Month: April 2024

When people suffer through trauma and tragedy, they are left with scars and pain. That is difficult enough to deal with, but then they are left with choices as to what to do next.
Many people, unfortunately, bury their emotions and never speak of the issues again. This is too common and can manifest into other problems like addiction, alcohol abuse, depression, anxiety, and even suicide ideation.
But there is another choice.
People can also open up, seek help, talk about their feelings, and lay it all out for the world to hear. And that’s exactly what Patti Katter did.
Patti lost her mother to cancer several years ago and only seven months later, lost her father, who died of a broken heart. She had to make choices.
“After my parents passed, I had a long talk with myself and made a decision that would forever change my life and the lives of others. I chose to turn my pain, suffering, and trials into triumphs by doubling down to share my story and other inspirational stories from those who have overcome major obstacles and adversities in their lives,” Patti said.
Patti fought through other struggles along the way.
“My husband was severely wounded in combat, and I found myself his full-time caregiver early in my 30s. Many of our friends were killed in war, and several later passed away after combat due to mental and/or physical wounds of war,” she added.

Patti used these major personal obstacles to help other people who have experienced similar challenges. She has been podcasting long before it was cool and has built a large platform of listeners.
She used her podcast to both talk about her challenges and to hear other peoples’ stories. Patti believes that these stories will give people hope.
But her struggles weren’t over. She recently dealt with another major setback that almost turned her world upside down.
“Less than a year ago, I developed a rare medical condition that almost left me blind! Thank God that the emergency treatment saved my sight. But for several months, there were no guarantees my sight would be saved. It’s still not perfect, but it will not stop me from my mission,” Patti said.
Thankfully everything worked out.
Using her past experiences on how to overcome personal obstacles, Patti went back to work on her podcast where she continues to be a voice and a source of inspiration. She wants to let women around the world know to never give up.
“We all have those moments and it’s up to us to choose how we handle them. Know that the strength is within you to get better and overcome anything, you just have to believe in yourself,” Patti said.
Listen to her podcast on her YouTube channel here, check out her website, www.PattiKatter.com and follow her on Instagram and Facebook.

Who is Trudy Jacobson?
Trudy is an entrepreneur and leader. Her path to success and entrepreneurialism started in the trucking industry decades ago. She encountered numerous obstacles in the male-dominated industry- like discrimination. She was even conned out of a lot of money in a fraudulent scheme. Despite all that, Trudy always fought hard and pushed forward. Once she realized she was capable of anything, she went on to start her own company and excelled. Now she empowers other women to do the same and to learn from her experience. Trudy now highlights their stories for the world to see in the Great American Women Series. Trudy wants women everywhere to know they can achieve their goals.

Melissa found her calling when she discovered the therapeutic effects of growing, managing, and building plant combinations. She then compounded that passion by creating a business built around creating the same love of passion for her customers.
And she is thriving as an entrepreneur because of it.
But her desire to grow and expand her business is not focused just on the financial benefits of owning a successful business, it is in large part due to the emotional and mental health benefits of working with plants.
As a victim of trauma, improving mental health is of paramount importance to staying fit mentally, physically, and spiritually for Melissa.
“I found a really healthy outlet, walking through nurseries, creating plant combos for the neighbors and people just to put a smile on their face,” Melissa said. “Three years later here I am with my third store and I’m very excited for myself.”
But Melissa isn’t stopping anytime soon. She wants more.
“It’s kind of ironic because I suffer from imposter syndrome where I’m not completely proud with what I’ve done. I’m thirsty for more, I want more. I want to do more,” she said.
Part of her business is to put together plant combinations for her clients. It’s one of her favorite parts of the business because she understands how it brings them joy.
“Loving them [the plants] back really gives them a boost of that little extra self-confidence that they need, or that little self-love that they’ve kind of been lacking in other aspects of their life,” Melissa said.

