Dr. Reshale Thomas

Psychologist Reshale Thomas opened Allay Psychological Services in 2018 to create safe spaces for people to experience health, healing and wholeness in the Fresno area. When COVID-19 emerged, Allay experienced a surge of new referrals. Unable to handle the increase in business without additional support, Dr. Reshale turned to trusted partners for help in seeking funding. Working closely with Access Plus Capital and the chamber, she was able to apply for and receive funding to grow her business.

Dr. Reshale’s business journey is a good example of why the chamber’s connections to strategic partners are so important for Black business owners in the Central Valley. 

At first, it was very difficult to get funding, Dr. Reshale said, because, in general, there is still a stigma attached to mental health services. 

Also, as a Black woman, she fell in a statistical range of being underfunded because she didn’t have any credit history as a business entity and her own personal credit history was not that extensive beyond student loans. 

But with the chamber’s help, Dr. Reshale was able to get the technical assistance she needed for meeting the criteria for and completing the application to get funded by Access Plus Capital.  

Dr. Reshale’s advice for other business owners? “Never let yourself be just another statistic. All it takes is one good connection with one person in one key position, and the systemic level barriers to success can be overcome.”