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FAMILY WEALTH CONNECTION

lEARN mORE

FAMILY WEALTH CONNECTION, INC.

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FWC is a non-profit organization devoted to educating African Americans and other underserved communities on strategies for creating and retaining family wealth. Because of systemic unfavorable biases, our communities have not been able to create and retain wealth at the level or rate of white communities. FWC believes that African Americans have the resources to create family wealth but are not aware of options to participate in the wealth creation process.
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MEET THE FOUNDERS

BESSIE R. EDWARDS

Bessie Edwards is passionate about educating the African American community on the importance of building generational wealth. Since 2011, she has initiated educational programs related to all aspects of estate planning and wealth retention. Ms. Edwards believes that introducing the key concepts of intergenerational wealth to all ages in the family, provides and reinforces the education that will be needed for planning the transfer of accumulated assets from one generation to the next.
She has created FWC to introduce program participants to key professional services and the strategies designed to create and pass life’s financial successes on to the next generation. Ms. Edwards is currently a resident of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. She is an active board member of The Bedford Stuyvesant Real Estate Board, a member of the National Associations of Real Estate Brokers, and also serves as a board member of the Brooklyn Neighborhood Services organization.

BESSIE R. EDWARDS

Marcia Melendez is a die-hard Brooklynite transplanted from England, who has diverse experience from management positions in both corporate and city government. Balancing corporate roles and her entrepreneurial spirit, she co-founded and led the prosperous local business, Flowerworks Florist & Landscape Contractors, alongside her husband Angel Melendez, for over 36 years. Additionally, Marcia used her extensive business expertise, as a consultant for New York State, coaching local businesses to elevate their operations and boost annual revenues.
Passionate about fostering individual and family wealth through real estate, Marcia champions property ownership as an easy pathway to financial stability. Complementing her other professional pursuits, she is a Speaker, Personal Coach, and dedicates time to volunteer work. Marcia serves as the Vice Chair of the Bed-Stuyvesant Business Improvement District (BID), extending support to Brooklyn’s local businesses and community.

THE CHALLENGES

THE AFRICAN AMERICAN WEALTH GAP IN AMERICAN

In a world where homeownership has historically been a symbol of stability and prosperity, Black homeownership has taken center stage due to the large disparity in the number of black American homeowners: The comprehensive study finds that the gap in homeownership between Black and White families is wider today than in the decades when housing discrimination was legal.

The median net worth of White households was $250,400, an amount that is more than 10 times greater than the median net worth of Black households ($24,520), according to the Census’s 2022 Survey of Income and Program Participation

Use of outdated housing financial systems initiated in the 1930s. According to NAREB’s 2023 SHIBA Report, FHA and Fannie Mae policies are out of date and in need of major restructuring.

Blacks and underserved communities are also more likely to receive high-cost loans, that further erode their financial gains from homeownership.

SOLUTIONS

FAMILY WEALTH CONNECTION

FWC Educational Series is designed for intergenerational participation. All family members can and should, whenever possible, participate in these topics, as it is not taught in schools. The Pathways to Wealth Creation is for everyone, from teenagers, to first time home buyers, to downsizing retirees. Wealth retention and building a family legacy of generational wealth is important for the entire community. .

The series includes sessions on:

  • Examining our beliefs and knowledge about wealth, how to create and maintain it from one generation to the next.
  • Developing a personal financial plan; examine various methods to create, invest, and grow our wealth depending on our short and long-term goals.
  • First-time home buying process from preparation through closing.
  • Wealth building through real estate investing and development.
  • Estate Planning Options; to ensure family wealth from the current generation is transferred to the next.

WHOM DO WE SERVE?

The founders of FWC have strong connections in the Faith community and they are our primary audience. A lot of us believe, erroneously, that it is sinful or “less holy “ to aspire to become wealthy, not realizing how these beliefs are stopping us and our families from aspiring to achieve more. It is critical for us to recognize the importance of personal beliefs and attitudes in achieving financial abundance.

Through the years the Black Church has been an important institution in the community as a place of racial and individual self-affirmation and of teaching and learning. There are a lot of congregants who have stable employment and could afford home ownership, and yet do not know, or have the courage, to take advantage of, all the benefits that homeownership has to offer.

HOW WE ACCOMPLISH OUR MISSION

Through deliberate partnerships, we develop seminars and conferences that leverage the knowledge, influence and resources of the major financial institutions, governmental agencies, neighborhood resources, and financial planning advisors. The aim is to coach, educate and inspire our communities on how to make their families, neighborhoods, and the entire country financially stronger.

CONTACT US

Please Reach Out To Us With Any Inquiries at
  • 347 443 8812
  • info@familywealthconnection.org
  • 632 MACON STREET
    BROOKLYN, NYC 11233
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