Melissa was a victim of trauma during her childhood years. The topic of mental health is near and dear to her heart, and she incorporates that in everything she does. It’s all a part of how she maintains a healthy balance as an adult.
But she readily admits to having dark thoughts.
“Just hitting a wall for myself personally and just being like… having intrusive thoughts, things that I would never ever think of. And I thought ‘What’s wrong with me? What am I doing wrong?’” she said.
She continued, “I think people have hit those suicidal thoughts, they have to hit those intrusive thoughts. Or people that suffer from PTSD or post-partum depression after having a baby. It takes people hitting their walls to be like ‘I need help… to feel comfortable to ask for help.’”
Another formula to Melissa’s success is to know how to deal with certain people. She is very active on social media and has learned to ignore negative people – a great piece of general advice.
“I think just the lifestyle that I have and the positive mental health that I have is what keeps me youthful,” she said.
Now she wants to offer advice for other women to emulate.
“I would love for women to take away the fact that they are very strong and them loving themselves gives them the power to be able to do anything that they want,” Melissa said. “Ladies, if you want to start your own business, just put one foot in front of the other. There are going to be some days where you take a few steps back. But try not to be discouraged. One deep breath at a time; consistency is the key.”
To learn more about Plants by Yours Truly go to their website, www.Plantsbyyourstruly.com, and follow her on Instagram @plantsbyyourstruly to check out some stunning plant configurations.

Who is Trudy Jacobson?
Trudy is an entrepreneur and leader. Her path to success and entrepreneurialism started in the trucking industry decades ago. She encountered numerous obstacles in the male-dominated industry- like discrimination. She was even conned out of a lot of money in a fraudulent scheme. Despite all that, Trudy always fought hard and pushed forward. Once she realized she was capable of anything, she went on to start her own company and excelled. Now she empowers other women to do the same and to learn from her experience. Trudy now highlights their stories for the world to see in the Great American Women Series. Trudy wants women everywhere to know they can achieve their goals.

Marah Lago learned early on that if she wanted something, she must go out and get it; waiting and hoping wasn’t an option. At the tender age of 5, Marah somehow convinced her mother to formally change her name from Marah Greenberg to use her mother’s maiden name, Lago.
The incredible early success was just a precursor of things to come. Ever since then, Marah knew how to make things happen and knew how to be successful. And she started early.
“Ever since I was 19 years old in a bank in savings and loans, I worked my way up through a company called Ernst and Young. I was in mergers and acquisitions and management consulting,” Marah said.
She continued, “I was the vice president of Krispy Kreme in their human resources department in their corporate office.”
Like any true entrepreneur, Marah knew there was more to the world than just rising the corporate ladder. She knew in her heart, as did her colleagues, that if she stayed the course, she could go far up that ladder. But she knew there were limitations.
“I just sort of decided to exit because, realistically, I’m a little too bold and a little too direct. And as a woman at that time, there was really a glass ceiling. And there was a perception of what we [women] should be like,” Marah said.
Marah Lago Goes Out On Her Own
Instead of relying on company executives to give her opportunities, she sought them out just like she did as a 5-year-old when she changed her name.
“My first business was a boutique ad agency, and that was a great business,” Marah said.
Things looked great for Marah and her ad agency business, but as most entrepreneurs can relate to, she hit a major roadblock that clipped her wings.
“It was taking off until Sizzler International declared bankruptcy – took me down,” she said.
But as a true entrepreneur, she didn’t give up there.
“I think failure is something we tend to avoid in life. And the truth is it’s the greatest teacher. So for me, once that failure happened, I did a couple other little things. And then I built what I considered to be my pièce de resistance which was a luxury jewelry brand as a co-founder and co-creator and CEO of this brand called Mar-a-Lago,” she said.

Her company expanded to nearly 800 locations with five factories worldwide. Since her dramatic success, Marah ventured out and appeared on numerous television shows, including a cable shopping channel.
After her fantastic entrepreneurship journey, she now wants to give back.
“So I help people who are struggling, they’re not sure how to take their business to the next level. They aren’t even sure what business terminology is even,” Marah said. “I believe fear is the worst thing that we can live with. Let it show you the way.”
To learn more about the Marah Lago brand, visit their website www.marahlago.com and follow them on Instagram.

