International Women’s Day – Partnering with Adelante Community Development in our first Latina Convention

Colographic celebrated International Women’s Day with Adelante Community Development, a global holiday celebrating the cultural, political, and socioeconomic achievements of Latino women. Adelante Community Development (ACD) is a non-profit organization that serves Latino families and entrepreneurs. ACD is comprised of small and medium business owners and leaders seeking to democratize business strategic planning and economic justice in Colorado.

ACD was founded by María González, a lifelong community leader and owner of Gonzalez Insurance Group in Commerce City. Maria has worked tirelessly to provide the leadership, empowerment, and connections that Latino entrepreneurs need to further their business goals.

History of the Adelante Community Development

The history of Adelante begins with  the recession of 2008. There, the need for support that Latino businessmen had became evident and in October 2010, Maria together with a group of merchants organized a unique meeting with the Government of Commerce City to address the commercial disparities in the community. After this meeting Maria realized that there was a great need for work in the business community. She therefore created bi-monthly business workshops under the name of the Minority Business Association. After the tremendous success, Maria created a board of directors and, with funding from the Denver foundation, changed the group’s name to Adelante Community Development and became Adams County’s first non-profit association serving homeowners. monolingual Spanish-speaking businesses to succeed.

Colographic had 3 women representatives at the event sharing services and products that we offer to small business.  The women at Colographic believe in supporting other women in the work force and community. Colographic believes in empowering small businesses and helping them get the tools they need to properly brand and create the proper signage for all businesses. This was a really nice event to attend and to be part of. It was nice to hear about other women especially Latino women and their stories about creating and starting businesses. We got to see the everyday struggles Latino and minority women face when starting their own companies.  

Jimmy, the owner of Colographic, is the vice President of Adelante. He volunteers his time to be part of the Latino community. Jimmy is Spanish speaking and values the perspectives and input of community members, and working collaboratively to identify and address community needs. Volunteering in the Latino community is a positive experience when approached with humility, cultural sensitivity, and a commitment to building authentic relationships with community members. Jimmy spends his time listening to and learning from community members,  to understand what small business owners in the Latino community need help when registering, branding, and growing their business.

Today ACD works to promote community development, well-being and equality through initiatives that promote education, health and social justice. Our goal is to build a stronger and more united community by collaborating with local residents, organizations and businesses.