CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Ally Financial is showing support to women entrepreneurs by awarding them $60,000 in grants with its Daring to Disrupt contest.

One of Ally’s recipients, Jasmine Hathaway, is a Charlotte business owner who won $15,000 for her business Compass Coordinators. Charlotte and Raleigh rank in the top cities nationally for women to start a business, according to finance website smartasset.com. 

What You Need To Know

  • Ally Financial's Daring To Disrupt contest gave money to women entrepreneurs

  • Compass Coordinators helps families navigate tough situations in life

  • Jasmine Hathaway won $15,000 in the contest that will be used for marketing and expansion

Hathaway started the business a few years after her first husband’s death. The Charlotte native met her husband while in Washington, D.C. Soon after, the couple relocated to his hometown Chattanooga, T.N. where he was diagnosed with cancer.

After his death, Hathaway moved back to Charlotte, but had difficulty picking up the pieces and moving on. That struggle is the reason she started her business. 

“I was working full time, a single mom and really drowning in all the paperwork and follow-ups. I couldn’t do the things I needed to do because I was grieving so profoundly,” Hathaway said.

It’s a consulting service where Hathaway connects clients with necessary resources like attorneys and financial advisers to help navigate those tough moments like divorce or death. 

“There’s a huge amount of work that needs to be done that falls the grieving family members or the people going through the divorce and I feel strongly that shouldn’t be the case,” she said. 

Hathaway says she’ll use the money from the contest to increase marketing. As her business grows, wants to be able to offer more specialized services with teams focused on either separation or loss.