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It's hard to believe that three years ago Enterprising Latinas moved into its existing location at the Wimauma Opportunity Center. We are proud of the fact that the Center has become the hub for new resources and opportunities for families in Wimauma and beyond. Over the course of these years, we've engaged over 300 women in activities that are helping them find their own path to prosperity, including workforce training, employment assistance, and business development assistance with starting a business!
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As a result of the financial support we've received from DONORS LIKE YOU! and other government and philanthropic partners, we've succeeded in expanding our programs and staff. Over the last five years, we've grown from a 3-person team to a 16-member staff, including an experienced and highly dedicated group of senior managers positioned to increase the organization's impact in the community of Wimauma and beyond.

Now more than ever we are committed to becoming more strategic in our efforts to move women in our community out of poverty. We are building our capacity to address the complex issues confronted by low-income women in our community that hinder their economic mobility. 

We greatly appreciate having you as a trusted partner in our work. Consider giving a tax-deductible financial contribution. Your donation will make it possible for Enterprising Latinas to ensure the sustained operations of the Wimauma Opportunity Center, expand our services so more women can provide for themselves and their families, and continue to be a community leader transforming challenges into new economic opportunities. 

We encourage you to visit our center and see for yourself the work we are doing in the community of Wimauma. Please call us at (813) 699-5811 and ask for Liz Gutierrez or Ileana Cintron for a tour of our Center. Thank you for helping us create pathways of opportunity for women...because when women do well, their families and our communities do better!

Sincerely, 

Enterprising Latinas

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Member Success

JENNY

Jenny is a resident of Wimauma, a mother of 2 children and an ELI member since February 2021.She came to ELI after having lost her job due to the pandemic. Her initial goals were to open her own business and to increase her knowledge of personal finances to help her with her business venture. She enrolled in ELI's Business Development training and recently graduated. Jenny has made great progress applying what she learned in the business training and making her business a reality in a short period of time! She has already registered her business, created a business plan, started a website, and created brochures. ELI continues to provide her with technical assistance for her business. In addition, Jenny also increased her personal financial knowledge after completing the live virtual financial education course "Grow Your Money Mondays" led by Project Prosper. We love how Jenny is laser-focused on launching her business and ELI is excited to continue to support her on this journey. ​

BARBARA

Barbara is a resident of Wimauma and a mother of two children, who became an ELI member in March 2020. When the COVID-19 pandemic started, she stayed home taking care of the children while her husband worked. At that time, she received support with diapers, personal care items, and financial assistance. Upon completing her action plan, she embarked on several goals to reach family and economic stability. Last fall she took the financial education course with Project Prosper via Zoom to organize her finances and identify "runaway" expenses she could turn into savings little by little. Barbara also took advantage of the Nurturing Parenting classes to learn tools to manage the stress of isolation and the multiple roles she had to play at home during the pandemic. She also took care of renewing health insurance coverage for her children. Finally, she has started on her most important goal by attending the GED preparation course in Spanish since last March, with the intent of finding a more secure job with good benefits once she reaches this milestone. At the beginning, Barbara was timid and reserved but now she feels stronger, more confident and committed to moving onward for herself and her children. She is very grateful for the support provided by Enterprising Latinas.​

NEREIDA

Nereida is a resident of Wimauma who became a member of ELI in September 2020. She worked as a school bus driver, but her goal was to launch a food business selling frozen and fresh versions of native food from Puerto Rico.  She enrolled and successfully completed the business development class in December. She began the Food Protection Management course in January and passed the exam in March on her first try! As Nereida continued to develop her business, she identified the goal of managing her credit card debt and put her finances in order. She took the Grow Your Money course with Project Prosper, and with lots of discipline, has already been able to pay off 4 of 5 credit card balances. Nereida is feeling so confident and empowered that she decided to leave her job and work on her business full time. She has also involved her family members in her business and has hired someone outside of her family to work with her. She is looking for a commercial location for her business and looks forward to creating more jobs for community members.