We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Hazel a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hazel, what’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

From my personal experiences during childhood and witnessing the transformative power of education, my deep-seated passion has always been to facilitate access to education, particularly for individuals in underprivileged communities and sectors.

When I became injured at work and was looking for assistance; I became aware of how tangled the system is to get the help I needed, especially for people whose English is not their native language and adults returning to school years after they left high school.

This motivated me to start my own business where we help injured workers navigate the available resources that are available to them and that are required for them to move on to better jobs.

As I continued to grow both personally and professionally, I became increasingly aware of the numerous individuals who could benefit from learning visualization and empowering skills, that helped me create the life of my dreams, scale my business and have an impact in the world. This led to founding my non-profit. At the nonprofit, we have a program that specializes in providing children with the tools they need to learn the skills to create a better future for themselves. By doing this and working for this – my goal is to reduce poverty, mass incarceration, and violence against women. I know a change is possible, as I am proof of what the right mindset and education can do.

My goal is to make an impact through the non-profit and the programs we have and that will end poverty, mass incarceration, and violence against women. Witnessing firsthand the transformative effects of the right mindset and education can improve a life, I firmly believe that this change is not only possible but also attainable.

I am living proof of the potential in a person when provided with the necessary tools and opportunities for growth and development.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I grew up in a poor and dangerous neighborhood in downtown Los Angeles, that was the world I knew. My parents were in and out of the judicial system growing up. We all struggled. I didn’t finish high school, and started working when I was kicked out in my teens, I was 30 years old when I finally received my high school diploma. At that point, I had some people in my life (my bosses) who pushed me, and they kept pushing me to further my education. They believed in me, and they made me believe in myself. I always refer to them as my Pushy Angels. Because I had someone that kept nudging me. I want to create a movement of Pushy Angels that will mentor and guide others to reach their fullest potential, and that is where I come in with my nonprofit. We have a program that focuses on cognitive psychology, SEL, and mindfulness from an early age – providing the tools so the kids and their families can visualize a better life. And when I am invited to speak at events or retreats, I share my story and I encourage them to become Pushy Angels.

I was recently awarded the 2023 Global Social Impact Award Recipient from the Entrepreneurs Organization for my work, my passion, and my mission to lift the tide and better the world.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

Starting a non-profit is not easy, and I was able to set up a plan and reach out to my network to collect donations, and we are also pursuing grants. We had our first annual fundraiser last summer, and that put us more on the map as we were able to share more of our story and the work we are doing.

We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.

The program we offer through our nonprofit we call “Steps to Becoming a Superhero”, and that was a program developed over the years by a fellow EO (Entrepreneurs Organization) member. We were already sharing a passion to better the lives of impoverished communities, and we both knew how important education and access to education are – when she learned about the nonprofit and our mission. She kindly donated her program to us. As of now, we have it in schools in Uganda, Mexico, Guatemala, Colombia, and Puerto Rico – and we have a pilot program through LAUSD with the Black Achievement program. We also have champions in Brazil and Germany.

I am grateful to have Carolina with us, her passion and dedication to our mission are essential.

Contact Info:

• Website: hightideglobal.org
• Instagram: @hightideglobal_2032
• Facebook: facebook.com/HighTideGlobal
• Linkedin: hazelortega