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LATIN HeadQuarterS
Jolie R . Gonzalez Publisher / Editor In Chief Hispanic Market Liaison
Sergio Sodre Hispanic Market Liaison
Veronica Diaz Editorial Assistant
Daisy Medina Community Liaison
Rosa Mercado Special Reporter / Editorial Assistant
Max Martin Account Executive Special Reporter
Ileana Aused Account Executive Special Reporter
Staff Writers : Celia Rentería Szelwach , Tita De ' Cocina , FieFie La chAchA , Cholo Bachatolo .
For a one ( 1 ) year subscription ( 6 Issues ), please send a check or money order in the amount of $ 15.00 to : P . O . Box 262574 Tampa , Florida 33685-2574
Special ThanX to : God . Thank you to : Marti Lopez , Shea Williams y Susan
Esposito . Alfred Frederick for Business Photography .
Main Office : 813-901-5292 Websites : www . thelatinvillage . com or www . Latin-Times . com . Events : www . Latin-Connections . com . Email : JGonzalez @ thelatinvillage . com No part of this publication may be copied or reproduced without the expressed written consent from Latin-Times Magazine and / or C . L . U . B . Magazine , Inc . 2001 , 2002 , 2003 , 2004 , 2005 , 2006 .
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LETTER FROM THE EDITOR ...
Welcome to this , our Birthday Bash Issue Celebration ! Latin ConneXions is 1 years old !
Hola Mi Gente Bonita de Tampa Bay and welcome to another issue of Latin Times Magazine . This is an exciting issue as we have many accomplishments to celebrate !
The Story Of How Tampa Bay Got It ’ s First Bi-lingual Publication ! Many years have gone by since I published my first magazine . My journey started in a small apartment in the area of Town and Country ( Tampa , FL ) in April of 1999 . My publication was called C . L . U . B . Magazine ( City of Latin Urban Beats ) and it was the first bilingual magazine that was introduced to Tampa Bay and Central Florida . My first magazine was only 8 pages , and measured 6 " x 7.5 " in diameter and mainly offered cultural and entertainment news , with some articles
in English and others in Spanish . Those were the days ! I have to smile looking back because it has been such a long hard road that I have traveled , but worth every step that I took — to get HERE .
I learned many valuable lessons throughout the years and , ultimately , C . L . U . B . Magazine took on a new name , and a new look . “ Latin Village Magazine ” ( named after our website : “ TheLatinVillage . com ”) was born in June of 2001 , larger in dimension and measuring 8 ˚ ” x 5.5 ". Latin Village provided a larger selection of features and became more involved with community organizations , adding features such as “ Biz Block ”, “ Recuerdo Road ”, “ Relocation Central ” and many more exciting new features . Our distribution was relatively small in those days and we grew at a very small pace . Although back then there was a large number of Hispanics relocating to Florida , the strength and recognition of this influx did not become recognized until recently .
Abraza El Calor De Tu Cultura !
I am being honored at the 2006 Puerto Rican Cultural Parade in Ybor City , I hope you can join us on Sunday , April 30th !
In 2004 , after 5 years of constant struggle and discouraged , I took a break from the magazine taking a “ 9 to 5 ” job , determined to be happy with this typical existence . No luck — I continued to dream , and the desire I felt to create continued to pursue me . My break lasted less than a year , and in 2005 I again began to publish , this time calling my publication “ Latin Times Magazine ” and bringing together all the exciting features that were a part of C . L . U . B . Magazine and Latin Village Magazine . Today , Latin Times Magazine can be found at over 450 locations , including Wal- Mart , 7-Eleven , Hollywood Video , Bally Total Fitness plus many other convenient locations ! In addition , Latin Times Magazine is now also an e-magazine , and has formed strategic alliances with other prominent companies such as TampaBayLatino . com in order to offer my clients more exposure for their advertising bucks . Our networking opportunities continue to grow as we celebrate the birth of Latin ConneXions – a networking social that has been taking place on the 1 st Friday of each month – and on Friday , April , 7 th Latin ConneXions celebrates our first year anniversary with " El Mercado " a room of exhibitors bringing you cultural treasures ! PLUS a LIVE 12 piece band ; recording artists Clara Salsa ! ( Please don ' t miss this special event !)
My professional achievements for 2005 / 2006 ( so far !) include the HUGE honor of being named Hispanic Business Woman of the Year – 2006 , by the Puerto Rican Cultural Parade Organization ! I am being honored at this year ’ s Puerto Rican Cultural Parade which will be held in Ybor City on April 30 th , 2006 ; where over 60,000 people are expected . I was also recently awarded the “ Chairwoman ’ s Award of Excellence – 2005 Champion Media Supporter of Tampa Bay Hispanic Issues by The Tampa Bay Hispanic Chamber of Commerce !
That is the short and sweet version of the creation and realization of my dream . I have sacrificed a lot to get here and I have learned many valuable lessons , the most important ones being to allow yourself to lean on your team , and not attempting to do everything yourself , — not leaning on others leads to setting yourself up for failure , I did that for many years and all that it got me was feeling very tired and painfully stressed out -in addition , I have come close to losing my business numerous times because of it ! So , now I have built a small but very efficient team , one that I can truly count on and trust , and I owe them each a debt of thanks that I cannot easily express .
This issue is dedicated to the dreamer — that person who , like me , believes in tomorrow and will work however hard it takes to get there , and to that “ trusted team ” we lean on to help us get there !
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Latin Times Mar Apr to size 8
3 / 9 / 06 , 8:35 AM