At 650 members, Roy Nascimento leads the second-largest Central Massachusetts chamber of commerce, and the only one with its own microloan lending division approved by the U.S. Small Business Administration. His chamber has the most employees of any in the region, at 15.
Since October, the chamber’s lending division has closed 12 microloans for a total of $478,500 to local small businesses. The chamber granted a total of $2.7 million in emergency COVID-19 relief loans and hosted more than 100 programs to small businesses during the pandemic.
Nascimento led the 18-month development of One North Central, a new regional economic development plan to guide the political and business leadership of North Central Massachusetts for the next 10 to 15 years.
In early 2022, the chamber was one of seven organizations selected to be part of a national grant program aimed at breaking down barriers for students of color earning industry credentials.
What sets the Central Mass. business community apart from the rest of the world? The region offers a high-quality workforce, tremendous quality of life, affordability, great infrastructure, a collaborative spirit, and an engaged political leadership.
Family business: I come from a family of small business owners and learned at a young age the value of hard work and the impact small businesses can have on the success of the local economy and community.
