MRS IDALIA DEL CARMEN MAYORGA RUIZ, MICROCREDIT PROGRAM
God will provide
The relationship of Mrs. Idalia del Carmen Mayorga Ruiz with the Foundation has become a story that transcends, a mutual support that has made her grow with her family. At age 40 she is married and has four children, being able to combine all her daily tasks with the study and consolidation of her famous restaurant “El Shadday”. Right next to this place, her husband Arnulfo Reyes has a mechanic shop, generating an economic stability between them for which they have worked hard. Although the growth of the mechanic shop has been independent of FUNDAP, both thank the work of the Foundation, because the learning has been joint.
In fact, the future is hopeful for all her family, but in 2011 she was away from the restoration, as she was driving a bus carrying children to school. After being informed by a neighbor and always thinking about the good of her loved ones, Mrs. Idalia entered the project of Communal Banks and obtained a credit of Q.500.00, that she used to buy some bus parts. That first contact was key in her development because she had always dreamed of having a place of her own and working on what she was best at: cooking.
So, in 2012 she began with a small dining room at the entrance to the old garita of La Esperanza, renting a small room. Previously she had already sold snacks at a sawmill, conquering the palate of the workers with her culinary talent, an activity that was gaining her experience. Opening Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the dining room “El Shadday” continued thanks to coffee, “churrasquitos”, pupusas and roasted chicken, although she was soon including hamburgers and cakes, all while she continued taking children to their schools. She says that “at first I did not even know how to serve customers, they helped me,” but her momentum was as big as her smile, so she never stopped believing in her project.
“Life smiled at them because “El Shadday”
began to open from Monday to Sunday“
The support of her family has been fundamental through this time, especially her children who got involved from the beginning, because it is not easy to see how a woman grows so much with her business. Mrs. Idalia has always been a restless and hardworking person, but there came a moment where she had to take stock, since her fantastic work as a mother joined tasks like running the restaurant, driving the bus and selling spare parts, so she had to abandon the latter and focus on her dining room.
It was in the year 2014 and while the restaurant continued to thrive when it came to know the MBA project and she attended talks that fueled her motivation. She finally joined in March 2015, starting her training with great interest and actively participating. Life smiled at them because “El Shadday”, that “little dining room” that Mrs. Idalia says, began to open from Monday to Sunday. However, customers asked for invoices and had to put everything in order with the help of this MBA project from which they received Q.1500.00 to be able to register with SAT, process their invoices, and use the other part of the money to improve the image of their business. At this point in the story Adrián Valiente enters, a FUNDAP volunteer who was in charge of making the image change for the restaurant, from aesthetics to corporate design of the same, reflected in the letter and logo.
In July of 2015 the premises already were restored are inaugurated and, quickly, these changes were reflected in an increase of sales. Motivated by the increase in her profits, Mrs. Idalia was offered a short course in gastronomy at the Technical Center of FUNDAP, in which she decided to enroll. As she herself says “every year I set new goals for myself”, so she signed up again in another cooking course for 2016 and continued the second year of MBA.
At the moment she is the president of its group of Communal Banks, called “Railroad of Los Altos”, but she still has her plans to finish the Diploma of Kitchen and to support to her daughter, Carmen, to continue her university studies. Meanwhile, “El Shadday” will continue to grow with more staff and Mrs. Idalia hopes to have a Gourmet Space to delight her customers with new recipes, always providing best service and a contagious smile. “God will provide,” she says, but no one doubts a future full of success and hope thanks to her work.
