Rosalva was determined to take control of her life, be her own boss and help her community gain access to fresh, healthy food. A survivor of domestic abuse, Rosalva worked over the last 20 years as a babysitter, housecleaner, and community service worker. And then, she decided to fulfill a longtime dream of starting her own business.
She enrolled in entrepreneurship classes through the Women’s Initiative for Self-Employment, a program supported by United Way’s Bay Area Community Fund. Having developed a passion for healthy food during her childhood in Mexico, helping her aunt sell fresh fruit, Rosalva’s business concept was simple: open a healthy café to help address the lack of nutritious food options in her neighborhood.
Taking advantage of a matched savings program operated by another United Way partner, The Opportunity Fund, Rosalva obtained a $10,000 loan. With the training she received from the Women’s Initiative and the loan, she launched La Verbena, a café offering organic juices, coffee drinks, and traditional Latino beverages.
Business is growing, and Rosalva hopes to turn her café into a chain, with locations in neighborhoods similarly lacking healthy alternatives.
More importantly, she wants to help other women in need—particularly victims of domestic violence—by providing job opportunities and being an example of how to start a new life.
She says, “You need to have heart, courage, passion to have that kind of dream.” Clearly, Rosalva has the all of these qualities. United Way is proud to have helped prepare her for living her new life.