Who is Trudy Jacobson?
Trudy is an entrepreneur and leader. Her path to success and entrepreneurialism started in the trucking industry decades ago. She encountered numerous obstacles in the male-dominated industry- like discrimination. She was even conned out of a lot of money in a fraudulent scheme. Despite all that, Trudy always fought hard and pushed forward. Once she realized she was capable of anything, she went on to start her own company and excelled. Now she empowers other women to do the same and to learn from her experience. Trudy now highlights their stories for the world to see in the Great American Women Series. Trudy wants women everywhere to know they can achieve their goals.

Angela Parretta has always been into health and fitness from an early age. She has used her passion to help others stay healthy as a fitness instructor for nearly 30 years.
During that time, her commitment to staying physically fit has led her to other significant accomplishments that cannot be ignored.
“I have been in the fitness industry since my early 20’s. I’ve always danced, I’ve always been a cheerleader… I cheered in college. And then I became a professional cheerleader with the Superbowl-winning Kansas City Chiefs! I cheered for them for three years,” Angela said.
Becoming an NFL cheerleader is no easy feat. It requires a complex blend of physical attributes with a dynamic personality as the cheerleading team must interact with the public and represent the organization. The NFL selects only the most talented, gifted, and physically fit candidates.
After her stint with the Kansas City Chiefs, Angela knew she wanted more. She knew she wanted to connect with people from all walks of life and find a way to help them.
“It’s just really important for me to have a human connection and for people to know that whatever they’re going through, whether it’s in this room [Pilates studio], a hard move or if it’s outside this room, a hard situation going on their life… you’re not alone,” Angela said.

She found a way to connect her passion for fitness with her desire to help people and opened a Pilates studio, Drenched OC. It’s a specialty studio where temperatures are very high, making people sweat even more. At first glance, that would make people uncomfortable. However, she says the positive feedback she gets from the workout is part of another benefit, first-class service.
“You’re going to feel really good about yourself the moment you walk in. I’ve had so many clients, older, different shapes, that say, ‘I’ve never felt so welcomed in a space like I do at Drenched,’” Angela said.
As a young entrepreneur, she experienced failure. It wasn’t always bright skies and sunshine. But that didn’t slow her down; that fueled her. And that’s the advice she wants to give other women looking to start something new.
“I definitely have many failures as a business owner. I just keep going… I just have to keep going because ultimate failure is not an option. I might have little failures, but they’re going to boost me up,” Angela said.
She continued, “I think that you have to just go in with Plan A and Plan A only; there is no Plan B. This has to work, and you just keep fighting for it.”
To learn more about Angela Parretta and Drenched OC, follow her studio’s Instagram page, personal Instagram page, and website, DrenchedOC.com.

Who is Trudy Jacobson?
Trudy is an entrepreneur and leader. Her path to success and entrepreneurialism started in the trucking industry decades ago. She encountered numerous obstacles in the male-dominated industry- like discrimination. She was even conned out of a lot of money in a fraudulent scheme. Despite all that, Trudy always fought hard and pushed forward. Once she realized she was capable of anything, she went on to start her own company and excelled. Now she empowers other women to do the same and to learn from her experience. Trudy now highlights their stories for the world to see in the Great American Women Series. Trudy wants women everywhere to know they can achieve their goals.

