Proud First Generation Cuban American

In Her Own Words

I joined Sofidel in 2017 as a National Account Manager and currently is a Director of Sales, Retail Private Label working with national retailers developing their Private Brands paper business supplied by Sofidel.

Growing up in a Cuban household in Miami was interesting in the 1980’s.  I grew up with a love for country and was always told how blessed we were to have immigrated to the U.S.  The U.S, without having the obligation, opened her arms and gave us human rights and an opportunity which was something denied in Cuba by the Castro regime.  All of that was said at the breakfast table while eating Cuban bread and butter and drinking “café con leche” which is milk with a splash of Cuban coffee a.k.a. a healthy breakfast for any Cuban kid at age 5!  I grew up in a Spanish-speaking home where my mom fought hard for us to speak and write Spanish well.  It was part of our education, but more importantly she wanted to make sure we were able to communicate with our grandparents.

Growing up, and to this day, I feel 100% American and 100% Cuban.  But, sometimes the idiosyncrasies of each culture don’t line up.  For example, I wasn’t allowed to move out of my house until I got married which was 25 for me.  I had to have a chaperone on all my dates.  Thankfully, I had a really cool older brother that understood my plight in straddling both cultures and was ok with me tagging along wherever he went.  In retrospect, it was a small price to pay for all the benefits of growing up Cuban.  If just for the food, growing up Cuban made it worthwhile!  Saturday mornings weren’t about pancakes (although I love pancakes too).  It was about pastelitos de guayaba (Cuban guava pastries), emapanadas, croquetas de jamon (ham croquets) and pan Cubano con mantequilla (Cuban bread with butter).  It was about getting in the kitchen and learning how to make “sofrito” (olive oil, garlic, onion, and bell pepper) as a base for any meal with my mom, grandma and aunt.  And contrary to popular belief, Cuban food is NOT spicy.  We don’t even put black pepper in our seasoning!   It was about having huge birthdays parties with your family which was a minimum of 60 people because our families are so big. And unless there is a good reason to move out of Miami, we never do.  We celebrate every occasion from a baby’s baptism to a quinceañera, graduation, or wedding with a crazy extravagant party where everyone is expected to dress like a Hollywood A-lister on a red-carpet event.  Cubans are warm, welcoming, and passionate. It sometimes seems like we are arguing, but we’re just loud and over the top.  We are known for exaggerating the tiniest of details in a story for a good laugh because having a good time is at our core.

The two quotes I heard over and over as a kid were “never give up, never give up, never give up” and “don’t give excuses- give results!”  Cubans are known as one of the hardest working immigrant groups in the U.S.  We make up about .5% of the US population and yet we have 10 Cuban Americans serving in the U.S. congress.  The first Hispanic Woman elected to congress was Cuban-born Ileana Ros-Lehtinen in 1989, and now even Coca Cola has had a Cuban-born CEO, Roberto Crispulo Goizueta.  Working hard and making things work is hard wired in our DNA.  The reason I know all these facts is because my parents would tell us about these people and used them as examples of what we could achieve in the United States.   My dad himself picked tomatoes at 8 years of age when he first arrived, but he later rose to become a Vice President at Ryder Systems, Inc.  I grew up knowing I could do anything, and the only limitation was the one I placed on myself.  I’ve taken every opportunity I’ve been presented with even when I knew I wasn’t qualified.  Sometimes I’ve failed and learned and sometimes I’ve succeeded, but I never felt the regret of not knowing or taking a chance. That drive has served me well in my career and has allowed me to grow in the companies willing to give me that chance.  Also, I don’t know if it’s a coincidence, but I’ve always worked for inclusive and diverse companies like Sofidel where your ethnicity is seen as an asset.  I’ve helped improve communication with non-English speaking customers at Sofidel, and I’ve also been asked to weigh in on matters because of the diversity my background offers.  I’ve worn my heritage as a badge of honor not only because I am proud, but also because it’s been encouraged and praised by each one of our senior leaders.  Not surprisingly, I came to know about WISE at Sofidel via Mary Conwell (current Board member) and she encouraged me to join a mentor group.  Although our group recently started meeting, our leader Alexis Painter has been able to create an inclusive, safe, and supportive space where group members feel comfortable being vulnerable in sharing their challenges as well as their wins.  Everyone is willing to share their knowledge generously and provide honest and supportive feedback.  I look forward to each session with a sense of excitement and anticipation and can’t quantify the benefits I’ve already received in this short time.

In short, other than living at home and having a chaperone until age 25, it’s been a blessing to be “a Cuban” in both my personal and professional life.  I love all the wonderful attributes each culture has provided me with and I’m honored to be called a Cuban-American.  Like we say in Miami, “I’m made in America with Cuban parts!”