On Thursday, September 21, 2006, 10 Latinas received the fifth annual Anna Maria Arias Memorial Business Fund Awards at the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s (USHCC) 27th Annual Convention and Business Expo in Philadelphia. The awards, dedicated to the memory of LATINA Style founder, Anna Maria Arias recognized these 10 Latina entrepreneurs for their business innovation, achievements and community service.

The awards, presented in partnership with LATINA Style Magazine, the United States Chamber of Commerce and Wells Fargo & Company, support the continuing growth of Latina small business owners. “This year’s award recipients fulfill an important part of Anna Maria’s legacy – promoting and giving a voice to the success of Latinas everywhere,” said Tim Rios, senior vice president and national spokesperson for Wells Fargo’s Latino Business Services Program. “They are each pursuing their dreams and opening doors to establish economic empowerment for other Latinas. They are trailblazers and are making a real difference in their communities and nationwide.”

Leticia Badillo
IPA Sales
Chicago, IL.

A dynamic businesswoman, entrepreneur, and community leader, Leticia Badillo is owner of IPA Sales, a food, beverage and material packaging supplier with sales in the United States, Mexico and Central Asia. Today, IPA Sales is known in the industry for quality services, competitive global pricing and product uniqueness. Badillo has received various awards, including the Nuestro Award, and the Consejo para Promocion de Negocios para las Comunidades Hispanas Award for the Reconocimento al Empresario Hispano. She currently sits on the board of the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and has sat on the board of Mujeres Latinas en Acción. Through these organizations she has helped fund scholarships for young Latino students across the country.

Marta Bianchini
Cubanitas
Milwaukee, WI.

Marta Bianchini is the owner of the first Cuban restaurant in Wisconsin, taking her Cuban home cooking all the way to the top being recognized as one of the top 50 U.S. Hispanic restaurants by Hispanic Magazine in 2005. Bianchini is not only the owner of Cubanitas, but is the only Latina volunteer to sit on the board for the foundation of a major hospital in Milwaukee. Her goal is to have several Cubanitas throughout the United States.
 

Marie Diaz
Pursuit of Excellence, Inc.
Dallas, TX.

Marie Diaz is the founder of Pursuit of Excellence, Inc., a Dallas-based company providing small and mid-sized market companies, a highly automated web-based system instrumental on improving leadership performance, human resources management, and business processes. She currently serves as vice chairman on the board of the Greater Dallas Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, board of directors of the Dallas Crime Commission, Navidad En El Barrio and the WOW Foundation. In 2006, Diaz was nominated for Woman’s Enterprise Magazine’s Woman of Excellence Award.

Mabel Katz
Your Business, Inc.
Woodland Hills, CA.

Mabel Katz is the founder of Your Business, Inc., a Southern California-based business dedicated to helping individuals create successful companies. Whether it’s assisting accounting clients in achieving prosperity, through consulting, conferences or her television show, Despertar, Katz supports them with financial and life-skills advice. Her book, The Easiest Way: Solve your problems and take the road to love, happiness, wealth and the life of your dreams, details the principles and practices she presents in her workshops. She has also co-written Inspiration to Realization, providing strategies for business, personal, spiritual and financial fulfillment. This year, she received the Sol Azteca Award and the Latin Business Association’s Members Choice Award.
 

Nancy Marmolejo
Comadre Coaching
Anaheim, CA

Nancy Marmolejo is the award-winning founder and president of Comadre Coaching, a business coaching company dedicated to providing strategies and solutions for the success of the Latina entrepreneur. Comadre Coaching is a business that helps entrepreneurs achieve maximum success and skyrocket their profits. She is able to do so with the use of technology that connects with clients, prospects and the community at large. In May 2006, she launched a highly effective group coaching program for Latina entrepreneurs and plans on expanding her business to include a coaching and training institute dedicated to help Latinas even more. Marmolejo has received various awards, including the Small Business Entrepreneur of the Year Award from the National Hispanic Business Women’s Association, and was named as one of the 100 most influential Latinos in Orange County, California.

