Chitra Kanagaraj and Saravana Pat Bhava grew up in the same neighborhood of Chennai, India, which is on the eastern coast of the country. Chennai is also the birthplace of Padma Lakshmi; Indra Nooyi, chair and chief executive officer of Pepsi; as well as U.S. Rep. Castor’s friend and colleague, U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, who represents Seattle, Washington, in the Congress. 

Like many, many who set their sights after visiting our beautiful region, Chitra and Pat came to Tampa Bay for a family visit and vacation, and quickly made the decision to call it home and raise their daughter, Shrisha, then age 3. One day, when it was Pat’s turn to pick up Shrisha from school, he ended up with the wrong child in his car. Pat’s initial reaction was to find out who’s to blame, but then in true entrepreneurship spirit, quickly pivoted towards a solution and Pikmykid was founded in 2015. It aims to ease the most anxious part of the day for teachers and administrators as they hope and pray nothing goes wrong. It has evolved and grown to manage many other aspects of school safety. Today it is headquartered in Tampa, with 70 employees locally and worldwide, and used by 7,000 schools, used in all 50 states and used in seven countries outside of the United States.

Chitra and Pat’s journey to becoming a powerhouse couple has been a winding road and each has lifted each other along the way towards entrepreneurship. Pat spent nearly 13 years in the Indian Navy as a fighter pilot and deep-sea diver before retiring in 2006. He then launched several businesses in a variety of sectors, including logistics, real estate and quick-service restaurant franchising, while Chitra enjoyed a successful career as a corporate engineer. They both hold a master’s in business administration, Chitra receiving hers from the University of South Florida (USF). And together, they make part of the inaugural entrepreneurial cohort out of USF Connect, which supports entrepreneurs by providing resources for business development and technology commercialization.

Today, they work together leading Pikmykid, which has seen only growth since its founding. Chitra is also the current president of TIE Tampa Bay, a chapter of TiE, a nonprofit welcoming and inspiring global entrepreneurs through an emphasis on five pillars – mentoring, networking, education, incubating and funding. Pat thrives on the independent thinking that many times characterizes entrepreneurs, which fosters innovation and drives adaptability when faced with setbacks. Shrisha eventually got in the right car and 10 years later, will soon graduate college. Support for each other, solution-seekers, growth mindset – Chitra and Pat expand what the American Dream means.  

----

We all have our passions to pursue, but we also carry not only the privilege but the obligation to examine and understand the norms of conduct within our professions. Applying ethics helps keep us one step ahead of evolving spaces, such as Artificial Intelligence, by minimizing harms and maximizing outside of its business case or legal parameters. As a professor of Applied Ethics at St. Petersburg College, Dr. Saad Maklad guides students on a detour from their academic tracks to explore big questions of right and wrong. He challenges them to expand their critical thinking, asking who and what is affected by decisions, as they prepare for futures in leadership roles. He also teaches organizational behavior as a graduate professor at St. Leo University.

Dr. Maklad was born in the city of Sweida, in Southern Syria, and raised in the Druze Community, a peaceful minority that values education, coexistence and service to others. He grew up in a family of six sisters and one brother. From a young age, he was fascinated with the United States, learning about it through movies, books and American news. He recalls feeling as if his body was in Syria but his mind was already in the United States. His father owned a building materials business that provided well for his family, but the outbreak of war in 2011 forced the business to close. That upheaval also threatened to close the door on Dr. Maklad’s own dream of studying in the United States. He persevered, completing a bachelor’s degree in business administration at Arab International University, and then at age 20 traveled to Florida to study English at Eckerd College. He went on to earn a master’s in business administration from Everest University, worked in research analysis in Miami, Fla., and ultimately achieved his doctorate’s degree in Leadership and Organizational Change from Walden University. His doctoral research gave voice to frontline employees serving under unethical leadership. Through in-depth interviews, he found that leaders too often “sway the truth” to protect themselves, leaving workers to shoulder the consequences. His study revealed the essential role of honesty, fairness, accountability, and humility in leadership, not only for organizational success, but also for protecting the dignity of employees and driving positive social change in communities.

