As director for the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Montana District, I have the unique opportunity to work with entrepreneurs and small business owners across Montana to help provide capital and connections that support growth for our state’s businesses. This year has kept my team busy as we’ve worked with local lenders to secure forgivable loans for 24,000 small business owners through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and other SBA lending programs designed to help keep businesses afloat during the extreme challenges we’ve faced.