In mid-March, Maria Pozo embarked on a roller coaster of emotions that, seven months later, has only begun to find the brakes.
“When the pandemic hit, we were worried about how we would pay our employees and our rent,” Pozo said, echoing a refrain familiar to small business owners all across the country.
Pozo is the proprietor of GymOlympic Sports Academy in Exton, and when the coronavirus began its assault on the United States, her business’s future no longer seemed so bright.
When the U.S. Small Business Administration unveiled the Paycheck Protection Program, she immediately turned to First Resource Bank to apply for a PPP loan. Not only did she receive it in a timely fashion, but she recently became the bank’s first borrower to have it forgiven.
“If it wasn’t for First Resource Bank’s help, we may have had to close our doors permanently,” said Pozo.
The bank’s staff has been working diligently for two months to process applications from its borrowers to have their PPP loans forgiven. Meanwhile, countless other banks have yet to even start accepting applications from their borrowers, as recently reported by The New York Times.
The SBA opened its portal to begin receiving applications for PPP loan forgiveness on Aug. 10. Since then, First Resource Bank has been encouraging its borrowers to submit their applications.
Just like they applied for the loan, borrowers need to apply to have it forgiven.
Once a bank receives a forgiveness application from a borrower, it has 60 days to review it, make a determination on whether all or some of the loan should be forgiven, and then submit it to the SBA. The SBA then has 90 days to review the application and make its final determination.
“We could not be more grateful for First Resource Bank’s help in securing our PPP loan,” said Pozo, whose business is committed to the physical and mental development of children through the sport of gymnastics. She and her dynamic staff of coaches pride themselves on providing first-class gymnastics instruction.
“GymOlympic’s story is reflective of so many of the small businesses in our community who have struggled to weather the storm of 2020,” said First Resource Bank President and CFO Lauren Ranalli. “Being able to help them navigate through these unpredictable times is what community banking is all about. We understand that when small businesses in our community succeed, so do we, which is why we remain committed to helping local businesses not only survive but thrive.”
The Paycheck Protection Program provided 5.2 million loans worth $525 billion to American small businesses. First Resource Bank worked around the clock to help local businesses secure 400 PPP loans, worth approximately $58 million. Those loans helped to protect 5,200 jobs in our community.
Learn more about First Resource Bank.