Evangelina Mendoza
Mercado Latino/Handy
Helpers
Anderson, CA

A sole proprietor of Mercado Latino, Evangelina Mendoza is president of a fast-growing Latino market, “Handy Helpers” in Anderson, California. Handy Helpers offers the community an array of imported Mexican products such as janitorial, maid services and supplies. It also offers bilingual consulting services related to income tax, real estate loans and notary services. Over the years, Mendoza has been involved in various organizations such as the Chamber of Commerce and Better Business Bureau, she has been a member of the City Council, production manager for O’Neals Swimsuits in Santa Cruz and Larsen Sails Clothing Company, vice president for Prinerica Insurance company and loan officer for the San Jose Commercial Bank. Currently, she is the president of Liga Unida, a 400-member soccer organization and a board member for Radio Mexico 97.7 and Radio Recuerdo 101.7.

Carol Sanchez and
Maria Santiago
Sanchez & Santiago, LLC
Natick, MA.

Both Maria Santiago and Carol Sanchez are certified public accountants (CPA) for Sanchez & Santiago, LLC. They offer an array of services for their community that involve bookkeeping, tax preparation and planning, payroll and consulting services for individuals and small businesses.
Santiago specializes in the tax preparation and planning areas, which include non-profit industries, construction, real estate, retail, manufacturing and high technology.
Sanchez also has an extensive career track to follow. She started her career at KPMG’s audit division, then moved on to internal audit with GTE, and launched the internal audit function for the Timberland Company. Sanchez has worked as director of International Operations and Merchandising at Stride Rite International Corp. From 2000 to 2004, she was director of client services for Resources Connection.

Lesley Oveido, Dina Alvarez, Lesley Gómez
Somos Padres, Inc.
Astoria, NY.

The first and only free bilingual parenting publication for Hispanic families, SomosPadres, Inc., located in Astoria, NY., provides information that educates the Hispanic community on all levels. These three Latinas: Lesley Oveido, chief-executive officer and publisher, Dina Alvarez, chief operating officer and managing editor, and Lesley Gómez, vice president and editor-in-chief provide the necessary resources to many newcomers to the United States, thus providing enriching information that will ease their transition in this country.
Lesley Oveido, a Baruch College graduate, has worked for El Diario/La Prensa in New York City, The Wall Street Journal and has owned and co-founded Momento Magazine, a Portuguese magazine based in Miami, Florida.

Dina Alvarez, a Cum Laude graduate from Hunter College, spent most of her career working in Corporate America on administrative levels, she then worked as a freelance writer for a parenting publication in New York City, where she was given an award for writing on the evacuation of daycare centers at Ground Zero.
Lesley Gómez, who moved to Colombia from New York at the age of eight-years-old graduated in Medellin. A former teacher, Gómez taught modern languages for several years in elementary, high school at postgraduate levels. She then moved to New York City, wrote and edited for Wall Street Journal Americas, and has worked with Selecciones, Readers Digest as one of their contributing writers.

Leeanna Roman
Providence Pediatric
Medical Daycare, Inc.
Berlin, N.J.

A nationally recognized business and non-profit leader, Leeanna Roman, is president of Hispanics Impacting Public Policy and president of Providence Pediatric Medical Daycare, Inc., a medical daycare that provides services for children with special nursing needs, and medically at-risk children in urban and suburban centers. “I believe every child deserves quality and affordable medical treatment,” she says. Roman’s medical day care not only serves children of all races and ethnicities, but also provides diversity in the workplace. In 2004, she was awarded the Rising Star Award for Hispanic Business Magazine’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award. In November 2005, Roman was named one of the Philadelphia Business Journal’s 25 Women of Influence. Roman’s memberships include the US Chamber of Commerce, NJ Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Chamber of Commerce-Southern NJ, and the NJ Chamber of Commerce.

Wilka Varela Toppins
The Toppins Law Firm,
P.C.
Houston, TX

Founder of the only Latina-owned law firm in Houston, Texas, Varela Toppins, is a veteran lawyer with over 16-years of corporate, employment and litigation legal experience. She has worked with clients such as Exxon Company, USA, SBC Communications ( AT&T), Verizon, Wells Fargo, Comerica Bank, and other internationally-based companies. Varela Toppins serves as a public speaker to national and regional conventions and organizations on topics such as diversity, career development, leadership and various legal matters. She is active in several chambers in Houston and is a board member of the Hispanic Alliance for Career Enhancement (HACE), board member of the Galleria Chamber of Commerce, board member and vice president of Variety, the Children’s Charity of Houston and member of the Camara de Empresarios Latinos de Houston.