Legal Services Lawyer is Huffington Post's "Greatest Person of the Day"
Yesterday the commy-pinko liberal website The Huffington Post bestowed it’s “Today’s Greatest Person” honor on a truly deserving advocate: Anneliese Gryta, an Equal Justice Works Fellow working at Advocates for Basic Legal Equality (ABLE) in Toledo, Ohio. Most folks, when they think of “civil legal services,” think of lawyers helping low-income clients who are facing homelessness, domestic abuse, medical problems, and the like. But a more
recent innovation in delivering legal services to low-income communities involves a focus on community economic development issues – aiding small businesses and nonprofit organizations which are the commercial backbones (and keys to revitalization) in low-income neighborhoods. This is where Annaliese has made herself an expert in the Great State of Ohio.
After graduating from law school in 2008, Anneliese immediately set out to help. With the Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps Legal Fellowship, she began her work helping small businesses with legal aid and clinics. For those untrained in the legal intricacies of starting a business, help from seasoned attorneys can be invaluable.
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In her second fellowship with Equal Justice Works, Anneliese is aiming even higher–helping businesses acquire the loans they need to get off the ground, with a focus on the economically disadvantaged.
“In this economy, in a place like Toledo with such a high unemployment rate you may have to create your own job,” she said. “I wanted to do something that treated the cause of poverty–lack of resources, lack of finances, lack of credit, lack of education in how to handle money.”
Her newest project involves founding two microloans funds for Toledo-based businesses. Assets Toledo helps with very small loans up to $5,000 for graduates of the business training program they also run, with a special focus on those with little credit history.
This is terrific, and inspiring, news. Annaliese has made use of Equal Justice Works’s AmeriCorps Legal Fellows program and it’s traditional fellowship program to build expertise in economic development issues affecting Ohio communities. Well done.
BONUS! Appropo of nothing else than the fact that this story involves Ohio, we present you with our favorite song about the Buckeye State: Damien Jurado’s Ohio.
