TENNBEAT

A month ago, Java Hemmat offered me a dream job — judge the 5th Annual Battle of the Paella. I humbly and hungrily accepted. On Saturday, I brought my appetite to Love and Exile Bar in East Nashville. The fundraiser benefitted Conexion Americas Mesa Komal. Housed in Casa Azafran, Mesa Komal provides low cost commercial kitchen space to local immigrants, so they can start and scale their own business. Immigrants are 3x more likely to start a business than native born people. 60 percent of the time those entrepreneurial endeavors are food related. Farmers markets and festivals require food to be made in a commercial kitchens. In Nashville, commercial kitchen rates range from $50-$100 / hr. That doesn’t include any ingredients. Without Mesa Komal’s, affordable, flat monthly rates many immigrant would be unable to become entrepreneurs, and Nashville wouldn’t taste nearly as good. ??

Great writeup on David "Clayton" Trammell and his launch of Privateer Ventures, a tech accelerator supporting Special Operations Veterans in entrepreneurship. Clayton is a retired Navy Seal with two decades of service and a Naval Cross and Purple Heart to his name. Privateer is powered by The Mandatum Foundation and MasterBorn, a successful software development firm founded by Gray Skinner, with Morgan Miller leading business development. Clayton, Gray and Morgan are all former teammates of mine (I may or may not be hiding in this article, see if you can find me). They were a few years older than me and leaders of our team - people I looked up to. These are some of the toughest and hardest working guys I know, all with incredible track records (no pun intended), and bright futures in continuing to build new businesses. If you or anyone you know is a Special Operations Veteran with a startup idea, I encourage you to reach out to this team. Thank you Kathryn R. and TENNBEAT for telling this story.

This "How it started" vs. "How its going" is very humbling for me and TENNBEAT. The logo you see today is very different from the logo I started with two years ago. Polly the news hound is more mature and more refined. She has depth. I incorporated TENNBEAT into a 501c3 a month ago. We're just a pup ?? in the nonprofit world. Like the logo, TENNBEAT will evolve and grow. We won’t become a top dog overnight. It will take time, hard work (probably a few accidents…all pups have them??) and love from the people in our pack. I hope you’ll support me and TENNBEAT as we grow into these new paws. ????

“Entrepreneurship is the realization of the freedom we fought for.” - David "Clayton" Trammell. To say I'm proud to know Clayton is an understatement - witnessing his growth with The Mandatum Foundation and now Privateer Ventures is incredible. Clayton is just as lethal in the civilian / entrepreneur sector as he was on the battlefield. Read this article that was perfectly written by TENNBEAT Kathryn R. - you did it right! #veteranowned #seals #specops #entrepreneur #tennessee https://lnkd.in/dRs_p_VJ

I am dog sitting for some friends, and I opened the fridge to find two TENNBEAT subjects sitting side by side. ???? I always say stories have power. They can connect, magnify joy, expose problems, draw awareness and yes, add to your grocery list ???? (in the best way possible ??) There is no better feeling than seeing others snack and support local businesses. Javaneh Hemmat (Hummus Chick) and Megan Feeman (No Baked Cookie Dough) are two of the hardest working Nashville entrepreneurs I know. Below are the easiest places to find their products in Nashville?? ??Hummus Chick: Whole Foods, Kroger, Turnip Truck, Produce Place ??No Baked Cookie Dough: Kroger, Turnip Truck, Publix I’ll link their TENNBEAT stories in the comments.

Great writeup on David "Clayton" Trammell and his launch of Privateer Ventures, a tech accelerator supporting Special Operations Veterans in entrepreneurship. Clayton is a retired Navy Seal with two decades of service and a Naval Cross and Purple Heart to his name. Privateer is powered by The Mandatum Foundation and MasterBorn, a successful software development firm founded by Gray Skinner, with Morgan Miller leading business development. Clayton, Gray and Morgan are all former teammates of mine (I may or may not be hiding in this article, see if you can find me). They were a few years older than me and leaders of our team - people I looked up to. These are some of the toughest and hardest working guys I know, all with incredible track records (no pun intended), and bright futures in continuing to build new businesses. If you or anyone you know is a Special Operations Veteran with a startup idea, I encourage you to reach out to this team. Thank you Kathryn R. and TENNBEAT for telling this story.

Couldn't be more proud to share this story. When starting MasterBorn five years ago, I always hoped that we would find ways to create value beyond simply charging clients for our services. Privateer Ventures is a great example of using what we have perfected at MasterBorn to create opportunities and have an impact beyond revenue. Partnering with David "Clayton" Trammell and Gary Landuyt, MBA from The Mandatum Foundation is a honor and I am proud to help support their mission. Huge thanks to Kathryn R. and TENNBEAT for the writeup and Morgan Miller for bringing this all together.

Great business move and concept by MasterBorn. Excited to see how this plays out for Morgan Miller and team. Awesome reporting Kathryn R.!

David "Clayton" Trammell is out to help other seals become their own boss. He isn’t going at it alone.?MasterBorn ?is joining the mission. The SEAL and software development firm are launching an accelerator to turn former naval special forces members into startup founders. Two of his most trusted comrades Gray Skinner and Morgan Miller sit at the helm of the software company. ??Link to story in comments

Welcome to Privateer Ventures! We are thrilled to share the creation of a first-of-its-kind business accelerator program aimed at empowering Special Operation Veterans to build successful careers beyond their military service and thrive in new entrepreneurial environments. The Privateer program is a joint venture between The Mandatum Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that assists our nation's finest Special Operations service members in transitioning to the private sector, and MasterBorn, an industry leader in custom software development. ?? Learn more about the program's goal and this prospective partnership behind the Privateer initiative from the in-depth profile prepared with Kathryn R. and TENNBEAT—click on the link in the comments! The program starts on September 1st this year. Keep an eye out for exciting updates. Photo by John Partipilo