Early on, I promised myself that I would turn this year’s obstacles into an opportunity for growth, and help as many others as possible during this crazy time.  

I own a commercial cleaning company with over 60 employees. With the arrival of the COVID-19 virus, we quickly provided our staff with additional training and “PPE” personal protective equipment to ensure their safety. We also knew that we had to fully implement several new disinfection technologies, such as: fogging and UVC light applications to help make our clients’ workplaces more safe. 

With my desire to help the Hispanic community, I decided to align with several organisations including  Creando Alianzas with Sofia Mariscales  to help women entrepreneurs build their businesses.

I joined the podcast team at De Mujer A Mujer with Irma Orosco and Naye Olvera and entre Mujeres Radio with Veronica and Javier Acosta.

I also walked a few “red carpets” and attended several “gala fundraising” events like: 

The One.N.ten with Araceli Duarte benefitting the LGBTQ community, 

XICO Cultural Exchange Art Show with artist Monica Gisel, 

AG Couture with fashion designer Araceli Garcia, and 

Miss Arizona Latina with Emma Barrios and Juan Garcia.

In 2020, I was also representing our Hispanic community in the political arena. I became involved with organizations like Arizona Talks with Carlos Alfaro, Hub Radio with Ray Michaels, and Free-Enterprise with Darla Gonzalez. Being involved in these groups got me in front of many of our politicians like Governor Ducey, Congressman Biggs, Attorney General of Arizona Mark Burn-O-Vich, Vice President Mike Pence, and even three times President Trump!

My adventures were covered by various news organizations, including PBS NewsHour, Fox News, Univision Telemundo, and El Diario, the oldest and largest Hispanic News Daily publication in the country. 

Even with all that happening, I made sure to stay fit and in touch with nature by hiking to the top of the highest mountain in Arizona, Mount Humphreys. AND I took a magical trip to Oaxaca, Mexico, where we had the privilege to safely move some baby turtles back into the sea.

By the way, if you love Mescal or Mole’, Oaxaca is the place to be!

So yes, we all had our challenges this year. Still, hopefully, we were all able to take it as an opportunity to grow as individuals, grow our businesses and bring something positive to others. With all of these new lessons learned, my team and I are now more than ready to move forward and do our part to make our community and our world a better, more vital place. 

“Recognition and presentations are all great, but the true joy is in seeing members of our community gather together to overcome their struggles in what proved to be such an unprecedented and unpredictable year. Now more than ever, we are leveraged for success!” -Martha