Today we’d like to introduce you to Elizabeth Velazquez.
Elizabeth, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I grew up in a middle class home in Elmwood Park, IL. My Parents had a loving marriage and lived a pretty comfortable life. Although, my home life seemed great on the outside, every family has its downside. My mother suffered from depression which often kept her distant. My father worked 2 jobs and was also busy but tried hard to be involved. I was the one that was looked at as the “black sheep” of the family and didn’t really seem to fit in, at times. My neighborhood was pretty closed off and not very diverse. I found myself venturing off to the city to find what else was beyond this “Elmwood Park” bubble. It was in this breaking out, that I found people that were different, cultures that I didn’t understand and a sense of adventure that I wanted more of. I got into trouble, made relationships that caused lasting scars and friendships that sadly ended in gun violence. There was a sadness to this world that I was opened up to but yet still wanted more. I take pride in the fact that my closed off home life never allowed me to see “color”. I saw everyone around me as a person and knew some how we were connected. Fast forward 2005, I am now a mother of two, I have a great husband who supports my life’s journey and would never trade it for anything. When I was working in corporate American at a very large communications company, I was introduced to a young lady who opened my eyes to “Human Trafficking” in Thailand. It was then that my heart was changed forever and I needed to do something A team was formed and we got to work. We raised money, collected donations of vitamins and various items of clothing, This was still just a fraction of what was yet to come. When I met Marisol Constanza, we made an instant connection and talked in specific detail in 2009 that we would one day be working together. Here we are in 2018 and that vision has now become reality.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I never really seemed loved and accepted in my early-late teens. Turned to drugs and alcohol which eventually lead me to lots of pain. Words to describe would be rape, friends lost along the way from gun violence, suicide and cancer. My husband and I, endured child loss twice and in 2012, watched my mother deteriorate from bone cancer and eventually lost the battle in September. I thought for a moment that there was much being taken from me and I didn’t understand. Looking back, now I realize this was all preparing me for what was to come.
Let’s Change Resale Shoppe – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Let’s Change is a resale shop that gives our customers the experience of a boutique at thrift store prices. Our store is in an area that some consider mid-low income. Our customers are sometimes taken aback by the prices and also given a sense of pride knowing that with every purchase they are giving to a great cause. Everything that comes into the store is 100% donated. Everyone who works behind the scenes and behind the counter checking out is also 100% volunteers. We have our local Church New Life Covenant to thank for supporting this venture and allowing us to make our home in the Humboldt park area.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Success can be defined in so many ways… money, house, status etc. For me, success is when you see someone fighting an addiction and winning, a child that was once left with no parents in an orphanage get to the minor leagues in baseball or achieve a dream of being an accountant. Success is when you are able to provide a surgery that is needed to remove a hernia or provide clean water so community no longer has to suffer from parasites. Success is never about me or what I have done. I can do nothing without my creator and a great team of people that see the vision and a great leader that never gives up. Most importantly, a God who has equipped us to succeed in everything that we do.
Pricing:
- Sponsor a Child for $25-35.00 a month
Contact Info:
- Address: 1664 N. California
- Website: www.letschangeresaleshoppe.org
- Phone: 773-683-1782
- Email: letschange@aotk.org
- Instagram: letschangeshoppe
- Facebook: letschangeshop
- Other: www.aotk.org
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
