By Reynaldo Mena
Her voice exudes confidence, security, but also empathy. I confess that I’m not very familiar with fundraising processes, so she will have to be my interviewer and my teacher. She laughs.
Alexia Valencia has become a person of action, known in business circles where she promotes fundraising campaigns primarily for non-profit companies. It comes from her heart. With her financial background and connections, she could be working wherever she wanted and perhaps making much more money. But that’s not her number one priority.
“The money is there. If I wanted more, it would be a matter of going out and seeking it. I’m fine as I am right now. Working from my home in downtown Los Angeles, with an incredible view, sitting comfortably on my couch. Why should I complain?” says Alexia.
But that spirit of service has been acquired due to two notable influences: her mother and the late singer Prince.
“From my mother, I learned that there was no excuse not to work. From Prince, that we should always give something back to those in need. We should always support those who are fighting to achieve something similar to what we have accomplished,” she adds.
And she has experienced what it means to struggle in life; nothing has been given to her.
“I grew up with a single mom who made a living taking care of children and later cleaning houses. From her, I learned that working, having a life where we meet our needs, is not a right, it’s a privilege,” says Alexia, CEO of her own company, Goodness Sake Strategies (GSS), which supports organizations, companies, and politicians in fundraising, public relations, and communications.
“As a child, during my vacations, I wanted to be like my other friends, go to the beach, play, hang out with them. However, my mother would wake me up at 5 a.m. to accompany her in cleaning the houses of wealthy people in affluent neighborhoods. So there I went, taking the buses at that hour, while my friends were still asleep,” she says.
Her mother worked with well-to-do people who also admired her and her daughter for their struggle and effort to survive. “If I got good grades, those people would give me up to 100 dollars for my expenses. So I was very persistent in school; when I received my grades, I would run to show them,” she adds.
During that period, she met someone who changed her life and continues to be an influence to this day: the singer Prince.
“One of my mom’s clients told her that he had a musician friend who needed help with his house. They offered her the job. And there I was, accompanying my mom to clean his house. Prince realized the difficulties we were going through and how hardworking we were, so during my adolescence, he offered me a job as his assistant. I asked him what I would be doing, and he simply said to assist him, fill out paperwork, bring him things, whatever he needed. Despite his worldwide fame, he had his feet firmly planted on the ground,” Alexia Valencia says.
Whenever he had an interview or an event, Prince would always ask for details, who they were, whether they were white, Latino, or Black. And when Alexia asked him the reason for his concerns, Prince told her that their duty was to help the people who were striving for success since they were up there.
“He always told me that we should ask ourselves how to give back to the community. It was important to have money, but it was even more important to help people climb that great staircase. That’s why he cared about knowing whether the interviewers were white, Latino, or Black,” she adds.
And Prince would say, “Why do you think I hired you? When ‘we’ve made it up the elevator, to send it back down for more.'”
She was with him for about 10 years. When he died, Alexia Valencia was shattered; she was devastated. The inheritance she received was that altruistic spirit that she continues to embody.
“During her tenure in the entertainment industry, Alexia found a way back to her roots of service. She simultaneously worked pro bono to fill the gaps that were preventing many nonprofits in Los Angeles from achieving real change. With exposure in the nonprofit field, Alexia felt a deep calling to support nonprofit organizations because she was often a beneficiary of such organizations.
Today, Alexia applies strategies and her skill set for raising capital, negotiating, creating pipeline opportunities through relationship building and brand matchmaking, and so much more to effectively create sustainable impact. Her work has had undeniable momentum for countless initiatives, nonprofits, and businesses, as well as motivating change in communities through advocacy, community empowerment and organizing, as well as keeping a PR eye out to make sure communications uphold strategic and inclusive messaging,” states one of her biographies.
Alexia Valencia has also outlined non-typical strategies that have helped her achieve successful campaigns.
“There is a perception that Latinos don’t have money and don’t care. Many focus on working only with very famous and wealthy people, going for the millions. I took advantage of another niche, successful Latino business owners. They may not give me millions, but little by little, I can obtain resources for my projects. That’s how I managed to secure one million dollars in one of them,” says Alexia.
She mentions, for example, the case of Adriana’s Insurance, “a multimillion-dollar business that no one thinks is there.”
She points out that in these post-pandemic times, obtaining resources is challenging, but the important thing is to start the discussion.
“Perhaps people are not ready to hear about their philanthropic contribution. So I simply ask them, ‘Can I ask you in a year? Or okay, if you don’t have those funds, what figure would you have in mind to support this cause?’ Maybe it’s not a million, but how about 100,000 dollars or whatever they can give,” says Alexia.
Alexia Valencia had a very complicated childhood and adolescence, but that also prepared her to deal with the challenges of her business and with a competitive space like Los Angeles. So she knows that if she can get “in the room for a presentation, it’s already a win.”
“Due to my background, I have the ability to address different audiences, which makes things easier for me,” she adds.
She mentions that one of the spaces that has been more challenging for her with Latinos is golf because it is not deeply rooted in that culture.
“You can go to a Latino CEO and ask for a donation of $20,000 for a golf event, but if anything, only the CEO might attend. So they see a better investment where employees can join them; it’s very difficult to integrate them,” she says.
Alexia Valencia feels very privileged to be where she is.
“I choose the people I work with and want to work with, the projects that interest me, always ensuring equity. Money is not an issue; I have a humble life. I don’t need more for now. There are things I’m interested in, my savings account, providing for my family, achieving the American dream. That’s what we’re working on,” she adds.
But she also has other immediate goals. “I want to help Latinas reach elected positions in politics, work on the next Hispanic Heritage Month, empowering Latinas. Not the faces we always see in the media, but those who have been ignored,” Alexia Valencia concludes.
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