'The American dream is still there': Cape Coral students aim to inspire young entrepreneurs with business workshop
Cape Coral High School student-led groups hope to inspire young entrepreneurs and help students learn business skills and personal finance by bringing in a dozen inspirational speakers to share their experiences.
"The Golden Hours event is basically a finance workshop that we're doing at the school," said Manuela Parra, Teen Tycoon marketing director and junior. "It's going to be talking about business, finance, investment, leadership, entrepreneurship."
From 3 to 5 p.m. Wednesday, the groups will host students and families in the school's auditorium. The public is welcome to attend.
Cape Capital, the school's finance club, and Teen Tycoon, a blog and young leader association focused on inspiring the next generation, will host the event with the Seahawk’s Eye, a student-run publication, as a host.
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"The whole point of this is to inspire young entrepreneurs," Parra said. "To know that they can live a financially successful life and to actually become the best version of themselves."
The afternoon will start with a workshop presented by Cape Capital to teach basics on personal finance, investing and business.
Teen Tycoon will host a guest speaker panel of 12 women entrepreneurs from throughout South Florida.
The guest speakers include:
Perla Lichi, founder and owner Perla Lichi Design in Pompano Beach
Mayela Rojas Sanchez, founder and chief commerce officer of AMAzeID & Media Vista Group in Naples
Adriana Vargas Hernandez, vice president of sales at Acqualina Residences in Sunny Isles Beach
Sandra Stilwell, founder and restaurateur at Stilwell Enterprises in Captiva
Linda Donnelly, founder and owner of ROI Development in Naples
Cynthia Valenti, mortgage lender at Regions Bank in Naples
Yilenys Echevarria, owner at Legal Room Services in Cape Coral
Astrid Shover, real estate agent at Marzucco Real Estate in Cape Coral
Melissa de Mata Reyes, owner at GM Creative in Naples
Candace Decker, owner of the Decker Group in Cape Coral
Maria Penton, owner at Galldo Group in Fort Myers
Mayra Joli, owner Joli Law Firm in Miami
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Shover said she is excited to talk about her experiences as a woman of color navigating the world of business.
"I am a big advocate of being your own brand, starting your own thing, and deviating from the norm to stand out," Shover said.
Teen Tycoon started in 2021, and the Golden Hours is its first major event.
"My goal is to inspire young entrepreneurs," said Gabriel Penton, founder of Teen Tycoon at Cape Coral High School.
Penton gathered the speakers through different programs and during the various interviews he and Teen Tycoons host on Instagram live.
"I'm really grateful for all the opportunities people have given me," Penton said.
According to Penton, he comes from a long line of investors and business entrepreneurs. His Venezuelan mother is a first-generation immigrant, but his family has invested in things such as real estate and are college educated.
"For a lot of students who are going to be there, especially from immigrant parents, this is going to show them that the American dream is still there," Penton said.
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Cape Coral students hope to inspire young entrepreneurs with workshop
