We recently connected with Dr. Ana Serrano and have shared our conversation below.
Dr. Ana , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Parents can play a significant role in affecting how our lives and careers turn out – and so we think it’s important to look back and have conversations about what our parents did that affected us positive (or negatively) so that we can learn from the billions of experiences in each generation. What’s something you feel your parents did right that impacted you positively.
My stepdad and mom taught me the importance of not giving up, and to persevere no matter the obstacles. My mom was always the top salesperson in any business she was a part of and won many awards. After she and my stepdad divorced, she took a class learning how to do silk flower arrangements. My mom then made that into a business and was able to support herself and my brother with that business. My mom was a determined woman and would sell her flowers at swapmeets, furniture stores, and even opened her own store. I learned that same determination, and never give up attitude, which has helped me through some very tough times with my nonprofit. There were good years and bad years, but I chose to continue believing and knowing that things would get better, and they always did.
Dr. Ana , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I came to the United States when I was 2 1/2, I was born in Mexico City Mexico. My mom immigrated me when I was young, and when I joined the Army Reserves I became a U.S. Citizen. I retired from the Army Reserves after 20 years of service in 2019. I met my husband in 1979 when I attended school for the military, my ex-husband was in the Navy. After we both finished school for the military, he was sent to Virginia and I was sent back home. My ex began courting me soon after, and within 6 months I moved to Virginia to marry him. I had no idea he was abusive, and although the abuse was not severe at first, it escalated after he got out of the Navy and we moved to Indiana where he was from. The emotional and verbal abuse took a toll on me as did the physical abuse, and early in our marriage, he beat me so bad he sent me to the hospital. But even then I did not leave him, and stayed for another 11 years because he promised he would no longer hurt me, but this turned out to be a lie and the physical, emotional, and verbal abuse continued for the next 11 years. In 1990 the Navy sent my ex to Camp Pendelton in Oceanside Ca. When I finally decided to leave my ex, my boys were 7 and 3, I did not want them to grow up to be abusers. Being a single mom is not easy, but my boys and I managed. Soon after my divorce, my ex-husband moved back to Indiana so my sons did not see much of their father. For the next 10 years, God healed me from the abuse I suffered at the hand of my ex-husband. Then in 1997 I bought my house and began a new job as a crisis counselor at a local nonprofit. My job was to accompany abused Latinas to the court and help them obtain restraining orders, then in six follow sessions to convince them to leave their abusive relationship, of course, that never happened. But I learned a lot and enjoyed working with the women. When the funds ran out for that program there was no more job, but the women were still looking for me and asking for my help. So, one day I got on my knees and asked God what he wanted me to do, so he told me to start my own nonprofit. So, I did and here I am 22 years later.
On May 5, 2023, God’s Heart Ministry/Las Valientes celebrated 22 years of service to the community with a quinceanera for 8 women who had left their abusive relationship but never had their quince. We throw them a party to celebrate our anniversary. Our next quinceanera will be in 2026 when we celebrate 25 years of service to the community. For the past 22 years, we have been helping men and women with legal issues. From obtaining restraining orders to document preparation for divorce, custody, and child support. We provide supervised visits and offer parenting and anger management classes. We hope to start offering court accompaniment this coming October to help those needing or wanting someone to go to court with them so they do not go alone.
I believe what sets us apart from other nonprofits is the fact that the women who work with us have been abused, and have the life experience needed to help women make the decision to leave their abusive relationship. Also, we are the only nonprofit in North County San Diego that takes a woman by the hand and walks her through the legal system, which can be very intimidating and scary. Over the years we have helped countless women obtain the legal services they need as they maneuver through the legal system. As well, my staff and I help our clients understand the legal system, since many of our clients are from Latin American countries and do not speak the English languish, it is important they understand the system they are dealing with. We also help our clients obtain legal representation should they need an attorney to help them with their cases. And if they qualify for their legal documents so they can be legal here in California, we work with an immigration attorney who helps them obtain their legal documents.
