Moonlighter FabLab is the USA Regional Winner of the XERO Beautiful Business Fund for Upskilling the Future

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15 November 2023 — Xero, the global small business platform, today announced the 28 small businesses and nonprofits who have won a share of the NZ$750,000 global prize pool as part of the inaugural Xero Beautiful Business Fund.

The winners were recognized for best demonstrating, in a 90 second video, how they would use the funding to support their future business goals in one of four categories – Innovating for sustainability, Strengthening community connection, Trailblazing with technology and Upskilling for the future.

Launched earlier this year, the Xero Beautiful Business Fund seeks to help Xero’s small business customers boost their growth plans and drive future success. More than 5,500 applications were received from Xero customers across Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, the United States and the United Kingdom.

The four global winners will each receive NZ$70,000 (or equivalent). The remaining 24 winners will each receive NZ$20,000 (or equivalent).

Moonlighter FabLab is the United States Regional Winner for the Upskilling the Future Category:

Upskilling for the future

The Seam is the ‘Upskilling for the future’ global winner.

The Regional category winners are:

Sukhinder Singh Cassidy, Xero CEO, said: “Congratulations to our amazing Xero Beautiful Business Fund winners. We’re honoured to be able to support these small businesses and nonprofits in taking steps to boost their growth plans and drive future success. It’s such an important way to connect back to our purpose to make life better for small businesses, their advisors and communities around the world. We’re extremely grateful to all who took the time to enter and share their stories with us; we are truly blown away by the incredible response and your dedication to apply. Judging the entries was a wonderful reminder of who our customers are – passionate people who are dedicated to solving problems and making a positive impact in their communities – and I want to thank all of the judges who helped us select the winners.”

The Xero Beautiful Business Fund was first announced during Xero Day, Xero’s founding day celebrations, on 6 July this year. Applications opened on 23 August and ran for six weeks, closing 6 October. To enter, applicants needed to submit a 90-second pitch video sharing details of their business, the category they were applying in and their plans to use the funding. Regional winners were chosen by a regional judging panel composed of local business and industry leaders, Xero accounting and bookkeeping partners and Xero employees, for a total of 28 winners. A global judging panel made up of global business and industry leaders, technology experts and Xero executives, then selected one global winner in each category from the 28 regional winners.

For more information and to learn about the winners, visit xero.com/beautiful-business-fund.

ENDS

Media Contact | Janna Wilkinson | Xero Communications | press@xero.com

About Xero

Xero is a global small business platform with 3.95 million subscribers which includes a core accounting solution, payroll, workforce management, expenses and projects. Xero also has an extensive ecosystem of connected apps and connections to banks and other financial institutions helping small businesses access a range of solutions from within Xero’s open platform to help them run their business and manage their finances. Xero is a FIFA Women’s Football partner.

MOONLIGHTER FABLAB NAMED 2023 CreARTE GRANT RECIPIENT, RECEIVES $100,000 DONATION FROM THE JORGE M. PÉREZ FAMILY FOUNDATION

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Pérez Family to Distribute $5 Million in Grants to 39 Cultural Organizations Supporting and Enhancing Miami-Dade County’s Artistic Ecosystem  

MIAMI, FL (Nov. 02, 2023) – Moonlighter FabLab announced today that it has received a generous donation of $100,000 over two years from The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation at The Miami Foundation (the Pérez Family Foundation), as part of the third edition of the Pérez CreARTE Grants Program (CreARTE). The grants, which total $5,000,000, will be distributed over the next two years and benefit 39 cultural organizations across Miami-Dade County to help cultivate a more vibrant, connected and stimulating arts ecosystem.

“The CreARTE program was born of our family’s desire to expand the transformative power of South Florida’s arts community,” said Jorge M. Pérez, internationally recognized philanthropist and founder of the Pérez Family Foundation. “Over the past four years, we have remained dedicated in our mission to help identify and support organizations that add to Miami-Dade County’s unique, vibrant cultural landscape. Every year, we are blown away by the talent and vision of our applicants. We look forward to following their professional achievements and contributions to our region in the years ahead.”

“This grant will provide the critical funds needed to onboard new technical educators, train our team with internationally recognized Maker educator certifications, and expand our educational programs for broader impact in the community,” said Tom Pupo, Executive Director of Moonlighter FabLab. “We are proud to partner with The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation at The Miami Foundation once again to continue building a culture of excellence in innovation and creative expression – making South Florida a place where ideas can be built.”

Moonlighter FabLab’s mission is realized through four pillars: Education – via our STEAM Learning Center, Access – via our Shared Fabrication Lab/Makerspace, Collaboration – via our Community Social Impact Projects, and Outreach – via our annual flagship event, Maker Faire Miami, and other community events + activations. We deliver quality STEAM education programs at our facility, in schools across Miami-Dade County, and at museums and community centers across the tri-county area. We also train educators to utilize project-based learning approaches in their classrooms through the design thinking methodology and training students on emerging technologies. By investing in our youth, we are working towards nurturing a vibrant and multidisciplinary creative community.

Since 2019, CreARTE has made a total investment of $10 million across 45 unique organizations in Miami-Dade County. This investment has enabled these organizations to reach hundreds of thousands of individuals through grant-supported programming, capacity building and impact assessment.

CreARTE is made possible through a unique partnership between the Pérez Family Foundation and The Miami Foundation, a pillar of the local nonprofit community that currently manages close to $445 million in philanthropic funds. 

More information on The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation, its mission, and previous donations can be found at jmperezfamilyfoundation.org. 

About Moonlighter FabLab

Moonlighter FabLab is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering makers of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities, with the skills, tools, and opportunities to shape a better future. 

Since 2015, Moonlighter FabLab has worked with over 15,000 students, served over 250 members, and partnered with local non-profits organizations, museums, and schools to build over 15 social impact projects in the community with our students.

For more information, visit moonlighterfablab.org

About The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation

The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation at The Miami Foundation fulfills the philanthropic vision of Jorge M. Pérez, chairman and CEO of The Related Group, and his family to develop South Florida as an exemplary world-class urban center. The family foundation promotes sustainable, inclusive, and just communities by supporting programs and organizations focused on arts and culture, health and well-being, education, environment, and economic development – with a particular preference for programs and organizations that could serve as models for other urban centers.  Since 2015, the family foundation has committed $43.6 million in support of nearly 150 non-profit organizations. For more information, please visit www.jmperezfamilyfoundation.org.

About The Miami FoundationThe Miami Foundation builds the philanthropic, civic, and leadership backbone for Greater Miami. Since 1967, the Foundation has invested $505 million to strengthen our community with partnerships and contributions from more than 1,000 fundholders and 35,000 donors. The Miami Foundation, which currently manages over $445 million in assets, mobilizes donors, nonprofits, leaders, and locals to set a bold vision for our community’s future and to invest in a stronger, more equitable, more resilient Greater Miami. For more information, please visit Miamifoundation.org.