When many people hear about PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder and combat, they often envision a young male infantry soldier running through gunfire with explosions all around him. But PTSD is not reserved for just young males. It can equally impact female servicemembers.
And that’s exactly what happened to Marine, Maria Mia Salazar.
Maria enlisted in the Marine Corps following the tragic events of 9-11. She spent the next ten years of her military career as a United States Marine at the height of the Global War on Terror. Marines undergo some of the most challenging training found anywhere in the world, and they don’t give any slack to females.
Maria Mia Salazar & PTSD
After boot camp, Maria spent the next few years deploying to different parts of the globe, including Iraq. It was no surprise she returned to civilian life diagnosed with PTSD.
Maria had always been an artist and used it to cope with her struggles. But she knew the moment she hit a new roadblock.
“I’ve always been an artist. I know that art is the one of the things that centers me, it helps me process life. Even when I was in Iraq, I had a schedule where I was always going somewhere for art,” Maria said. “But it wasn’t until one of my ‘po-po’s’ [battle buddy] completed his life, that really hit me. We worked closely for years, and I spoke to him a week before he completed his life. And now I miss him.”
That terrible experience added to Maria’s already heavy plate. She was going through other personal challenges that started to pile up. But being a Marine, she fought through it and carried on with her day-to-day business despite knowing the burden she carried.
But everyone has their limit.
“I kept making excuses for how I was really feeling without addressing the issues. And it wasn’t until I ended up in the ER, thinking I was having a heart attack. The doctor said my heart was fine and asked if I heard of panic attacks. I was like ‘I’m a Marine, I’m a mom, I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ It [the panic attacks] happened three more times. That was my body telling me ‘you need to address this, or we’re gonna shut you down completely.’”
She knew she needed to do more for herself – so she decided to help other veterans. Maria took her passion for art and creativity to a new level and founded
Claymore Vets, a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization. She knew exactly what other veterans go through and wanted to make a difference – with art.

“The military trains you for 13 weeks on how to be a warrior. But after active duty, there’s no retraining back on you how to be a human. Clay brings you back to that child-like state that reconnects back to humanity,” Maria said. “We do clay and more. Our primary medium is clay because I’m a sculptor. I found a lot of healing through clay but we also do visual arts, writing… any kind of creative expression.”

Maria found more peace and a new purpose with Claymore Vets. But she still knows there is more work to do. And as a Marine, she’s prepared to continue the fight against PTSD.
You can learn more about Maria Mia Salazar by visiting www.claymorevets.org and follow her on Instagram @claymore_vets

Who is Trudy Jacobson?
Trudy is an entrepreneur and leader. Her path to success and entrepreneurialism started in the trucking industry decades ago. She encountered numerous obstacles in the male-dominated industry- like discrimination. She was even conned out of a lot of money in a fraudulent scheme. Despite all that, Trudy always fought hard and pushed forward. Once she realized she was capable of anything, she went on to start her own company and excelled. Now she empowers other women to do the same and to learn from her experience. Trudy now highlights their stories for the world to see in the Great American Women Series. Trudy wants women everywhere to know they can achieve their goals.

Jessica, an Army veteran, knows all too well what difficulties come with that line of work. She spent a grueling 14 years in the military – most of them while America was actively fighting wars in two different countries.
It was no surprise that she came home with medical issues. The only reason she left the military was after spinal surgery that didn’t heal enough for her to remain on active duty. She is now a 100% disabled veteran.
But that wasn’t her only obstacle. She suffered through a significant amount of trauma from multiple sources.
“I have experienced childhood trauma, military trauma, and even sexual assault,” Jessica said.
The trauma combined with the medical issues led to a host of challenges like anxiety, depression, insomnia, migraines, numerous surgeries, and post-traumatic stress… just to name a few.
But it wasn’t until she rediscovered art that she fought her way out of it.

“I started just doing art as therapy for my PTSD, anxiety, and depression,” Jessica said. “Art found me again, I really enjoyed it in my youth.”
Jessica’s art is wide-ranging. She has a passion for creating fine art using a variety of paints and techniques to develop many stunning pictures. And she has now taken her art to another level.
“As I began to create, my husband encouraged me to try to sell my pieces. There is only so much room for paintings to be stored,” she said.
Jessica’s New Entrepreneurial Journey
And she did. But unlike most of Trudy’s Great American Women who have a proven history of business success, Jessica’s entrepreneurial journey is just beginning.
“At the beginning of this year I buckled down, decided on one type of art to continue to create, came up with a plan, and took out a business loan,” Jessica said.
But she is confident in her ability and has already laid down the groundwork for success, she just needs to follow the path she set for herself.
And that is the same path she wants to encourage other women who have a similar dream to follow, especially those who’ve dealt with trauma.
“The best advice I can give is to join a networking group of like-minded individuals. They don’t have to be doing the same thing you are but if they have similar goals that is what you need. DO YOUR RESEARCH, there are so many resources available for women who are starting a business. And be prepared to hear ‘no’ a lot, but don’t let that stop you. There is always another way to get to where you want to. Just keep working, adapting, and networking,” she said.
Truly inspiring words.
To check out her work go to her Instagram page @master_of_none_artistry, visit her website www.masterofnoneartistry.com, and follow her Facebook page.

