CROWDFUNDED PITCH NIGHT FINALISTS ANNOUNCED!

MEET AND DONATE TO THE 2025 CROWDFUNDED PITCH NIGHT FINALISTS!

Join us for the Crowdfunded Pitch Night on Wednesday, April 16, 2025, at 7:00 PM at The CODE Building. Watch as ten local entrepreneurs compete for startup funding and a chance to win up to $5,000!

You can also donate to any of the finalists ahead of time, and all funds will go directly to their startup, regardless of the crowd favorite!

MEET THE 2025 FINALISTS:

Carrington Epperson

Owner of Chanterelle Cafe

Chanterelle Cafe offers a variety of classic and custom, vegan and allergy-friendly baked goods to the community, ensuring everyone can enjoy a sweet treat at any celebration.

Paul Clancy

Founder of AdmissionsAcademy

AdmissionsAcademy is a comprehensive online platform providing the resources premedical and medical students need to reach the next step in their education and achieve their dreams.

Kelly Okun

Founder & CEO of Fairway to Green

Fairway to Green is an equitable sports media company that aims to increase visibility, funding and participation in women's sports.

Paola Covarrubias

Charlottesville Community Food Co-op

This member-owned, community-focused alternative to conventional grocery stores, will prioritize access to quality food, and support local producers, while also fostering community connection and democratic decision-making.

Joumana Altallal

Co-founder of Jeera Café and Gathering

Jeera is a worker-owned co-op cafe celebrating Arab culture through food, cultural products, and art. Jeera, the Arabic word for "neighborliness", is a place that encourages gathering through hosted cultural and arts events, and a space to rent for the community.

Dan Shoupe

Owner of Rocky Top Climbing

With the popularity of climbing on the rise, Rocky Top has seen an increase in demand that their facilities cannot properly accommodate. This project aims to construct a larger climbing gym in the Charlottesville/Albermarle area that can properly address the needs of the local climbing community.

Zack Landsman

Founder of JunkLabz

JunkLabz is a plastic recycling center working to fix the broken recycling model by providing full-process recycling and recycling research. We transform UVA lab plastic waste using our recycling machinery and manufacturing processes to offer sustainable production to inspire trust.

Phillip Rich

Owner of Black Roses Landscaping

Black Roses Landscaping is the premier local landscaping company, creating outdoor spaces that welcome you home. By using fully organic products and electronically powered tools, we keep your children and pets in mind while we work, as well as the well-being of the next generation.

Brandon Lee

Program Manager of Unsettling Grounds

Unsettling Grounds is a AR/VR app digitally contextualizes historical locations as monumental exhibitions and showcases them through gamification, which is based on real-world functionality. Through interactivity of a 3D user-map that guides on-site locations to virtually activate multi-leveled experiences unfolding a unique experience.

Conner Lacy

Founder of Cicada Grove

Cicada Grove: Economically Sustainable, Climate Adaptive, Spaces for Thriving

Crowdfunded Pitch Nights continue to contribute to the success of local entrepreneurs in tangible and intangible ways.  Beyond the cash prizes, many have garnered unyielding support, partnerships, promotion, community engagement, brand enhancement, and business development opportunities that extend far beyond the competition itself.

ABOUT COMMUNITY INVESTMENT COLLABORATIVE

Community Investment Collaborative (CIC) is a Community Development Finance Institution (CDFI) with a mission to strengthen the community and contribute to economic development by fueling the success of under-resourced entrepreneurs through education, mentoring, financing, and networking. CIC celebrated its 10th anniversary along with the Tom Tom Festival in 2022, has over 600 graduates from its signature program, a 16-week Entrepreneur Workshop, and has issued more than $5 million to over 225 entrepreneurs through its microloan program. Learn more about CIC at cicville.org.