Saad, whose name means “happiness” in Arabic, often reflects that when one door has closed in his life, patience and perseverance opened others. He was first rejected from a U.S. university, but applied again and again. In 2011, as the U.S. Embassy in Damascus was under attack, he received his visa interview and approval one day before the embassy permanently shut down in 2012. In 2019, Dr. Maklad returned to Syria to marry Yara. While working to bring her to the United States, they welcomed their first child, Ahmad, in 2020, the year the pandemic shut down travel. It would be another two years before his family could reunite with him in Tampa, where they later welcomed their second child, Adam. Even today, as the war continues, his thoughts remain with his family still in Syria and with his hometown of Sweida, which has suffered violence and attacks. He remembers speaking to his wife over the phone with bombs echoing in the background.

Today, Dr. Maklad is living his American Dream. Now a proud U.S. citizen, he enjoys watching American football with his boys, impacting lives one student at a time, and hopes to use his training and studies in government to make an even bigger impact in the United States or for his Druze community in Syria.

----

Children often have dreams of what they will be when they grow up. Ideas are sparked by their favorite movie, or perhaps out of admiration for their parents’ professions. For Dr. Daniel Plasencia, his story begins in Western Cuba when he came down with a bad throat infection, presumably tonsillitis. He saw a ‘country’ Cuban doctor who gave him medicine that almost immediately relieved his pain. It was then and there that Dr. Plasencia was so inspired by the doctor and decided he wanted to help others feel their best too.

Dr. Plasencia was born in Pinar del Río, Cuba, to his mother Carmen and father Jose. The Plasencia’s family history is rooted in the Cuban tobacco industry. He and his family lived in Cuba until 1967. His hardworking parents cared deeply about their children and their wellbeing. While growing up, Dr. Plasencia was very close with his older sister, Dania, and describes their relationship like an ‘oil and vinegar’ pairing. To this day, they live only a few minutes from each other and continue to be a person one another can count on.

Following the 1959 revolution in Cuba, establishing the Castro regime, Dr. Plasencia’s family began to hope for a better life in the United States. Approaching his 15th birthday, Dr. Plasencia was required to serve in the military, but his uncle and sister worked in tandem to secure the necessary legal documents and funding for a move to Spain. Dania would take Dr. Plasencia on the local bus at 6 a.m. to Habana, the American Embassy and the Spanish Embassy to fill out paperwork in hopes of obtaining a passport. It took three years for the legal process to conclude so Dr. Plasencia could safely relocate to Madrid, Spain. He then would spend the next several months filling out paperwork to relocate the rest of his family to the United States. While in Spain, Dr. Plasencia’s family gave him any money they could to pay for rent, food and paperwork to ensure their family could pursue the American Dream. After four months, Dr. Plasencia and his family were able to safely and securely settle in Tampa, Florida. 

Knowing little to no English, Dr. Plasencia tested into 10th grade at Hillsborough High School. Not needing to repeat any grades, Dr. Plasencia continued to succeed at math and science courses as his sights were still set on becoming a doctor; but in his English courses, it became apparent Dr. Plasencia needed guidance to succeed. In 1967, Hillsborough High School unveiled their Remedial English course to serve the large Cuban, Venezuelan and other students of Hispanic dissent population. He felt comfortable in this new class, surrounded by students who had similar lived experiences as his own, and the teacher, Mrs. Luis, assisted students tremendously, as she also spoke Spanish. Mrs. Luis saw Dr. Plasencia was struggling with his reading and with her help, he was able to learn English and graduate high school on time. To this day, Dr. Plasencia credits her as part of his journey to becoming a doctor.

Once Dr. Plasencia graduated, he wanted to continue his education by attending medical school, but at the time his grades weren’t quite there for acceptance into a U.S. school and he did not want to burden his family with payments. Dr. Plasencia’s friends suggested he go back to Spain where higher education was more affordable and accessible. He took an entrance exam at University of Santiago de Compostela in the Northern part of Spain where he successfully tested out of pre-med and was able to immediately begin medical school at only 18 years old. As his friends and family bid him farewell at the airport, that is where Dr. Plasencia met his wife, Nilda. He finished medical school in five years and the following year, passed the Spain boards to become a certified doctor. While he appreciated his time in Spain, he longed to be back with his family and practice medicine in the United States. Dr. Plasencia enrolled in the University of Miami for six months to take a specialized course that would officially certify him as an American doctor. As a resident at the University of Florida Department of Pediatrics, he quickly moved up in the ranks and became Chief Resident and was accepted as a Fellow in Critical Care Medicine and Pediatric Critical Care. 