Who is Trudy Jacobson?
Trudy is an entrepreneur and leader. Her path to success and entrepreneurialism started in the trucking industry decades ago. She encountered numerous obstacles in the male-dominated industry- like discrimination. She was even conned out of a lot of money in a fraudulent scheme. Despite all that, Trudy always fought hard and pushed forward. Once she realized she was capable of anything, she went on to start her own company and excelled. Now she empowers other women to do the same and to learn from her experience. Trudy now highlights their stories for the world to see in the Great American Women Series. Trudy wants women everywhere to know they can achieve their goals.

The United States Marine Corps is world-renowned for its intense boot camp and mission focused training regimen. It is designed to push Marines and recruits to their physical and mental limits and to prepare them for the demanding nature of military service.
The lessons learned and the skills forged last a lifetime. And Teri knows that firsthand as she spent six years of her life in the Marine Corps.
And now Teri applies those skills to business and entrepreneurship.
“My experience as a Marine gave me so many skills that I have been able to apply in my everyday life as an entrepreneur. I have been able to apply my leadership skills, work ethic and problem-solving skills in franchising,” Teri said.
Teri is involved in several business ventures but has found a niche in the franchising industry. She credits her time as a Marine for her success.

“I discovered that franchise ownership is very aligned with military lifestyle and experience. I am able to follow a playbook and execute it; I have a passion for people, operations, and creating an awesome culture where people can thrive and I love leading teams,” said Teri.
Inspiring Advice
She understands how hard it is to be an entrepreneur but not all entrepreneurs start as Marines. They haven’t learned those valuable skills Teri acquired. But she does have valuable advice for other female entrepreneurs that will get them started on the right track.
“Everything can start with a call – it can be overwhelming but having someone helping you navigate the complexity, someone who has ‘been there done that’ will help. Start somewhere. Rome wasn’t built in a day,” Teri said.
She continued, “I have had challenges in personal and business life but I never dwell on it, I LEARN from it and always do better, I don’t give it any power.”
To learn more about Teri and her company visit www.prosperityfranchisegroup.com, check out her YouTube channel, connect with her on LinkedIn and follow her Facebook group page here.

Who is Trudy Jacobson?
Trudy is an entrepreneur and leader. Her path to success and entrepreneurialism started in the trucking industry decades ago. She encountered numerous obstacles in the male-dominated industry- like discrimination. She was even conned out of a lot of money in a fraudulent scheme. Despite all that, Trudy always fought hard and pushed forward. Once she realized she was capable of anything, she went on to start her own company and excelled. Now she empowers other women to do the same and to learn from her experience. Trudy now highlights their stories for the world to see in the Great American Women Series. Trudy wants women everywhere to know they can achieve their goals.

Becoming a professional athlete requires a high level of discipline. Professional athletes need to maintain their physical fitness, remain mentally tough, control their emotions, manage their time effectively, be self-motivated, work well with their team, and follow the rules of their sport and organization. They must have a strong work ethic, a positive attitude, and a continuous drive to improve themselves.
These are the exact qualities that make a great businesswoman in the corporate world. And these are all the qualities that can be found in Ozge Cumberland, another Great American Woman.
Ozge is no stranger to athletics. Originally from Turkey, Ozge had a natural inclination for sports. She mastered and became a professional swimmer and tennis player. But she is best known for her career as a professional basketball player.
Always Striving For More
“I ended up becoming a professional basketball player and retired from there. And that’s the reason I came to the United States,” Ozge said.
It wasn’t long after arriving to America that Ozge put her knowledge and skills to the test and starting coaching basketball. But that wasn’t enough for her; she knew there were more challenges out there and wanted to pursue them. Her inner drive to be the best started to show.
“I was hungry… learning and learning. I wanted to learn more every day. And I had to put the effort in, I had to study more, I had to spend more time in certain areas. I had to create more relationships so I can soak information from them,” she said.
It wasn’t long before her potential for great success in the corporate world was discovered. She then found herself as the Corporate Vice President for a large weapons equipment industry company, Primary Arms Optics.
“Primary Arms is actually five different businesses under one roof. It’s under one umbrella,” Ozge said.
Ozge’s advice to other women out there is straightforward. “If you really want something and adopt something, and if you have the passion for it, you go for it,” she said. Ozge invites you to learn all about Primary Arms by visiting their website.

