Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Safeguard Financial & Insurance Group is hosting a grand re-opening Saturday at a new Port Arthur location.

The ribbon cutting takes place at 3015 Plaza Circle, and the celebration includes fun for parents and children, with a prize drawing, music from DJ Shocker Shawn, free food, a photo booth, a moonwalk and face painting for the kids.

For Safeguard, this is another way to give back to the community, which is a goal of the business.

Safeguard started eight years ago as a local tax business, but has come a long way since then.

It began as a single office in Port Arthur, offering tax assistance, and now has opened several franchised offices in Beaumont, Orange, Lake Charles, Louisiana, and Houston.

It has expanded services at the home office to include tax preparation, book keeping, business solutions and credit repair.

As far as insurance, company officials offer life, flood and windstorm insurances. For Safeguard’s base in Port Arthur, this success offers more ways to give back to the community.

Safeguard is owned and founded by Jennifer Lewis, who is from Port Arthur. Her ties to the community and generous nature fuel the passion to give back. The success of the business is poured directly back into the community.

Lewis and her Safeguard team have hosted a number of events to benefit Southeast Texas, such as a holiday toy drive for children. They also offer financial support for those struggling during the pandemic by going to Walmart and paying for people’s Christmas gifts, in addition to donating to several scholarship funds.

Safeguard also strives to see other small businesses succeed by helping with financial solutions.

Part of the motivation to expand is to help ensure Port Arthur residents are informed about options that can help manifest their businesses into a profitable success.

“These days, everyone wants to become their own boss, so we work to turn those side hustles into actual businesses,” Lewis said. “I love the people-building that comes along with it.”

As for the future of Safeguard, “our goal is to eventually become a one-stop shop for financial services,” Lewis said.

This sentiment is shared by vice president Chastity Trice, who said: “We want to learn as much as we can so that we can pour that knowledge and success back into the community. As we grow, we want to help the community to grow, as well.”

The grand re-opening takes place Saturday and also marks the beginning of services for the 2021 tax season. The cutting of the ribbon takes place at 2 p.m., and the festivities will last until 4 p.m.