Last week, DC Mayor Vincent Gray visited The Hive 2.0— as in location #2—to welcome the new-comers to the historic Anacostia neighborhood, and to speak with occupants, including KRA Corporation, about their enterprises.
During his visit, Mayor Gray chatted with Anthony Featherstone, KRA Program Manager, and staff about the plight of thousands of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients requiring job development/placement and work-readiness services, and how vital the KRA/TANF Employment Program (TEP) is to the to the DC community.
Featherstone commented, “It’s not every day you get the chance to talk to the Mayor! So, we were all excited to take advantage of this rare opportunity, and to share with him the great strides KRA is making with TEP in placing participants into training and/or jobs.”
Until today, KRA temporarily occupied offices at The Hive 2.0, while planning a move of its own to a second DC facility that provides more space for serving its TEP jobseeker-customers. On a membership basis, with very flexible leasing and pricing arrangements, The Hive is an oasis for entrepreneurs, freelancers, and very small businesses, or as in KRA’s case, businesses in need of temporary facilities.
Featherstone continued, “Much like an ‘incubator’ operation, The Hive offers office space and furniture, with bookcases and filing cabinets; utilities, including Wi-Fi; mail and phone service; and conference rooms for meetings and gatherings. We were very comfortable there.”
He concluded, “The Hive 2.0 is also one of the friendliest, supportive environments I’ve ever worked in. I think it comes from the vision we share. Their website states: ‘We want our members to realize their dreams and we want to make sure they have the tools to succeed.’ If you substitute customers for members, you’ve got the KRA vision, too. We will continue to network with The Hive to support each other’s goals and objectives as much as we can. As The Hive’s small businesses grow, they will need qualified workers to fill their staffing needs, and that is what we do!!”