Petrey’s venture part of Demo Day

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Ocean Accelerator, a faith-based business development service in Cincinnati, will showcase its 2016 class of nine companies — including one from Wilmington — at its 2016 Demo Day this Thursday.

The Wilmington resident with the good idea is Darrell Petrey. His venture is called We Help Others, which Ocean describes as “a fundraising platform that helps religious congregations and nonprofits generate revenue.”

The News Journal published a story in January on Petrey and his selection as an Ocean participant, around the time he started his Ocean business development experience Jan. 11. During a five-month term, Ocean Accelerator provides a blend of training, mentors, capital and working space to startups with potential.

Petrey has said, “We want this to be a new style of fundraising.” A twist in this form of fundraising is that the donors who contribute their used items of value will get cash back — in addition to the targeted nonprofit receiving money.

Demo Day is an event where the participating companies deliver pitches to potential investors. More than 1,500 people attended last year’s Demo Day, and an additional 1,200 viewers saw the event online.

This year’s Demo Day will be at the Crossroads Oakley Auditorium at 3500 Madison Road, Cincinnati, from 1 to 3:30 p.m. Thursday. Don Lothrop, a former managing partner at Delphi Ventures, will serve as the keynote speaker.

Ocean’s class of 2016 includes four businesses from Cincinnati, two from the United Kingdom, one from St. Louis, one from Dayton and the one from Wilmington.

Tickets for Demo Day are free, or the event can be watched live online at http://oceanaccelerator.com/live/ .

We Help Others has employment and intern positions available, Petrey said.

Reach Gary Huffenberger at 937-556-5768 or on Twitter @GHuffenberger.

The Ocean Accelerator participating venture We Help Others’ team: from left, Jason Crawford, relationship manager; Darrell Petrey, founder/CEO; Mark Hackney, marketing; and Paul Smiley, lead developer.
http://aimmedianetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/22/2016/04/web1_WHO_TEAM_f.jpgThe Ocean Accelerator participating venture We Help Others’ team: from left, Jason Crawford, relationship manager; Darrell Petrey, founder/CEO; Mark Hackney, marketing; and Paul Smiley, lead developer.

By Gary Huffenberger

[email protected]

Tickets for Thursday’s Demo Day are free, and can be found at this link https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ocean-accelerator-2016-demo-day-tickets-22076344942 .

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