innovation | Tariq Farid - Founder of Edible Arrangements ® and Entrepreneur

Among the many worthwhile causes that the Tariq Farid Foundation supports, some are more personal than others. A recent $10,000 contribution to the Life Foundation in Pakistan really hit close to home.

When I learned that support was needed to develop an app that could save thousands of lives every year by creating a system for safe blood donations and transfusions, I did not hesitate.

In Pakistan, blood transfusions can be costly. If someone cannot afford the cost they are unlikely to receive a transfusion, even in a life or death situation. It is estimated that as many as 12,000 to 15,000 people die each year in Pakistan that might have been saved had they had access to a blood transfusion.

Even in those situations when a family can afford a transfusion for their loved one, it is not guaranteed to be safe due to the potential for improper handling and storage.

A transfusion can result in shock or death, as I learned firsthand recently during a trip back to my native country.

Some of my family members had been involved in a terrible car accident in which two people died. One woman survived but was in critical condition when I went to visit her. She received a blood transfusion, but was given blood that had been improperly stored. She went into shock and almost died.

During this time I met Javaid Awan, a beloved local professor. Awan is battling cancer and has personally experienced the difficulty in securing blood for the transfusions during his treatment. He told me about a system he had developed through which mass emails and social media alerts would notify registered donors when a certain blood type was needed. Donors would then go to the hospital to donate blood which could then be transferred directly to the person in need.

When we talked, Awan already had hundreds of students from his university signed up as potential donors and he had created an NGO called the Life Foundation.

He says the contribution from the Tariq Farid Foundation truly is a lifesaver with global implications because this is not a problem limited to Pakistan. Many other countries face similar problems with blood storage and transfusions.

A majority of the gift to the Life Foundation will be used to develop an app for use on mobile devices and to recruit more volunteers and hospitals into the blood donation network.

The work has just begun, but I am very excited about the potential. Thanks to people like Awan, the citizens of Pakistan and other countries may soon have access to safe, untainted blood, and the unnecessary loss of life may soon become a thing of the past.

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Google does it. Major cities across the world do it. And now, thanks to a group of inspiring individuals, a small town of about 45,000 people in Connecticut is doing it — providing support for aspiring entrepreneurs with a small business incubator and co-working space.

HUBCAP Wallingford is the name of this special incubator, and what makes it so unique is that it is a collaboration between the local business community, entrepreneurs and the local school district designed to strengthen and expand downtown Wallingford as well as the entire state of Connecticut. Everyone wins and the community is made stronger.

The visionaries behind HUBCAP Wallingford are Dr. Salvatore Menzo, Wallingford Public Schools Superintendent; Liz Landow, Executive Director of Wallingford Center, Inc.; Vincenzo Landino, Global Community Manager, Market Edge; and Joe Mirra, the chairman of the Wallingford Economic Development Commission.

The Tariq Farid Foundation is a contributor to the project and in the time that I have spent with these individuals, it is clear that they have developed a program that could serve as a model for other communities across the United States.

They understand that technology has made it much easier to bring innovation and ideas to life. Often missing, however, are the means and resources to help today’s entrepreneurs follow their dreams and test the feasibility of their business ideas. By helping these entrepreneurs, HUBCAP is also helping the local economy and protecting the long-term health of the state’s economy.

The founders of HUBCAP also understand that often the most creative innovators and entrepreneurs can be found right in your own back yard. Given the encouragement and the resources, the youth of Wallingford are just as capable of developing the next big idea as anyone, thus the importance of the close partnership between HUBCAP and the Wallingford public school system.

In less than a year of operation, HUBCAP Wallingford has already helped 17-year-old Denisha Kuhlor turn her idea for a business into reality.

Why do I feel that the work of HUBCAP is so important?

While some private schools sit on endowments of millions or billions, many public school systems—such as Wallingford’s—struggle to find the funding for basic, much less innovative, programs. This didn’t stop Wallingford Superintendent Dr. Menzo from searching for ways to provide the opportunities, such as those provided by HUBCAP, that his students deserve and need to become competitive in today’s global marketplace.

Last night, I was honored to take part in HUBCAP Wallingford’s inaugural “Entrepreneurs Speak” series. This intimate Q&A session provided an opportunity to share my experience of starting small businesses and growing them into large, successful companies. The conversation was made great by the questions of those who attended, including entrepreneurs, aspiring entrepreneurs, students and those who were simply curious to learn more.

When it was over, several people told me that they were inspired by my talk. I was very appreciative of their thoughts, however, I was the one who ended up being so impressed and inspired by what this small group of dedicated men and women have accomplished. It makes me very encouraged to know that tomorrow’s entrepreneurs are in such good hands today.

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Tag: innovation

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