I am most proud of the fact that after 22 years God’s Heart Ministry/Las Valientes is still around. I still can’t believe that the nonprofit has been around for so long, there were moments I wanted to give up and throw in the towel, but God would not let me. I just couldn’t give up, and I was determined to keep the nonprofit going. It was the women I served who taught me and helped me to keep on going. It is because of them that I learned so much about the law and how the court worked. They had a need and I had a solution, I simply helped them walk through the system so they could obtain the justice they were seeking.
The main thing I desire potential clients to know is that we are here to help you, that we will take you by the hand and help you, we will be by your side for as long as you want us to be. But I also want potential clients to know that they are women of valor and courage, and if they truly want to leave their abusive relationship, they can and if they need help to do so, we are here to help them, they just need to give us a call.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
In 2009 while I was raising up the nonprofit, I decided to rejoin the Army Reserves and finish my Army career. In 2011 the Army sent me to Washington State for a year with my unit. When I left, I thought I had left my nonprofit in capable hands, since I had hired a woman to help me run the nonprofit. But instead of helping me, after about 5 months this woman began stealing clients and money from me and the nonprofit. My accountant would call me to let me know, and from my own pay, I would send money so my secretary could be paid. When I would call this woman she would simply tell me that things were slow. When I returned home, I immediately fired this woman and never heard from her again. I then began the process of starting over and bringing funds into the nonprofit once again, as well as hiring someone else to help me. In 2012 I hired Leticia who has been with me for the last 12 years and is now the assistant director of the nonprofit. Then in 2016, the Army once again called me to duty and I was sent to Germany for 10 months. I again left the nonprofit in the capable hands of Leticia and another woman who I had hired. But the same thing happened again the woman who was supposed to help Leticia began stealing clients and money and went so far as to tell people she was the owner of the nonprofit. While in Germany I had to do a quick meeting and fired her. When I returned from Germany, I again had to start all over again. But despite having to start anew for a second time, I had Leticia to help me, and together with the support of friends and family, I began again. Since 2017 the nonprofit slowly began to grow, and today God’s Heart Ministry/Las Valientes is a thriving and growing nonprofit helping our community.
How did you build your audience on social media?
I began using social media about 15 years ago. I started out simply posting about what was happening in the nonprofit as well as posting inspirational quotes. I would also ask friends and business associates to like my page and my posts. I also began attending classes about using Facebook and how to use hashtags. As I began using those hashtags, and learned more about how to use Facebook, my following began to grow. I learned a lot from classes about using Facebook and found out it was ok to like my own posts and share them on other pages. During this time many different pages began inviting me to like them, and we began to like each other’s page which then drew more likes and people joining my page. At one time we found out about having clients leave a review of the services we provided to them on Facebook, which in turn helped grow our following. Over the years I have continued to use hashtags, learn more about using Facebook, and put what I learned into practice. Several years ago, I began using Instagram and LinkedIn. Again, I posted inspirational quotes and events that the nonprofit was hosting. A year ago a business acquaintance began helping us build our Instagram page, she taught us how to post several times a day based on algorithms. Although new to me, I saw our following grow, the same is true for our LinkedIn page.
I believe the success of our social media comes from consistency, whether it is to post daily or weekly I think matters little, the most important thing is to post and set a schedule for posting. For example, I do a Facebook like every Thursday, I choose a topic that concerns family law, or choosing to leave your abusive relationship, and sometimes I ask one of the attorneys to come and do a Facebook like about a relevant topic. Finally, whether it is my personal Facebook page or my nonprofit page, I leave out a lot of personal pictures. For example, I don’t post about my personal life, unless it is something that will help the nonprofit, such as when I graduated with my Doctorate Degree, but other than that I leave my personal life out of my social media, and that helps keep things simple. The focus of my social media pages, whether Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn, is the nonprofit and what is happening in the nonprofit.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.lasvalientes.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lasvalientes2001/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LasValientes and https://www.facebook.com/lasvalientesenespanol/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ana-serrano-lasvalientes/
Image Credits
Miguel Sanchez Photography