PADUCAH, KY - Paducah City Commissioner Richard Abraham will represent the city of Paducah as a moderator during Kentucky’s 24th annual Minority Enterprise Development Week, August 5-11 in Hopkinsville.  The event which involves conferences and networking events celebrates the contributions, success, and achievements of minority-owned businesses. 

This year’s MED Week theme is the “Year of the Entrepreneur”.  On Wednesday, August 8, Commissioner Abraham will be the moderator for the Small Business & Entrepreneurs Opportunity Conference.  Commissioner Abraham said, “I understand the importance of entrepreneurs and their American spirit.  The engine that drives much of the economy is fueled by small businesses.  We owe it to them to keep them viable since they create stability in our community, state, and country.” 

EntrePaducah Executive Director Terry Reeves also will attend the conference to learn from entrepreneurs in other communities across Kentucky and to share Paducah’s successes and challenges.

By executive order, President Ronald Reagan officially launched MED Week in 1983. Reagan’s proclamation stated, “entrepreneurial spirit underlies our free enterprise system and is one of the principal sources of America's strength…success of minority business enterprise demonstrates that hard work and individual determination can serve as a powerful engine for social mobility and economic progress…our challenge today is to enhance the ability of minority Americans to participate more fully in the market economy and to achieve greater economic independence.”

For more information about MED Week, including registration information, visit http://www.medisuccess.info.