Apex Fund for Economic Opportunity - Apex Fund

08/27/2026

AFEO was excited to partner with Summit County Public Health last week to provide Food Handler Certificate Level 1 training to more than 30 participants at Asian Services In Action - ASIA headquarters.

Through the translation of food safety training course materials, we were able to support our growing immigrant and refugee communities who are seeking employment in the food industry or considering opening a food-related business of their own.

We’re grateful for this partnership with the Summit County Health Department and look forward to continuing our work together to make opportunities like this available to an even more diverse communities across Akron.

04/08/2026

Last week, Aung, May, and their family of five experienced a convergence of celebrations. After working with us to bring his passion project to life, Aung debuted his new food truck, Three Suns Kitchen, just in time to celebrate their twin boys' birthdays.

Friends, family members, and colleagues were invited to celebrate the boys as well as Three Suns Kitchen's new location on 649 S Arlington Street, Akron OH 44306. The proud family of five shared their joy with Burmese soup and deliciously spiced chicken.

The food truck will feature delicious Southeast Asian cuisine and beverages, 5PM-9PM on Tuesdays-Thursdays and 5PM-10PM on Fridays-Sundays. Stay tuned for websites and Facebook links!

12/30/2024

We are so excited to join National CAPACD's Coalition!

✨As we reflect on 2024, we’re proud to highlight the incredible progress and milestones achieved by National CAPACD and our coalition. Together, we’ve advanced housing security, economic justice, and neighborhood preservation for AA and NHPI communities across the country. Stay tuned as we share key highlights from this year! ✨

This year, we welcomed 12 new member organizations to National CAPACD’s coalition. Join us in welcoming:

📍 Apex Fund for Economic Opportunity - Apex Fund - Akron, OH
📍 APIAHiP: Asian & Pacific Islander Americans in Historic Preservation - Seattle, WA
📍 Chinatown Media and Arts Collaborative Media and Arts Collaborative (CMAC) - San Francisco, CA
📍 Culturingua - San Antonio, TX
📍 Hawaiian Lending & Investments (HLI) - Honolulu, HI
📍 Hmong Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce (HWCC) - Milwaukee, WI
📍 JASC - Japanese American Service Committee Housing Corporation - Chicago, IL
📍 KAN-WIN - Chicago, IL
📍 Pacific Community Ventures - PCV - Oakland, CA
📍 Pacific Island Knowledge 2 Action Resources (PIK2AR) - Taylorsville, UT
📍 Pakini Loan Fund - Waianae, HI
📍 Welcome to Chinatown Inc. - New York, NY

Explore more of National CAPACD’s 2024 reflections and accomplishments in our Year in Review ➡️ nationalcapacd.org/announcements/national-capacds-2024-year-in-review

11/22/2024

06/25/2024

Our Apex Fund for Economic Opportunities and Asian Services In Action - ASIA ’s housing services team members attended the National CAPACD Conference in Chicago! Organizations across the Midwest came together to learn from experts and each other on how to uplift and empower neighborhoods for an inclusive and equitable America. Thank you for having us!

06/10/2024

We are so grateful for our partner of TEN years, Mission Asset Fund! They have been an incredible partner in our lending circle program, and we got to join them at the Credit Builder Alliances Conference in Washington DC to learn more about how we can help our community members build credit and achieve their American dreams.

05/14/2024

Happy Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! We joined the The U.S. Department of the Treasury on May 7th at the Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Summit for an important conversation about investing in the community to boost their economic future. When we invest in minority communities, we boost the entire country.

Speakers included Deputy Chief of Staff Aditi Hardikar, Deputy Assistant Secretary Sandra Lee, director of Inclusiv Credit Unions Cathi Kim, and Deputy Chief Program Officer for Small Business and Community Investment Jeff Stout.

04/09/2024

Paing Family Asian Grocery Store is bustling with food, groceries, and growth. They first started their business after getting a microloan from Apex Fund for Economic Opportunities and have seen a 300% increase in revenue since their opening in May 2019. More than a successful family-owned business, the Paing family is dedicated to supporting ’s multicultural and vulnerable community and encouraging self-sustainability.

Community has always been the center of Siri Paing’s dream of starting a business. When talking about her business and its upcoming changes—expanding the business, increasing inventory space, hiring more workers—she always prioritized how this would help her customers. Space and inventory expansion would mean she could offer more of everything that customers need, including fresh produce. Increased and diverse inventory will better serve her diverse customer base, which includes shoppers whose backgrounds include Cambodian, Thai, Muslim, Filipino among others. By growing her business, she can create more part-time jobs, especially for mothers who are stay-at-home.

“I understand that for me, I have kids who are still young...and want to spend time with children,” Siri said. “So part-time jobs can be flexible with people who want jobs and also to be with their kids.”

They have recently paid off their building and received a USDA grant to support these plans of expansion. In the future, Siri hopes to develop a delivery service for homebound customers, and to open a secondary location in Canton.

We are so excited by Paing Family Asian Grocery’s continued growth as they uplift the community that they serve!

03/08/2024

Meet Fereshte! Fereshte will soon open Dremy Delights, a home bakery that will offer fresh and delicious desserts such as Swiss rolls, cakes, sweet rolls, and more. Her family is from the community and have arrived in approximately eight months ago to start their new life.

After learning how to bake sweets out of love for her husband and child, she decided that she wanted to share her craft with others and own a baking business. Apex Fund For Economic Opportunities is lending Fereshte her first microloan to invest in improved equipment.

We sat down with Fereshte where she treated us to delicious baked goods as she shared her story. Her business will open soon—stay tuned for more details! Learn more about Fereshte’s story and dreams this !

02/19/2024

2017 ➡️ 2024 Business !

When you sit down to eat at Lyeh Thai Restaurant located in North Hil, you may have the joy of meeting the owner, Rot Sorn. Her outgoing smile is welcoming and generous, and in the kitchen her husband cooks delicious basil Thai chicken, Pad see ew, and more that invites you to return again and again. Since 2017, this family-owned restaurant has become a popular place for community members to have dinner and order catering—an American dream that benefits the entire neighborhood.

Rot Sorn and her family arrived from Burma to the United States in the 2010s, and she hoped to open her own restaurant one day. She connected with Apex Fund for Economic Opportunity to receive her first microloan for kitchen supplies and to receive technical and linguistic support in opening a business. She and her husband opened Lyeh Thai Restaurant in 2017 as a carry-out restaurant. It became so successful that in 2019, she bought a new and bigger building to move Lyeh Thai Restaurant into to offer both carry-out and dine-in.

Apex Fund has helped twelve businesses open and expand and is supporting five upcoming businesses in Akron and Cleveland. Stay tuned for announcements for a new Afghan baker, Arabic coffee shop, and more!