Dr. Plasencia then came back home to Tampa to work at St. Joseph’s Hospital. In 1982, he was the only Intensive Care Physician in Tampa and established the Pediatric ICU at the hospital. He mobilized it to bring care to children in all parts of the Tampa area. Dr. Plasencia was known as a jack-of-all-trades at the hospital and tried to learn every skill he could so he could provide high-quality care to children. To learn these skills, he would pick up extra shifts so his colleagues could spend time with their families and have a break from work. Dr. Plasencia worked in the St. Joseph’s Pediatric ICU for 20 years and with this extensive experience, he was able to open the Chronic Complex Clinic at St. Jospeh’s Children’s Hospital to give kids a medical home, so they did not have to bounce around various emergency rooms and struggle financially.

Dr. Plasencia took his expertise and the medical home model to Tallahassee, Fla., and Capitol Hill in Washington D.C.to educate lawmakers on the success of his clinic. Within a year of opening the clinic, there were more than 100 patients and since, now care for more than an estimated 1,600 annually, serving only primarily children who rely on Medicaid. 

Dr. Plasencia’s lobbying worked on Capitol Hill and joined me in drafting and advancing the bipartisan Advancing Care for Exceptional Kids Act (ACE Kids Act) aimed at improving how care is delivered to America’s medically fragile children. A model that started in Tampa, Fla., of providing a medical home for sick kids with chronic and complex illnesses so that parents can focus on their little ones rather than stress over the administrative burden of medical billing was brought nationwide. We persisted and after six Congresses, the ACE Kids Act was signed into federal law in 2019.

Thanks to his family’s sacrifices and advocacy for him and his sister to live better lives, his teacher Mrs. Luis for teaching him English and Dr. Plasencia’s perseverance to achieve his goals, he not only has taken part in the American Dream, but makes the American Dream of a healthy, successful life achievable for every single one of his patients. Dr. Plasencia is retired but he and his sister devote much of their time to the Cuban Civic Club in Town ‘n Country, the go-to venue for “quinceañeras” and serves as overflow event space for nearby schools. Dr. Plasencia and his wife have three kids, Lina Maria, Carmen María and Daniel José II.

----

Downtown St. Petersburg is trendy, walkable and full of energy, and in 2017 embraced the arepa scene when Damary Schleede opened 11 Chicks Yummy Creation, and now also owned by her partner Carlos Becerra, both from Venezuela. Arepas are flatbread dishes which can be grilled, baked or fried – a staple of both Colombian and Venezuelan cuisine. They can be filled with a variety of ingredients, such as shredded beef, cheese, chicken, or plantains, and each region has its own version. 

Opening a business was Damary’s first job and she has only known entrepreneurship since moving from Venezuela to St. Petersburg in 2015. Entrepreneurship is part of the immigrant profile in the United States – they launch more businesses and create jobs for our region. One recent, wide-ranging MIT study found that per capita, immigrants are about 80 percent more likely to start a business, compared to U.S.-born citizens, and suggests that immigrants act more as ‘job creators’ than ‘job takers.’ Moreover, the same study found that immigrants start more businesses across the board – more small, medium-sized and large businesses – and they are not just subsistence businesses, they are all kinds of businesses. 

Damary came to study English as part of the corporate job she held with an international company in Venezuela. Carlos was an engineer and moved to the United States in 2018. Damary puts her background in business administration and love of culinary to use in the back of the house, and Carlos offers a friendly welcome to customers at the front of the house. Here in the United States, they say they have felt welcomed and supported; more importantly, they are thankful for the peace of mind they are able to live with here as they explain the pervasive system and forced corruption in Venezuela affects the daily lives of its citizens through extortion, bribery and the decay of public services. 

11 Chicks was named after the nearly all-female family of Damary’s generation, her six sisters and cousins. Her brother broke the streak, and as an offshoot of the success 11 Chicks, last year, Damary’s sister and brother opened  Chick 1 Bro Cafe Bistro in nearby Gulfport, Pinellas. 