Who is Trudy Jacobson?
Trudy is an entrepreneur and leader. Her path to success and entrepreneurialism started in the trucking industry decades ago. She encountered numerous obstacles in the male-dominated industry- like discrimination. She was even conned out of a lot of money in a fraudulent scheme. Despite all that, Trudy always fought hard and pushed forward. Once she realized she was capable of anything, she went on to start her own company and excelled. Now she empowers other women to do the same and to learn from her experience. Trudy now highlights their stories for the world to see in the Great American Women Series. Trudy wants women everywhere to know they can achieve their goals.

Law enforcement officers face a myriad of challenges every day, they are tasked with enforcing the law, protecting the public, and ensuring that justice is served. However, these duties can take a significant toll on an officer’s mental health. From fatal car accidents, crimes against children, murders, and more… there is a lot to take in. Dealing with these extremes aren’t left at the job and often lead to Post-Traumatic Stress, and that can manifest into problems at home.
Ashlie is no stranger to this.
Her husband, a veteran law enforcement officer, works in very unique, and extremely challenging and specialized federal unit – Internet Crimes Against Children. In such a sensitive unit, Ashlie knew in her heart her husband had to find a coping mechanism.
“It quickly became evident that we naturally developed coping strategies to routinely help him with the pressure release valve that often gets stuck on closed for many first responders,” Ashley said.
The Move to Coaching
Ashley and her husband work as a team to stay active and in a healthy state-of-mind. But that wasn’t enough for her, she wanted to do more. She reevaluated her life completely and made a bold move.
Ashley said, “I sat with my thoughts for several weeks and realized that I needed something different and I wasn’t happy and didn’t feel like I was contributing to something of value, despite managing a pediatric practice for over a decade. I invested a large chunk of cash on myself for the very first time by hiring a life coach. When I tell you that I learned and got more shit done in three months with a coach than I did my entire time in grad school, that’s an understatement.”
She continued, “With a new understanding on how strategies and accountability play a major role in living BIG in life, I knew I wanted to give the same thing to others. I did my training and became an ICF Certified life coach.”
Ashley’s decision to become a coach came with a specialty. She not only wanted to genuinely help others be better versions of themselves, she wanted to hone in on a topic that is near and dear to her, post-traumatic stress, which comes in different forms.
“PTSD is typically a single event that causes symptoms, such as a female being raped or a tragic car accident. C-PTSD is Complex PTSD, which means that you’ve had incident on top of incident happen and one may experience symptoms of this as a byproduct,” Ashley said.
No Judgment Zone
Part of her job as a coach is to ask the hard questions and get the hard answers. It is only when people open up completely that true healing can begin. Her strategy to help people open up about personal difficulties, even tragedies, is to not judge them.

Ashley said, “It turns out that we all need a safe space to unload that is free of judgment, completely undocumented/off the record and less sterile than a typical psychotherapy environment.”
Leaving a successful career behind to become a coach has been an enormous positive decision. She uses every medium possible to reach out to people to let them know she’s there if they need her help. Ashley runs a highly successful Facebook group aimed at the mental health topic for the military and first responder community, is the host of a popular podcast, the Tactical Living Podcast and is the founder of LEO Warriors, LLC.
“Through the clients that I’ve worked with in my coaching practice LEO Warriors, LLC as well as guests who have appeared on my Tactical Living podcast…there has been a common theme of not waiting until it’s too late to understand that you are not what you do for work. This is a hard pill for officers to swallow,” Ashley said.
You can follow her page on Facebook, listen to the Tactical Living Podcast and visit her website, LEO Warriors to learn more about Ashley Walton and her mission to help the military and first responder community.

