Networking en español

By Lourdes Rodriguez-Florido <a href=www.sun-sentinel.com>Sun Sentinel Staff Writer Posted May 25 2003

It's a Thursday morning and it's standing room only in La Pequeña Colombia, a small restaurant in Sunrise. Conversations, along with people, float in and out of the restaurant, where there's a lot of hand shaking and exchanging of business cards. It's your typical business networking experience, but with a twist. Most of the people are recent arrivals in the United States -- Latin American businessmen and women who are looking for help getting established in a land where not only is language sometimes a barrier but the business environment is foreign to their experience. The free Thursday morning networking sessions are only one of the activities that The Americas Community Center, a nonprofit organization, offers to immigrants. The center also offers educational seminars, job placement services and events such as a recent symposium on how to do business in Broward County and an exhibition of paintings of Latin American artists that will be presented June 6 and 26 in Coral Gables and Weston. "[I opened the center] based on the fact that there was a need to help immigrants who have been coming to this country for years," said Fabio Andrade, the founder and president of the organization. "To help them adopt to this country in economic, social and political ways. The idea is to have doctors, engineers, housewives and others be able to understand what the steps are for success in this country." For two years, The Americas Community Center has worked out of offices at 2300 N. Commerce Parkway, Suite 106 in Weston, and at 9010 SW 137th Ave. in southwest Miami-Dade County. A West Palm Beach office is slated to open this summer. With a paid staff of three and about 30 volunteers, the organization has an annual budget of about $150,000. The Miami-Dade office is fully financed by Miami-Dade County, while in Broward County the center is staffed by volunteers and is run on private and corporate donations. Weston Regional HealthPark donated the center's office space. Andrade credited the organization's volunteers and people such as Deborah O'Connor, administrator of the Weston Regional HealthPark, Weston City Commissioner Robin Bartleman and Miami-Dade Commissioner Joe A. Martínez with boosting the center's success. Andrade, whose profession is aviation management, said the idea to open the center came from his own experience. He had watched his parents struggle professionally after they moved to the United States from Colombia in the 1960s. It's a struggle that continues with today's immigrants. When Kareen Besson, a development consultant and business coach, moved to Weston from Venezuela six months ago, she struggled to find work and make connections. "I was very lost until I found this center," she said. "After I met with them three months ago, a lot of doors have opened." Besson now works at a furniture design company and also has garnered clients for her work as a business coach, in which she helps people develop leadership skills. By the time Germán Rodríguez found out about the center, he had already faced many obstacles. "To make the transition to the American lifestyle is very hard," said Rodríguez of Weston. "Many people spend a lot of money coming here and they fall on hard times." Rodríguez, an engineer with a master's degree in business administration, said he struggled when he moved from Colombia three years ago. "I spent all my money and I ended up divorced," he said. "This was so hard and I don't want anyone else to go through this." Rodriguez eventually made it past the rough times and now is successful in his work as a business administrator. Rodriguez now volunteers at the center, where he helps others learn the ropes of the American business climate. The occasional "Lending a Hand" feature takes a look at people who participate in organizations that help immigrants.