When Izzy Abbas started his business, he didn’t think organizations like CDFIs were meant for someone like him.
Like many entrepreneurs—especially veterans and people with disabilities—he assumed he would have to piece things together on his own. That meant self-financing, relying on family support, and navigating the complexities of entrepreneurship without the benefit of coaching, technical assistance, or flexible capital.
“I thought my business was too small for a big bank,” Abbas says. “I really had no idea how to go about getting an SBA loan or anything like that.”
Today, Abbas is the founder of 11 Bravo Telecom, a telecommunications consulting company that helps expand broadband access in rural communities across the the United States. A Desert Storm veteran living with Multiple Sclerosis (MS), he now also serves as an advisor and former board member to Colorado Enterprise Fund, helping support the organization’s veteran-focused VALOR Loan Program.
But his path to business ownership was far from straightforward.
Entrepreneurship as a Pathway to Independence
Abbas spent decades building a successful career in telecommunications after returning from Desert Storm. Over time, however, health challenges associated with MS made traditional work environments increasingly difficult.
“I’ve got a gas tank that’s only so big,” he explains. “If I have to drive somewhere, get into an office, and navigate all of that before I even start working, I’m already exhausted.”
Like many entrepreneurs with disabilities, self-employment became more than a career move—it became a practical strategy for maintaining flexibility, autonomy, and economic participation.
Yet despite his extensive professional experience, Abbas found the transition to small business ownership overwhelming.
“I was responsible for managing multimillion-dollar contracts,” he says with a laugh. “But suddenly I had to figure out day-to-day business operations, registration fees, accounting, office equipment—all of it.”
Without clear pathways into lending or technical assistance programs, he turned to family members for startup capital.
“That creates a different kind of stress,” Abbas says. “You don’t want to disappoint your family.”
The Missing Link: Awareness and Outreach
Only later, through his connection to Colorado Enterprise Fund, did Abbas fully understand what CDFIs could offer entrepreneurs like him.
Business coaching. Flexible lending. Technical assistance. Trusted guidance.
“Had I known about some of the tools they had available, it would have been a huge step,” he says.
That experience has shaped how he now thinks about disability finance—and where CDFIs have an opportunity to grow.
“The biggest thing,” Abbas says, “is communicating that these resources exist and that you’re there to help.”
For many disabled entrepreneurs and veterans, the challenge is not only access to capital—it’s access to information, relationships, and trusted entry points.
That’s why Abbas believes partnerships are essential.
Veteran-serving organizations (VSOs), disability-serving organizations (DSOs), Centers for Independent Living, and other community groups already have deep relationships with the people CDFIs are trying to reach. Rather than expecting borrowers to find lenders on their own, Abbas sees an opportunity for CDFIs to meet communities where they already are.
“There are roughly 15,000 American Legion, VFW, DAV, and AMVETS posts around the country,” he notes. “Those organizations would be happy to host workshops, connect people, and help spread the word.”
The same principle applies across the broader disability community.
Marching Orders for CDFIs
Abbas believes many disabled entrepreneurs share the same hesitation he once did: assuming they need to figure everything out alone.
“Veterans have a hard time asking for help,” he says. “But it’s okay to ask for help. The resources are there.”
CDFIs are uniquely positioned to become part of that support system, not only by providing capital, but by building intentional partnerships, creating visible pathways into entrepreneurship programs, and recognizing the resilience and innovation already present within the disability community.
For Abbas, disability entrepreneurship is not about limitation, it’s about adaptation, problem-solving, and persistence. And if CDFIs are willing to show up intentionally, the opportunity is significant.
“The resources are there,” Abbas says. “People just need to know where to find them.”