She never missed it.
Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman looked forward to attending Black Entrepreneurs Day events at the Minnesota State Capitol, hosted by Sheletta Brundidge and ShelettaMakesMeLaugh.com.
Hortman, her husband Mark, and their dog Gilbert will lie in state on Friday, June 27, nearly two weeks after they were killed by a gunman inside their Brooklyn Park home.
“She always showed up for us, so we’re going to show up for her,” said Brundidge. “Tomorrow at the memorial, we will be 100 strong to make sure Melissa’s family and colleagues know how much we loved and appreciated her.”
Brundidge says Hortman not only attended her Black Entrepreneurs Day events, but she also met one-on-one with Black business owners and followed up with them afterwards. “It didn’t matter whether they lived in Brooklyn Park or Bemidji.”
Yolanda Pierson of Pierson & Sons Trucking in Minneapolis was one of those entrepreneurs. The company specializes in heavy excavating, concrete and asphalt transport, paving, and demolition.
Pierson met with Hortman to talk about prevailing wages, a concept that was hurting her small business.
In Minnesota, trucking companies that work on state-funded projects, like all the road construction going on right now, must pay a higher wage to workers, which can be considerably higher than the standard rate and cut businesses like Pierson’s out of the process. Hortman listened to Pierson about the issue at Black Entrepreneurs Day at the Capitol in February.
“She was interested in understanding the law. It was meant to help small businesses, but in our case, it was hurting us,” Pierson said.
After the meeting, Pierson says Hortman followed up with her.
“She called me back. She went above and beyond to navigate the space.” This care and consideration are why Pierson will be at the memorial at the Minnesota State Capitol to pay her respects.
“It’s important that we show up for her and her family to show her profound impact.”
At a time when politics have divided so many, Pierson says Hortman breached the divide.
“In the meeting we had, she had both Republicans and Democrats present,” Pierson recalled. “It’s important to humanize the work they do for us and remember her legacy.”
The business owners in attendance will all wear wrist bands honoring Melissa, Mark and Gilbert.