March, 2022 - El Centro de la Raza

From Nicaragua to the Embassy of Guatemala

“I give it a ten,” said Fatima Trana de Flores, when she was asked how important El Centro de La Raza is for the Hispanic community.

Originally and very proudly Nicaraguan, Fatima Trana de Flores was happy to share her story about how El Centro de La Raza helped her interview and land a job at the Embassy of Guatemala.

Like many immigration stories, she spent several years separated from her husband, as he worked in the US several years before she could join him. Once she arrived, it took time to adjust to the climate, food, different culture, but the hardest by far was the language barrier.

When she indicated to her human resource manager where she worked that she wanted to grow professionally, they referred her to El Centro de La Raza to find training opportunities for Spanish-speakers. Though she had worked in Nicaragua, she definitely appreciated the ability to refresh several work skills she had not used in a while.

Through El Centro de La Raza, she was able to improve her resume, develop her office skills, practice job interviewing, and find a great fit by attending career fairs.

Her recommendation? Always study to better yourself as a worker and a person. She encourages people to study and to find ways to contribute their grain of sand to the economy and development of this country.

Fatima says her next steps include practicing English on a daily and eventually, she hopes to find work in defense of human rights with a nonprofit or government agency and address gender violence, in particular. We look forward to continuing to see her grow and inspire!

The health and success of El Centro de la Raza begins with you. Support from a broad base of community members including foundations, individuals, and corporations is critical to our success and we ask that you carefully consider making a personally meaningful gift – it may be the largest gift you have ever made.

Upskilling as a Family

The Entrepreneurial Spirit of the Monroys

Meet Adriana Monroy, an example of a person who infuses her entire life (and family) with an entrepreneurial spirit!

Originally from Mexico, Adriana and her five children moved to Washington after seventeen years in Michigan. She discovered El Centro de La Raza and soon after she engaged with several of the programs, including, Bebes Hope, Alma, Unidos en Finance, and our Work Force Development Program. Soon after empowering herself with knowledge in different areas, she wanted to share with her community and family. She soon introduced her son, Job Monroy, to El Centro de la Raza.

At the height of the pandemic in 2021, Job Monroy graduated. He decided to take a gap year and use the year to learn a trade that would allow him to pay his way through university. He explored a pre-apprentice program info session we hosted, and learned about opportunities in the maritime, aerospace, and construction industries.

Through this session, he chose to deepen his exploration into the construction industry and connected to the Pre-Apprenticeship Training (PACT) Program with Seattle Colleges and the ANEW Program. Since then, he was accepted to ANEW’s free 12-week pre-apprenticeship program.

Job is excited to start and learn about a new trade! We love to see families progress together on many fronts!

How one business navigated the PPP program and the Pandemic

According to the NIH, in early 2020, the number of active businesses dropped in the US by 22%. Latinx business owner activity dropped by an astounding 32% and women-owned businesses also took disproportional losses of 25%.

Elizabeth Sevilla, Owner of Yayis Service LLC

Like other residential construction businesses, by early 2021, Yayis Service LLC, saw their revenue decline as homeowners postponed projects due to the pandemic and material expenses continued to increase. After several years of running a successful business, Yayis Service LLC owner, Elizabeth Sevilla, decided to reach out to our Business Opportunity Center Small Business Development (SBD) program to see how she could help her business cope with the pandemic.

To her relief, SBD walked Elizabeth through all of the requirements for eligibility of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a government funded program that provides low interest rates turned into grants through the Small Business Administration. Through one-on-one conversations, SBD helped her navigate the process, in Spanish. Together, they completed the application, from documentation gathering to contract signing. The SBA approved Elizabeth for a $19,400 loan at 1% interest rate. This allowed Elizabeth to keep her team on and fund payroll and continue her business.

A photo from a Yayis Service LLC project on Thumbtack.com

Beyond navigating the process together, the SBD kept in touch with Elizabeth to ensure Yayis Service LLC was keeping records of its spending on eligible expenses, such as payroll.

In January 2022, Elizabeth became eligible to apply for forgiveness of her SBA loan. SBD guided Elizabeth on the forgiveness application process and she was indeed approved for loan forgiveness. Thanks to the PPP and its forgiveness program, Elizabeth was able apply for a $19,400 loan, apply for forgiveness, and successfully turn her loan into a business grant – meaning no money owed!