Helen Keller, the famed deaf and mute American author, disabled rights advocate, and politician, had a favorite motto: “Alone we can do so little, but together we can do so much.” Those words also well describe the platform of the Buckhead Business Association (BBA). A platform which has stood the test of time for more than 72 years of the organization’s existence, according to its president, Rizwan Peera.
“We believe an organization is only as strong as its members, and as its members allow it to be,” Peera said. “We have been fortunate over the years to have been blessed with business leaders returning to us as sponsors.”
Although the Covid pandemic almost brought the BBA to a standstill, the business organization has regained its stamina by reinstating its numerous events, such as the Taste of Buckhead. When asked what impact the BBA has had on the Buckhead community, Peera said that many of the organizations within the Buckhead community would likely not exist without the BBA.
“A lot of the founding members of those organizations started out in the BBA, or the ideas for those organizations started out as ideas which developed within in the BBA,” he said. The BBA is continually providing business and working professionals a platform to enhance good relations, cooperation, and business deals with one another. According to Peera, “This is part of the BBA’s input and initiatives which have continued throughout our history.”
That spirit of cooperation and helping one another has been a beacon for drawing new members, like Eboni Ward who joined the BBA last September. “I love the quality connections that I have made, and continue to make through the BBA,” Ward said. That insight has helped her establish another goal, to become president of the BBA.
The same holds true for another member, Julie Bailey, who has been with the organization for more than a decade and was president of the BBA in 2018. The organization provides a direct connection between the businesses in Buckhead and the community at large. Bailey explained, “The BBA plays a role in elevating events in Buckhead and promoting the city’s businesses and helping business connect in a way others might not be able to do.” The community also connects with the BBA through the association’s service projects, like its mentoring program.
“The BBA is a vessel for the community to have direct access to speakers and leaders in the city of Atlanta, which most people would not have access to,” Bailey said, adding the BBA has a robust speakers’ program where members have access to some of the top CEOs and elected officials in Atlanta.
The BBA has a variety of goals, which can be summarized as providing more value for its members while also increasing its membership. Although the BBA’s board of directors meets once a month, Peera said the association doesn’t conduct regular organizational meetings, but rather social and networking events which attract from 30 to 50 members and guests. “These events support the BBA’s goal of educating, inspiring and connecting people to build relationships within our association and the community,” he said.
Visit the BBA’s website for more information and a complete schedule of events.
The spirit of Buckhead heads forward. This is the way it has been, and perhaps this is the way it will always be. The spirit of Buckhead points forward. You see it in the way we work, and you see it in the way we play. The reach is always extending further. The search is for excellence and beauty and grace and vibrancy.
We are a community of individuals. We are diverse, we are dynamic, and we are discerning. We are builders. We are connected to one another with a common bond. A common dream. A common quest. Pointing life in one direction. Forward.
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