Reyna Bahena has worked hard all of her life. At 67 years of age, she is thinking about new projects for her future. Presently, Reyna manages a small business in Omaha where she sells perfumes, make up, and laminated jewelry. She worked for many years making alterations and sewing clothing in her store, but diabetes has affected her eyesight. For this reason, she is no longer able to perform this work.
Reyna produces tamales for parties and meetings when people request her products. People who enjoy her food think Reyna makes the best Mexican tamales in the city of Omaha. For this reason, Reyna wants to produce tamales in large quantities in commercial kitchen to sell in supermarkets and restaurants. Furthermore, Reyna dreams of having food truck to offer tamales and fruits in the city of Omaha.
Reyna said “I want to be the first client of MLCDC’s commercial kitchen”.
Ten years ago, MLCDC created the SELF-HELP Lending group called “Pioneers” which meets once month. Though this group, MLCDC has been providing the necessary funding for Reyna to acquire more inventory. Reyna thinks that she will sell more products if her store has more diverse product line. She says “clients buy what they see. Most of the time, they seem to want things hat you don’t presently have in stock. It is crucial to have good inventory to make the customer happy and to make sale.”
Workforce and Business Development programs for low income communities are supported by United Way of the Midlands.