Let's Supervive! - Rosa Es Rojo

Team Subkit -

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Aideé Granados, Founder of Rosa Es Rojo, Inc., located in Plano, TX, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

ROSAesROJO is a non-profit making wellness and cancer prevention accessible to Hispanic women and their families in the U.S. We educate them on nutrition, mental health, and physical activity, using Cultural Humility and Community Care as part of our social innovation.

We are leading Hispanics to live healthier lives and reduce the incidence of chronic diseases, primarily cancer. Why cancer prevention in Hispanics?

  • One in four Hispanic people in the U.S. lives below the poverty line (Kaiser Family Foundation 2020)
  • Hispanic people comprise 57% of the nation's uninsured (KFF 2020)
  • Cancer is the leading cause of death among Hispanics in the U.S. (ACS 2020)
  • 1 in 3 Hispanic women will be diagnosed with cancer during their lifetime (ACS 2020)

And the following is something very powerful for me, as a cancer survivor myself: "An estimated 42% of all cancer cases and 45% of cancer deaths in the U.S. could potentially be prevented by adopting healthier behaviors, such as not smoking, maintaining a healthy weight, staying active throughout life, following a healthy eating pattern, and avoiding or limiting alcohol consumption." (ACS, 2021-2023). So why are Hispanic women and their family members dying faster and at higher rates than any other group of people in America from a preventable, lifestyle-related disease like cancer? Systemic inequalities and disparities are preventing us from accessing care, and we are dying because of that. We have seen how ROSAesROJO effectively solves this need and problem.

We work with Hispanic women as a gateway to family and community. In Hispanic culture, women make decisions regarding family well-being and are characterized as extraordinary "givers." We accompany these women learning to give effectively and wisely, taking care of themselves first and then giving to their families and communities. As a result, they become healthier and leaders in community care. Last year, the majority of the women we serve (75%) were 31-50 years old and speak Spanish as a first language. 43% were undocumented immigrants, and 74% had an annual family income of less than $50K. And 48% were participants from Dallas County.

Tell us about yourself

As a Latina living in the U.S. for the first time, with a basic knowledge of English and American culture, I didn't understand much of what the doctors talked about or how they were treating me - or my cancer. For my first chemo, I arrived with the attitude that characterizes me: determination and more determination to learn something and see "light" amid this madness. There was a lady in front of me in the infusion room. Possibly my same age. Maybe Latina, just like me. I was tremendously affected upon seeing her. Somehow I could feel her soul deeply disturbed, as if it was covered by a veil, communicating heartache. She was yelling, throwing magazines and books. She sent her companion out of the room. I told my husband, "Please, whatever happens, I don't want my soul to feel like hers." I wanted to do everything necessary to strengthen my spirit and ask for help. Embracing my cancer and not only surviving it opened a window to radically improve my well-being, the way I love, and the reverence I have for life. An improvement that has not required money as the main input but willpower and a firm belief in myself.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

We use a shared decision-making approach to create and build sustainable engagement. We do with our participant's individual action plans with SMART goals, and they are also shown to make big changes more achievable and sustainable over the long term. Our in-person/virtual community provides accountability and support. Our participants take this work home to their communities, creating a ripple effect that can reduce community health disparities. In 2021, 84.4% of our participants reported that they have positively influenced 6+ community members. As of December 2021, we delivered 21,000+ hours of wellness education, reaching 1,051 women in The Rojo Way. And we have more than 11,200+ Podcast listeners and 150 podcast episodes.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

To keep innovating! - It's important to talk about Social Innovation in the non-profit sector. Our programs are effective thanks to the emphasis on Community Care and Cultural Humility as part of our social innovation. We are using an innovative approach to health and well-being communication and education, which builds on the importance of the Hispanic culture and frames the solutions in ways relevant to our roots.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. Look for a mentor or coach to accompany you.
  2. Innovate. There are always new ways to do things and solve needs/problems.
  3. Be a social change leader! How are you going to give back to your community and environment?

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

We will not treat our way out of cancer and other chronic diseases that diminish the dignity of life of Hispanics living in the U.S. Instead, we want to educate on how to prevent them and empower our community to make it possible.

We want generational impact, not temporary remedies - and when knowledge enters through women, it is more effective (World Bank 2014). Today, our beneficiaries are eating healthier, exercising, naming emotions, and asking for help.

Social determinants of health limit well-being in impacted communities, but we bridge this gap. We meet people where they are with cultural humility and respect. Addressing the root cause of income/language/education barriers to medical and mental health through ROSAesROJO makes a true difference in Hispanic survival.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://en.rosaesrojo.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosaesrojo
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rosaesrojo/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosaesrojo
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rosa-es-rojo/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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