Today we’d like to introduce you to Etna Ortega.
Hi Etna, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My business is a product that I named “The MIC-Hanger” which stands for Miscellaneous Items & Clothes hanger. It’s a 2-piece multi-purpose hanger with 8 appendages. I started this journey with this product at age 67 and I am now 74. Yes, at this age, I feel that it is never too late to do what you feel strongly about while you still can.
I will come back to the MIC-Hanger but first let me introduce myself. I was born and raised in the Edgewood School District. I am the oldest of 6 children. When I graduated from Kennedy high school, my father told me in Spanish that he wanted me to go to college, but he couldn’t give it to me. However, he told me: “solo te puedo dar un techo sobre to cabeza, y comida en la meza” (a roof over your head and food on the table”) And that is what I got along with a lot of family love. So, my motivation was set and with a lot of effort & scholarships & loans, I went to San Antonio College and from there I received a two-year Ford Foundation Scholarship that I used toward a degree in bilingual education from Our Lady of the Lake University. All along the way, I never stopped working either part-time or full-time. Not long after graduation, I was hired to teach for the Department of Defense at Lackland AFB. During those years, I worked toward completion of graduate work in Environmental Management. I moved on to Brownsville and then returned to work for the City of San Antonio where I stayed and retired. I held several positions including Coordinator of the City’s Recycling operations, Superintendent of Solid Waste Services, Capital Projects Officer, and finally, Coordinator for the Creek ways System
I tell you about this part of my life because if it had not been for my education and career, what I have and do now would not have been possible. I married a man who, from the honeymoon started to beat me. It took only 3 months of this and I walked away. By that time, I was pregnant. Within a few weeks after my child was born, I was raped by a man whom I had known and that I had let into my home to meet my new baby. I stupidly would have never expected him to hurt me that way. I ended up pregnant and had an abortion and as a result was never able to have another child. I did not turn him in because I risked a vicious ex-husband to remove my child and secondly, the man who raped me had a family and they would have become victims as well.
So the steps I took along my life have been motivated by the hurt that was inflicted but which I did not speak about. Instead, I worked trying to make a life that has overcome those episodes. I feel strongly that had it not been for my education, I would still be in a bad way.
So, fast forward, many years later when I came into some unexpected money, I decided to use it to develop the MIC-Hanger that I believe belongs in every closet. My hope is that I can profit enough to create a legacy to help other humans who encounter obstacles that can beset them, yet they can overcome with education or skills. I created the MIC-Hanger because like many of us, I hang my comfy lingerie and delicate laundry to dry. As a kid, we line-dried all of our clothes. So, I designed the hanger because it makes more sense to take the laundry out of the washer, on to the hanger, dry and then into the closet. I don’t have cluttered lingerie drawers, and I easily choose my clothes from the 8 appendages. It is good for the environment because items are line dried instead of toasted in the drying machine. It also is useful for kid’s clothes, crafts, garage item and more! I have now successfully had it patented and trademarked. All of this has taken time. I am still working to make sure it is a quality product before it goes out on the market. Almost there. And when it does, it is my goal to separate a percentage of the profits to build a scholarship to help women who have suffered from domestic abuse or are victims of violence. I feel strongly that had it not been for my education and job, I would not have been able to overcome.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
As you read, from my story, I have had a road that many women encounter. Some give up because they don’t have a choice. I knew that I wanted to change that ending. It has been a challenge. I am still working on it. I have actual product ready but I want to make sure it is quality strength before it goes up for retail sales. I have had some good response to my product. Just working out some final kinks and expect to have it ready soon for retail.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I started out teaching English for the Dept of Defense at Lackland AFB, Defense Language Institute. From military ally students from around the world and our own US soldiers who needed to learn English, I learned just as much from them as they did from me. My students from all corners of the world had the same hopes and dreams as we all do. That’s where I learned that no matter where you come from, we are all humans having the same wants and needs. Thereafter, when I went on to a career with municipalities, my focus turned to environmental management as it helps us all on this earth. Making our world a better place was my daily focus. After I retired, I returned to teaching for a few more years and then at age 67, I stopped working at a day job and turned my focus to my product. By then I had worked 52 years of my life. But I am not ready to stop. I have also volunteered as an Election Judge and spend time helping friends in need.
I am most proud of the fact that I did not give up in time of crisis. The violence that beset me early on did not keep me down. Instead, I overcame it and it made me stronger. I have a son who is a hard-working Aggie with a Masters in Jurisprudence and so many special friends and family. And now, I am moving into the next chapter in life.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Success for me is in one word: consequences. I used to tell my son when he was a little tyke, “you do something good, something good will happen, you do something wrong, well, you finish the sentence.” I have tried to do good all along the way, and while not all outcomes are what I want, there is usually something good–a positive consequence–as a result.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://mic-hanger.com/
