Angela Rosales

For Angela Rosales, her business, Very Ventura Gift Shop & Gallery, means celebrating community, and having a front-row seat to witness how community works together in times of need. She said, “As a business owner, one of the most frequent questions I get asked is what motivates me. The answer is – you do. With the Thomas Fire, and again with Covid – Despite facing your own challenges – you immediately jumped in and asked. How can we help?  You checked in on your neighbors, you held fundraisers, you made it a point to shop and eat locally.  As humans, we share the human experience. We experience times of loss, and love. Times of fear and joy, but what makes tough times easier, and good times sweeter, is the company we keep. You make it a purpose to keep and build your community.” 

With her passion for community, she was drawn to those same values at WEV where she acquired a loan, “When you’re part of the WEV community – the relationship doesn’t end after loans and classes are completed. As business owners, we continue to have access to WEV resources. WEV’s mission is to support the local economy through its relationships with small business owners — WEV is an important part of this community. Because of my relationship with WEV and support from WEV donors, Very Ventura has gone from just survival mode to thriving,” said Angela.

Over the past several years, Angela has been part of a Ventura Unified School District project that aims to create a VISION TO MARKETPLACE relationship between future entrepreneurs and Downtown Ventura Businesses.  She joined Downtown Rotary and gave back on a local and global scale. “WEV has opened a door to dreams I didn’t even know I had.  I’m truly fortunate to share this sense of place with you.  Thank you so much to WEV donors for your support of my business, and for your support of WEV so they can continue to do what they do best!