CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) - Walter Mendenhall, an accomplished Chicago native who helped establish a foundation to help young black men transform their lives, is an example of perseverance.
Mendenhall was born with a learning disability at the age of five.
It didn't stop him from excelling in sports and earning academic honors in high school and at the University of Illinois where he earned academic All-Big Ten honors twice. Mendenhall rounded out his athletic years in the NFL, where played for several teams.
He hung up his cleats but was far from done. He had a desire to give back. He became a coach, teacher and mentor in the Chicago area.
Mendenhall said a Chicago career day event in 2016 was the catalyst for the Male Mogul Initiative which targets young black men who he describes are "on the margins, not an honor roll student and not the worst of the worst."
"I remember going into a career day on the West Side of Chicago and meeting a young man-great young man, honor roll student,basketball player, but he sold drugs to get the things that he wanted," Mendall recalled. “And, I thought to myself after that conversation, ‘how many men, young men in this city have the gifts, skills, talent to be successful, legal entrepreneurs but don't have the opportunity or exposure?’”
The Male Mogul Initiative began, created by five men in a local church.
Mendenhall said the program starts off by asking participants three foundational questions to manhood: Who are you? Why do you matter? And, what’s your purpose?
"Our first program is when we go into the Chicago Public Schools. We teach leadership and character development. In our second phase, we take young men's ideas and help form them into businesses and/or services. Our third phase, we own and operate a storefront in the Bronzeville community, where young men can sell their products and learn how to own, operate a storefront property.
"Our fourth phase is our 'gap year' program where 18 to 24-year-olds, who don't necessarily know what they want to do, are exposed to other opportunities with the City Colleges of Chicago and other workforce development and tech, the hospitality industry,” Mendenhall said.
The fifth phase is a new one called “Mogul Funds”. Mendenhall said this one incubates adult entrepreneurs within the community and provides site management over "Boxville" in Bronzeville.
Mendenhall said Boxville is a village of microenterprises, 12 stores, where entrepreneurs are also provided financing and indirect services like bookkeeping, with the hope that his men will be hired.
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