Businesses, their owners and Rosa Parks get spotlight on RTA buses this Black History Month

RTA’s calendar bus will be rolling again today and throughout February with a special focus on black business owners to celebrate Black History Month.

This month’s campaign was the product of work done by a committee of RTA employees and the Urban League of Southwestern Ohio, which selected businesses in Montgomery County near RTA routes. Greater Dayton RTA is highlighting the stories of these black business owners, who shared who and what inspired their journeys and offered advice for aspiring entrepreneurs.

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Each owner supplied basic facts about their business as well as their inspiration stories. Their answers will be displayed on RTA’s website and shared on social media, along with pictures of the business and a video with the owners.

“Being an entrepreneur certainly allows us to have the freedom to be creative and opportunity for financial growth and personal growth,” said Paula Willis, co-owner of Now and Zen DIY Studio in Dayton.

“We’re a family business, co-owned by mother and daughter and that makes our business journey feel safe and special. Our plan is for this business to become a family legacy and be in the Dayton area, and maybe beyond for years to come.”

Passengers on RTA’s fixed routes will be able to read about the owners and their businesses on interior cards displayed in those buses. Each card will include a QR code riders can scan to take them to RTA’s Black History Month website.

And also on every fixed-route bus, a special Rosa Parks placard will be used to reserve one seat to acknowledge her role in making every seat available to everyone. On Dec. 1, 1955, Parks refused to give up her seat to a white passenger on a city bus in Montgomery, Alabama, and was arrested. Her “no” was a main spark of the civil rights movement.

Visit www.iriderta.org/black-ownedbusinesses to view the highlighted businesses.