Alfa demmellash biography

Alfa Demmellash (born 1979–1980) is an Ethiopian entrepreneur and the Chief Executive Officer of the non-profit Rising Tide Capital.
Alfa Demmellash is an Ethiopian entrepreneur and the Chief Executive Officer of the non-profit Rising Tide Capital.
Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Rising Tide Capital.

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Alfa Demmellash (‘99)

Alfa Demmellash (‘99) was born in Ethiopia and immigrated to the United States when she was three years old. As refugees, she and her mother lacked financial stability when first moving to the country. After college, Demmellash founded the nonprofit Rising Tide Capital, which provides financial education to communities of color. This, along with other organizations, has since raised tens of millions of dollars in 13 states across the country.

The Argo: When and why did you decide to pursue your current career path?

Demmellash: I’ve always been very interested in understanding migrations, conflicts, wars and genocides. My curiosity in understanding those aspects of history led me to major in Government at Harvard and learn about different interventions. A lot of that work has been happening around peace-building and government, but also by a lot of nonprofits. Helping people see one another as partners, collaborators, regardless of background, is what actually works on the ground with different countries and communities.

A: How did your time at BLS he

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Alfa Demmellash

Ethiopian entrepreneur

Alfa Demmellash (born 1979–1980)^[1] is an Ethiopian entrepreneur and the Chief Executive Officer of the non-profit Rising Tide Capital. Demmellash works to support entrepreneurs from disadvantaged communities. She has been honoured by the World Economic Forum, Heinz Awards and CNN.

Early life and education

Demmellash was born in Ethiopia.^[2] At the age of only two, she lost two of her siblings to a civil war, and her mother fled the country. Demmellash moved close to her grandparents' home where she attended a Montessori school.^[3] Her mother travelled through Kenya and eventually ended up in the United States, where she worked to earn enough money to move Demmellash to the United States as well.^[4] By day, Demmellash's mother worked as a waitress, and by night she was a seamstress, creating Ethiopian-inspired clothing. Eventually she earned enough money, and, at the age of 12, Demmellash moved to Boston. Demmellash was an undergraduate student at Harvard University, where she specialis

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See Them Rise: How Alfa Demmellash & Rising Tide Capital Are Transforming Lives Through Entrepreneurship

The year is 2002 and 22-year-old Alfa Demmellash, a Harvard junior, stands atop a hill in Kibuye, Rwanda, eight years after the 1994 genocide of almost a million people, to witness a memorial — and to observe how the Tutsi and Hutu are trying to live together again. While she’s there, she observes female entrepreneurialism at work. Women are running farms and managing successful coffee bean cooperatives. They are helping to rebuild Rwanda’s economy.

Research brought Demmellash to Rwanda, but being a global citizen and surviving her own childhood in Ethiopia helped her empathize. This would shape her goals of community building and empowering entrepreneurs. It would also help spark the founding in 2004 of Rising Tide Capital (RTC), a New-Jersey-based organization dedicated to assisting struggling individuals and communities build strong businesses which transform lives, strengthen families, and build sustainable communities.

Demmellash’s life began in Addis Ababa,