Damary started her concept on the side of a gas station in Pinellas County selling empanadas, which served as a testing kitchen of what customers want and as a result, 11 Chicks is a fusion concept that takes Latin flavors to the next level. As Damary says, God prepares you for everything, her stint at the gas station prepared her for a bustling, established business. 11 Chicks has grown to cater to Latin American players of the Tampa Bay Rays as well as Latin American players of the away team. Today, expansion plans are underway that will double its current space and employees. 

Damary and Carlos have brought another Venezuelan popularity to the region:  Kickingball, a hybrid of baseball and football where players kick a rubber ball instead of batting it. Kickingball is predominately a female sport and there is a team in every school and university in Venezuela. St. Pete’s Elite team is open to everyone, but it’s a piece of home for them and other Venezuelans in the area. They play leagues from all over the state, and there are some 40 kickingball teams through the United States. Carlos serves as the team’s coach. 

Damary and Carlos epitomize the core of the American Dream, rooted in hard work and the freedom to create opportunity.

----

An open mind and an open heart can be your guide to a road less traveled, just ask Yohanna Santos, who owns Corona Coffee Shop in Tampa with her husband, Edwin Martinez. 

Born in El Factor, Dominican Republic, during grade school, Yohanna and her mother and sisters moved to Puerto Rico for about 10 years, then to Tampa in 1999 at age 17. Some of her friends went into nursing and so did she, attending Hillsborough Community College, which led her to a 10-year career as an OB/GYN nurse. She left it after suffering a late pregnancy loss of her twins, a tragedy too terrible to bear in the midst of welcoming life. 

She had her first stint as a restaurant owner when she went to Puerto Rico for a year and the entrepreneurship bug stuck. She came back to Tampa and was asked by a friend who recently opened a downtown hotel to help manage housekeeping. With no housekeeping background, she took a leap and logged five years as supervisor. After a happenstance encounter with a developer, her sights were once again set on owning a restaurant. Without the finance for the upfront cost needed to open a restaurant – where Flan Factory is currently located – she made a deal to completely fix and renovate the then-dilapidated space on her own. With no rebuilding experience, she (again) took a leap and worked on the project for more than a year. But the sale of Corona Coffee Shop then caught her attention. It was a special place for her – Corona Coffee Shop was her mother’s first job when moving to Tampa as well as a workplace for several of her family members. Yohanna would also help out from time to time. So just after the pandemic started, in June 2020, Yohanna took a (final) leap and took over Corona Coffee Shop. Others took the leap with her when her former hotel boss helped finance the purchase, and today, Corona Coffee Shop caters for the hotel. 

What was a tough era for many restaurants, Yohanna says customers were loyal to Corona Coffee Shop during the pandemic and the financial loss was minimal. Yohanna says the scariest time as a small business owner was actually last fall after back-to-back hurricanes hit our area and Corona Coffee Shop closed for 10 days – even when the lights came back on, much of her damaged equipment didn’t. In addition, what has really cut into her bottom line is managing the inflation from the past year for equipment and food purchases. But Yohanna, always an open person, happened to open an email about small business assistance from the University of South Florida Small Business Development Center and was able to apply for SBA funds, which held her over at a time when she was on the brink. USF SBDC staff has since kept tabs on Corona Coffee Shop, sharing resources and opportunities, including Door Dash’s Dasher Relief Funds for small businesses. Hot off the press:  Yohanna and Edwin recently got news that they won a $10,000 grant!

Yohanna and Edwin, also from the Dominican Republic, married in 2020, become partners in business and in life, expanding their family into a blended one. She says while she considers herself a positive person, Edwin inspires optimism. Her love of food and serving others is rooted in her time with her grandmother, Julia Maria, who cooked in huge “calderónes,” or cauldrons intended for not just family meals but to distribute among the neighbors. Yohanna was raised by her grandmother in the Dominican Republic while her parents worked in the states, and her grandmother also taught her to stay open to learning and embracing new opportunities. Today, she and Edwin have embraced the American Dream with their sights sets on expanding their restaurant concept.