User:Minjacob

Jacob François, MBA: An entrepreneur with over twenty years experience in the financial services industry, and owner of Lakay Financial International, Inc.-a financial services company licensed in Illinois, Indiana, Florida, Louisiana and Michigan. In addition to numerous professional licenses that allow Mr. François to conduct business within a variety of circles for his clients, he is also licensed as a mortgage lender and real estate broker. With his extensive licensure and experience, Mr. François has been able to assist many individuals and families in the communities he serves with their dreams of becoming homeowners. He has also built a solid business offering other financial services including; professional tax preparation, funds transfer services, and investment and insurance products. In an effort to further educate and inform individuals about the process of obtaining credit for mortgages, Mr. François conducts free workshops addressing a variety of topics pertinent to potential property owners.

A testament to his professionalism and drive for excellence and growth of his business, Mr. François' company was recognized in the June 2003 issue of Entrepreneur magazine as one of America's fastest-growing businesses. His formal education includes a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Boston University College of Liberal Arts in Economics, a Master of Business Administration from Roosevelt University and an Entrepreneurial degree from Purdue University.

Vigorously active in community affairs, Mr. François has consistently hosted talk-radio programs, and appeared on community television programs in Illinois, Massachusetts, New-York, Florida, Philadelphia area for the last eleven years. In addition, he has recently began hosting a radio show from south Florida entitled "Finans Se Richès". The purpose of his involvement with these programs is to direct attention to the issue of financial education as a human rights issue for the populace of Haiti; fair and representative government; a plan for the building of a solid government and physical infrastructure to sustain the population; and economic prosperity for the nation of Haiti.

Beside reaching out to the community via radio and television, Mr. François has served seven years as a board member and two years as president of the Haitian-American Community Association (HACA) located in Chicago. As president of the HACA, Mr. François provided leadership to the organization by assisting members of the Haitian Community in Chicago with the procurement of free food via the Greater Chicago Depository Food Program; organizing informational health fairs; and providing new toys to children during Christmas through donations from the Toys for Tots program and donations from the Mattel Corporation.

An organization even closer to Mr. François is Project 2000 International. He founded this non-profit organization in 1994 in an effort to provide significant assistance to Haitian children. The organization is responsible for securing donations in-kind, as well as monetary donations to purchase whatever is necessary to facilitate the education (school supplies, uniforms, shoes, etc.) of these youngsters whose families would otherwise be unable to provide these necessities for them. In addition to helping children living in Haiti, the Project has reached out to the south Florida community through a successful after school program for school-aged children. This program provides parents with a safe place to send their children after the traditional school day is finished. Without this program, a significantly larger "latch-key" population would exist within the community served by this program.

http://www.hpp4haiti.com/Jacob_bio.htm www.lakayfinancial.com