program, which has truly given back over the last year. 

"Black and minority businesses in particular have taken a brunt of the impact, so we felt the Back2Business program was a great way for us to help the community," said Bob Hau, chief financial officer of Fiserv.

The Back2Business program is responsible for giving grants totaling $1.5 million, each worth $1,000 or more.

"And we're super happy to say that we've had thousands of award winners across the country," said Todd Horvath of Fiserv's account processing. 

Trinidad Child Development Center in Greenfield is one of the recipients. 

"Last year, we had to close at a certain point, we were able to reopen, but our numbers were low," said Selwyn Jarvis. "Staffing was a struggle."

More than 170 guests were invited to watch Game 3 on the big screen in the stadium, eat tasty food and dance their hearts out, courtesy of The Pixel Booth, which is also a grant recipient.

"We're very grateful for the support and their help," said Ming Her of The Pixel Booth. "Small businesses like ours, you know, we -- we went through a tough time last year. A lot of our events were either canceled or postponed."

The mental health industry was busy due to the lockdown, but struggled in needing to buy more technology to reach their clients. 

"With school not being in, it was -- how do we reach these families? How do we keep the connection with the students?" said Donetta Walker of Divine Wellness and Counseling.