Latino Chamber’s Latino Business Excellence Awards Will Have Brazilian Flavor This Year

“We have a Latino constituency that is quite diverse here at the Chamber,” says Jessica Cavazos, president and CEO of the Latino Chamber of Commerce of Dane County. “How much more exciting can you get in terms of culture, music, clothing than bringing that Brazilian flavor to Madison?”

Cavazos is already excited for the Latino Chamber’s annual Latino Business Excellence Awards which will be held Saturday, March 10, at the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center. The event will be titled “A Night in Rio” and will showcase Samba dancers, flamboyant festivities, and a beautiful Latin Jazz trio. Cavazos says that she’s expecting about 400 attendees but is hoping for even more.

“The Rio idea came about last year talking to Ananda Mirilli and how she’s a Brazilian and a strong advocate for Latinos,” Cavazos tells Madison365. “We had a good conversation about how diverse the Latino diaspora is. And I thought that this event was going to be in March and a little bit after Carnival and all of these celebrations that are in Latino countries … it just made sense.”

The event will feature Samba no Pé, a solo dance generally associated with Brazilian carnival. “It’s a form of Samba where the women have the feathers and we’re going to have a dance group coming from Milwaukee who will be performing,” she says.

The keynote speaker at the event will be Elvis Cordova, the former Deputy Under Secretary for the Marketing and Regulatory Programs Mission Area at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“He has a very interesting story. His parents were immigrants. He graduated from Harvard. He has his own business and he will be talking about how this community is changing the economic tapestry of our nation,” Cavazos says.

Founded in 2003, the Latino Chamber of Commerce of Dane County represents the Latino and non-Latino business community in the greater Madison and surrounding cities and assists and promotes the interests of its members and community through advocacy and programs that make an overall impact on Dane County’s economic growth. Every year, they host the Latino Business Excellence Awards to recognize entrepreneurs and businesses who are doing amazing things in the community and beyond.

“The Latino Business Excellence Awards is also a time to celebrate our Latino businesses and talk about the impact of Latinos here in Madison and in south-central Wisconsin,” Cavazos says, “We can talk about how we’re doing wonderful things and how we’re growing and how it’s not just about the start-ups, but it’s about people who have been around a long time who are doing magnificent things that are really impacting economic development and how others see us. That’s what the Latino Excellence Business Awards are all about.”

The Latino Chamber of Commerce of Dane County is excited to celebrate individuals and businesses at the Latino Business Excellence Awards including the Catalyst Award, which is the Chamber’s Latina Entrepreneur Recognition. This year the award will go to Eugenia Podesta, co-founder of Synergy Coworking.

“She’s a business owner that is helping to develop other business,” Cavazos says. “She really fits that mold to empower other Latinos and non-Latinos to look at entrepreneurship as a way to express themselves or to build their careers.”

The Entrepreneur of the Year will go to Dr. Nestor Rodriguez, the medical director at Carbon World Health, a medically-supervised spa and fitness facility.

“He’s doing some really cool things. He’s really trying to break the mold on how people see working out and how to invest in yourself personally,” Cavazos says. “He has the spa. He has the wellness. He has a lot of different components, and he’s a full-time doctor. So we want to recognize him for his dedication not only to his trade but as an invested entrepreneur.”

The Chamber’s Legacy Award, an award that goes to a Latino Chamber member that has had an impact on the community and has grown, will go to Amigo Construction. The Corporate Impact Award will be presented to Madison Gas & Electric. “They’ve been supporting the Chamber from the very beginning, not just with the human capital and the volunteers but with financial support to help our businesses grow,” Cavazos says. “They continue to invest in the community and helping start-ups and business owners prosper, so we want to recognize them and their investment in the community.”

Cavazos says that she’s happy about how the Latino Chamber’s membership and partners – a diverse mixture of small business owners, corporate representatives, and government leaders – continues to grow. She adds that the Chamber has big things on the horizon.

“In June, when we have our annual membership meeting we are going to be putting forth the votes for us to become a regional chamber,” she says. “We’ve been growing outside of the geographic Dane County area. We have people come from all over as far as two hours away. We want to keep our base here in Fitchburg, but we really want to build the respect for Latino businesses geographically and through advocacy.”

In the meantime, she’s hoping for a big crowd at the Latino Business Excellence Awards. There is still time to get tickets.

“This event is for everybody,” she says. “Half of our membership is Latino and the other half is non-Latino. We’re not homogeneous by any means. And even within our Latinos, we’re multicultural and multi-racial. We’re a melting pot.

“This event is a great introduction to what we do at the Latino Chamber and anybody who knows me, knows that I like to have fun,” she adds. “It’s usually all business, but sometimes we have to unwind and have fun. This event is gonna be a lot of fun.”

For more information about the Latino Chamber’s Latino Business Excellence Awards, click here.