Who is Trudy Jacobson?
Trudy is an entrepreneur and leader. Her path to success and entrepreneurialism started in the trucking industry decades ago. She encountered numerous obstacles in the male-dominated industry- like discrimination. She was even conned out of a lot of money in a fraudulent scheme. Despite all that, Trudy always fought hard and pushed forward. Once she realized she was capable of anything, she went on to start her own company and excelled. Now she empowers other women to do the same and to learn from her experience. Trudy now highlights their stories for the world to see in the Great American Women Series. Trudy wants women everywhere to know they can achieve their goals.

Everyone has hopes and dreams. The unfortunate truth is a large majority of people don’t live out their dreams and fall into a life of mediocrity. An even more unfortunate truth is that most people don’t even try – usually related to fears of failure.
But not Vicki Cramer.
She has a knack for business and entrepreneurship and the word “failure” isn’t in her vocabulary.
Vicki has owned several small businesses over the last 15 years. In each business, she built it from the ground up, achieved success and moved on to another venture.
“A friend of mine convinced me years ago to get into sales for a national health club chain. I thrived in it quickly and did very well,” Vicki said. “At some point I asked myself ‘why am I making money for someone else?’. I then went on my own and started my own business.”
Vicki started small by opening a small commercial cleaning company. It wasn’t long before she had an epiphany.
“I didn’t have any real experience in the cleaning industry, but I was confident I could figure it out. And I did.” She continued, “One day as I’m watching my employee go through the motions and executing the system I put in place, that’s when it hit me. Put the right system in place, down from start to finish, and let employees take it from there.”
Vicki’s System
A large part of Vicki’s success wasn’t just a great system, but great leadership.
“My leadership style is rather simple but effective, take care of the employees and they’ll take care of me and my business,” she said.
Vicki later sold the profitable business and wanted to go explore different businesses. A business where so can help people look and feel better, particularly women. She pursued the spray tanning business.
“I’ve always loved spray tanning. It helps me feel and look better. So I wanted to share that experience with others, especially women,” Vicki said.
But like so many other businesses, she was hit hard by covid 19. Spray tanning is a close and personal experience, so the business wasn’t able to reopen as quickly as many other industries. Being the thrifty entrepreneur she is, she came up with an entirely new plan, a practically covid-proof plan.
Vicki Cramer & The Balloon Bar
Vicki reconfigured her storefront business and started The Balloon Bar.
“I went with The Balloon Bar since that is more of an outside thing, and I’m glad I did. It’s been growing steadily and business is good,” Vicki said.
In fact, it’s very good. But she wasn’t yet satisfied. She still had a dream that needed to be fulfilled – working with the Mets.
“I heard Steve Cohen, owner of the Mets doing an interview on the radio. He was talking about setting high goals in life,” Vicki said. “The next day I contacted the Mets organization and spoke with a rep. I told them I wanted to do business with them and set up a balloon display. Later that day, Mr. Cohen’s wife, a fascinating woman herself, called me personally and said, ‘let’s do it!’ It’s a dream come true.”
Vicki was contracted to set up Citifield with balloons for the Mets home opener. Her and her team decorated the VIP area, general areas and all the entrances to the stadium. She has a lasting message for other women out there who have dreams.
“I believe in ‘just going for it.’ If you have a dream, all you need is a workable plan and then go for it. Dreams won’t live themselves out, you have to be the driving force behind it. And if I can do it, anyone can do it.”
Check out The Balloon Bar Facebook page and follow Vicki and The Balloon Bar on Instagram.

Who is Trudy Jacobson?
Trudy is an entrepreneur and leader. Her path to success and entrepreneurialism started in the trucking industry decades ago. She encountered numerous obstacles in the male-dominated industry- like discrimination. She was even conned out of a lot of money in a fraudulent scheme. Despite all that, Trudy always fought hard and pushed forward. Once she realized she was capable of anything, she went on to start her own company and excelled. Now she empowers other women to do the same and to learn from her experience. Trudy now highlights their stories for the world to see in the Great American Women Series. Trudy wants women everywhere to know they can achieve their goals.