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Why isn’t there a better vodka out there so that people aren’t train wrecks the next day? VELO Vodka is the solution for a new generation of vodka drinkers.
-Colleen & Riley Eyges

We’ve had many entrepreneurs on the show, but never a mother/daughter duo! Meet Colleen and Riley Eyges, founders of VELO Vodka www.velovodka.com. A single mom for decades, Colleen raised her daughter to be strong and independent. Their chemistry in this interview reflects what makes their partnership work: “The secret to my success is grit and determination, says Colleen. For Riley, it is being relentless.” Finally launched in August of 2021 after being forced to wait out the pandemic, the idea for creating a new kind of vodka was planted when the two met a waitress who was clearly hungover from partying the night before. Colleen started researching existing brands and found a hole that a new vodka could thrive in. Concocted at a local distillery in South Boston after 17 iterations, VELO Vodka is specially made to provide a super smooth and refreshing taste; plus, it’s corn-based, which makes it Gluten-free. Targeted toward women 21-55, it took six months to find a distributor, and today, the brand can be found in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. With over 600 accounts, including Total Wines, Whole Foods, and several Marriott and Hilton properties, VELO Vodka is growing by leaps and bounds, thanks to the belief that women love to support women-owned businesses. Says Colleen, “When I get up at 6:30 in the morning, the first thing I do is look at our sales reports from the night before, and very often, that news determines my mood for the day.” Yes, there have been obstacles for this mother/daughter duo, but they believe that there are lessons to be learned in both failure and success. Colleen and Riley will not stop until VELO Vodka is a household name. For 23 minutes of the kind of entrepreneurial advice you need to succeed, just hit that download button! @velovodka #entrepreneur #mother #daughter #thestorybehindhersuccess

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You can be the best leader EVER, but who can do anything on their own? You need a village.
-Vanessa Calderon-Rosado, PhD

Welcome to the story of Vanessa Calderon-Rosado, a trailblazing Latina with a passion for social justice and for creating community. Born and raised in Puerto Rico, she’s got a PhD in public policy and has proudly served as CEO of Inquilinos Boricuas en Accion (IBA) www.ibaboston.org for the past 20+ years. One of the largest and most successful Latina-led non-profits in our country, IBA is a national model of economic development with a mission to change lives by providing high-quality, affordable housing, educational programs, and exposure to the arts. In this interview, Vanessa shares the pride she feels when she sees people’s lives transformed by the services IBA provides. Shelter is more than a roof over someone’s head, says Vanessa. “It’s about building vibrant, safe, healthy communities where people can thrive.” Raised in San Juan in a loving but strict household, Vanessa and her older brother were surrounded by a huge extended family that included grandparents, aunts, uncles, and lots of cousins. Her mother was a nurse, and her dad owned car dealerships. The values her parents instilled revolved around the importance of hard work and the morale obligation to give back. Vanessa came stateside to receive her graduate degree from UMASS and her doctorate from Cambridge College thirty-two years ago and never left. The mother of two sons, Vanessa says that her greatest work has been as a parent. “Motherhood is not for everyone, but it is for me. A good life is leaving behind seeds that will continue to grow.” As a trailblazer and social justice champion, Vanessa stands on the shoulders of the many women who have come before her. “I need to do this work,” says Vanessa, “it keeps me going.” For 23 minutes of non-stop inspiration, just hit that download button. #socialjustice #trailblazer #shelter #puertorico #latina

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Success is 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration. I was never the most talented. I was never the smartest, but I was always willing to do the work. -Alison Quandt Westgate

We’re on the road this week! This interview with Alison Quandt Westgate was recorded at the Costello Athletic Center at UMASS Lowell www.goriverhawks.com soon after the school’s student-athletes arrived back on campus. Known to her friends and colleagues as “Q” Alison is a former women’s ice hockey champion and goalie coach. Off the ice, she’s made a career for herself working in college athletics, first at her alma mater #bostoncollege and now at UMASS/Lowell as the Associate Athletic Director for Student Athlete Excellence. A champion for women’s sports, she’s a true believer in the transforming power sports can have on a person. Born and raised just outside of Boston, Alison grew up in a household full of sports lovers. Pond hockey was the game of choice in her neighborhood full of boys, so they put her in goal. Scrappy by nature, Alison says the key ingredient to her early success as an athlete was fearlessness: “I wasn’t afraid to get down and dirty, to muck it up.” A stand-out player in high school, she was recruited by Boston College and skated with the women’s hockey team throughout her college experience, winning countless awards and being named the 2006 Beanpot Tournament’s outstanding goaltender. Her rich experience as an athlete has been a beacon for her philosophy as she guides student-athletes: “I lead by example,” says Alison. “I will never ask anyone to do something I would not do myself. I may not be very vocal about it, but you will see me walking the walk every day.” In her role at At UMASS/Lowell Alison oversees everything that touches a student athlete’s daily life. 37% of the school’s population are first-generation college students. “They grind,” says Alison. “They work for every single win and there is no replacement for hard work.” For 23 minutes of athletic inspiration, just hit that download button. #sports #womensicehockey #perseverence #studentathlete