Business

SBA honors Arubah Emotional Health Services

MINNESOTA SPOKESMAN-RECORDER — The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has named Arubah Emotional Health Services, P.A. the 2019 Minnesota Minority Owned Small Business of the Year. Anissa Keyes founded Arubah (which means “restoration to sound health” in Hebrew) in 2012 to help make mental health services accessible — especially for the African American and low-income communities in and around North Minneapolis.

Published

7 years ago

May 20, 2019

Oakland Post

By MSR News Online

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has named Arubah Emotional Health Services, P.A. the 2019 Minnesota Minority Owned Small Business of the Year.

Anissa Keyes founded Arubah (which means “restoration to sound health” in Hebrew) in 2012 to help make mental health services accessible — especially for the African American and low-income communities in and around North Minneapolis.

Mental health disparities for communities of color are no secret. While everyone is at risk for mental illness and related disorders, Blacks and other communities of color often remain on the sidelines when it comes to accessing treatment that speaks to their needs.

With four locations in Minneapolis, St. Paul and Brooklyn Center, Arubah provides therapeutic services to adults, families, couples, and children, including diagnosing, treatment planning, consulting and advocacy, as well as ongoing care.

“At the SBA we work hard every day to support diversity in small business and to honor the efforts of minority entrepreneurs,” said Nancy Libersky, district director for the SBA in Minnesota in a statement. “Arubah Emotional Health Services is filling a vital role in North Minneapolis and we’re proud to be a part of helping the company succeed in business so it can do more to help the community it serves.”

In 2017, Arubah received an SBA-backed loan from Community Reinvestment Fund (CRF), which nominated Keyes for the award. This funding helped Keyes open her fourth location, the Healing Center, to bring accessible trauma-informed mental health services to the community.

“The impact Arubah Emotional Health Services has frankly cannot be measured by the number of clients it serves or people it employs,” said CRF Regional Director of Business Development Jennifer Ericson in a recent statement. “Every person who comes in contact with the business and Anissa cannot help but walk away feeling more hopeful. She puts out healing into her community and these small ripples will continue changing lives long after a patient leaves their program.”

Even with more than 25 years of social services experience, Keyes continues to seek out ways to improve her own skills sets. As such, she also participated in the SBA Emerging Leaders Program in 2018 to help her better understand her finances and higher-level business strategy.

“There are so many other community members and so many other people that God called alongside me to create this amazing journey,” said Keyes. “The biggest thing that this award gives me is the ability and credibility to be able to do more of the work,” she said.

“It puts me into other arenas to be able to pull other small businesses up and support and lead other people in the right direction.”

She also shared that, as a Black woman from North Minneapolis, it feels good to be recognized in platforms that typically don’t feature people of color. “You work so hard as small businesses and we pour all of who we are into it and when people are able to see that it is important work that is impacting or influencing those around us for the better and acknowledge it, it motivates you to push forward even more,” said Keyes.

Arubah and Keyes was honored at the state’s Small Business Week Awards Luncheon with other small businesses, on May 10 at the Minneapolis Marriott Northwest in Brooklyn Park, Minn.

The luncheon is part of 2019 National Small Business Week, May 5-11, which is dedicated to honoring small business owners and their champions across the nation.

For more information on Small Business Week, visit www.sba.gov/NSBW.

This article originally appeared in the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder.

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Oakland Post: Week of March 18 – 24, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of March 18 – 24, 2026

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Financial Wellness and Mental Health: Managing Money Stress in College 

While everyone’s financial situation is unique, several common sources of stress have the potential to strain your financial health. These include financial and economic uncertainty, existing debts, unexpected expenses, and mental or physical health changes. Financial stress may differ from situation to situation, but understanding the factors contributing to yours may help you begin to craft a plan for your unique circumstances.

Published

3 weeks ago

March 17, 2026

Oakland Post

Sponsored by JPMorganChase

As a college student, managing financial responsibilities can be stressful.

If you’ve found yourself staying up late thinking about your finances or just feeling anxious overall about your financial future, you’re not alone. In one survey, 78% of college students who reported financial stress had negative impacts on their mental health, and 59% considered dropping out. While finances can impact overall stress, taking steps to manage your finances can support your mental, emotional and physical well-being.

When it comes to money, the sources of stress may look different for each student, but identifying the underlying causes and setting goals accordingly may help you feel more confident about your financial future.

Consider these strategies to help improve your financial wellness and reduce stress.

Understand what causes financial stress

2. Determine your financial priorities

Start by reflecting on your financial priorities. For students this often includes paying for school or paying off student loans, studying abroad, saving for spring break, building an emergency fund, paying down credit card debt or buying a car. Name the milestones that are most important to you, and plan accordingly.

3. Create a plan and stick to it

While setting actionable goals starts you on the journey to better financial health, it’s essential to craft a plan to follow through. Identifying and committing to a savings plan may give you a greater sense of control over your finances, which may help reduce your stress. Creating and sticking to a budget allows you to better track where your money is going so you may spend less and save more.

4. Pay down debt

Many students have some form of debt and want to make progress toward reducing their debt obligations. One option is the debt avalanche method, which focuses on paying off your debt with the highest interest rate first, then moving on to the debt with the next-highest interest rate. Another is the debt snowball method, which builds momentum by paying off your smallest debt balance, and then working your way up to the largest amounts.

5. Build your financial resilience

Some financial stress may be inevitable, but building financial resilience may allow you to overcome obstacles more easily. The more you learn about managing your money, for instance, the more prepared you’ll feel if the unexpected happens. Growing your emergency savings also may increase resilience since you’ll be more financially prepared to cover unexpected expenses or pay your living expenses.

6. Seek help and support

Many colleges have resources to help students experiencing financial stress, like financial literacy courses or funds that provide some assistance for students in need. Talk to your admissions counselor or advisor about your concerns, and they can direct you to sources of support. Your school’s counseling center can also be a great resource for mental health assistance if you’re struggling with financial stress.

The bottom line

Financial stress can affect college students’ health and wellbeing, but it doesn’t have to derail your dreams. Setting smart financial goals and developing simple plans to achieve them may help ease your stress. Revisit and adjust your plan as needed to ensure it continues to work for you, and seek additional support on campus as needed to help keep you on track.

 JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Member FDIC