My name is Leticia, I was born in Guadalajara Jalisco raised in California. My mother and I moved to Texas. Currently I am a mother of 6 children, 3 girls and 3boys. In 2010 my 1st husband and i were getting divorced, i was pulled over by a cop in texas, (traffic violation) and instead of him giving me a ticket he called ICE on me. (Immigration) i was in a detention center for about 2 months until i was released. I was released and constantly had to check in with my deportation officer. About a year later my case was temp. Closed. Around 2012 my mother moved back to Mexico and I was left alone in texas with My 4 kids ( at the time) I didn't get to graduate from highschool dropped out My senior year. Obtaining a job for someone like me has gotten harder and harder throughout the years ( undocumented) no matter the struggle I worked hard to support My family anyway that I could. Due to my circumstances my pay was always lower than average. 2013 -2015 I worked at a small little perfume store, I loved this Job. I found it fascinating how everyone's sense of smell is so different, I loved matching people to the cologne/ perfume they were looking for. I had to stop working in 2015 because I went to labor with my 5th baby and had to stay home. I was a stay at home mom for the next 2 years. Life happened and her father and I separated and i was out alone again, finding a cash paying job this time around was alot harder. ( again due to being undocumented ) A friend of mine got me a small job that wasn't as consistent but it paid well. We would set up for concerts and Events and once they were done we would take everything apart and load the trailers.
2018 I met my current husband and became pregnant with my 6th son. My current Husband was a god send. I have endured many struggles in my life aside from being an undocumented citizen. He found me an amazing lawyer that helped me obtain my work permit. I can not explain the feeling of being able to Be someone. He helped me get my divers license he helped me get into a program to help me get My GED. I still couldn't get a job due to being so pregnant. 2019 He purchased a Circut machine for me and pushed me to start my business. L&R Creations ( Leticia & Raul ) for me it was important to have a piece of him in my business name because He is the reason I started this. I began with vinyl cups and shirts ( no sublimation or epoxy) HIS family, my friends were my biggest supporters. My mother in law was a teacher at the time, she helped me get clients. My small little business was small but it thrived. Then I discovered Freshies.. I looked it up and I knew this is what I want to Do. ( working with scents) I joined groups I read up on it I met the sweetest girl in one of these groups and she helped me so much. I did research until I finally got that push and went for it. Around 2021 My case was Reopened. This means I had to go back to immigration court and fight the deportation. Receiving this letter of my case being open was so hard for me. My 1st husband was Very Abusive to me and I was filing for vawa, this meant I had to relive everything I worked so hard to forget and heal from. When you are finally in the place you always prayed for having to reopen those wounds is HARD. The worst part is it's not just a okay let's get this over with, it's a process you have multiple courts and there's space in between these court dates. So while dealing with that, I added freshies to my business, I still do shirts and cups and I now also do sublimation but my main product are freshies. The support from our family/ friends has been a blessing for me. My community has filled me with so much support it's incredible. I started doing markets in 2021, the majority of my sales have been local and at market events. I have amazing freshie friends in the freshie community. Other freshie makers, suppliers for freshie items. Some of my customers have become friends, I am able to bring income in and be there for my children wether it's school events, birthdays or having to pick them up from school because they're not feeling well. It's been a growing process. I remember when I 1st started markets sometimes I wouldn't make more than $50 but I wouldn't let it stop me I kept signing up and I kept trying. I passed out many cards I gave little freshies with my information to get my name out there and little by little it's grown. I have customers that have been with me since I started and it's a great feeling. Don't give up if you're doing something you love that gives you the flexibility to be home with your kids, don't quit... This year we were able to close my immigration case. We were able to prove my point of entry which was legal back in 1991 and I got married to the most amazing man and have filed for my residency. Again it's a process but I have learned to trust the process with everything in life. The difficult moments are just that, They're for a moment they don't last forever. This is a quick little summary of my life. I have never been to the place where I was born living life in a place where you aren't considered a Citizen even though you have lived here your whole life isn't easy, and having multiple children doesn't make it any easier but if I can do it so can you.