Social Butterfly Girlfriends welcomes our latest member, Stephenie Denise Rodriguez. She is a Puerto Rican and Cherokee Indian decendant. She was born in New York, raised in the stunning beaches in Virginia and came to Australia in 1997.
Stephenie had many mentors in her lifetime. Her Aunt Dee who passed away when she was 21 to Breast Cancer was her first – she was fierce!
In recent years, her mentor is Fiona O’Donnell – a Canberra based business woman with a background in childcare and social impact entrepreneurship.
Stephenie is currently on a mission to impact a billion lives by 2025 and democratize safety in support of the UN Sustainable Development goals.
She delivers on this promise through her startup, JOZU for WOMEN INC and in the making and distribution of the WanderSafe Beacon application and their personal panic buttons/safety devices, the WanderSafe Beacon and Shakti Safety Beacon. http://www.wandersafe.com/
“I was compelled to launch this company after witnessing the plight of African women and girls as it relates to domestic and sexual violence. I too was also a victim of domestic and sexual violence and felt compelled to do something about it.” explains Stephenie.
The wonder of living inspires Stephenie on a daily basis because
of her near death experience in October 2019, where she was within minutes of death due to Cerebral Malaria and Severe Sepsis.
“I learned that each day is truly a gift…as Australia’s first bilateral osseointegrated female, I aim to dispel bias as it relates to the 15% of those who live with disabilities, and share my recovery journey to inspire others on my Instagram @DigitalGodess.”
Her five keys to success are:-
1. Practice Positive Patience – Don’t get frustrated with what isn’t working. Focus and celebrate the things you can do. Find Joy in the doing.
2. Demonstrate Extraordinary Kindness – (Be nice to strangers and those in obvious disadvantage).
3. Express Gratitude – Say thank you, for everything.
4. Never underestimate the power of hard work.
5. Find the Yes – Instead of focussing on the bottlenecks in life, be solution oriented.
Her main hobbies are working on four projects, including a memoir she is penning on her recovery journey titled “Thank You Mrs Carter,” as well as running WanderSafe (their product division), Jozu for Women, Mighty Media Group, and she’s co-Founder of Rubay Wines.
“As a social impact entrepreneur all of my work has a direct correlation to the lives we can impact and change.”
Stephenie is a member of the Women in Security Council for OSAC.gov (The US State Department’s division for Americans abroad), Women in Travel Retail, SHEEO, Zonta and the Peninsula Rotary 2.0 of Frankston in Victoria.
She’s also a single mum to a teenage boy and owner of a rescue whippet.
“My son is truly one of the things I marvel at. He is wise beyond his years.”
Her friends are truly her family here in Australia and she enjoys cooking and entertaining. She’s also active in Tech Beach (a tech community centric to the Caribbean where she is from), and Women in Blockchain.
Stephenie plans to achieve absolutely EVERYTHING in her business and personal life.
“After 360 days in the hospital, 36 operations, and a two year hiatus from work and life, I can’t wait to do everything from travel again to launching my book, as well as give a TedXWomen talk in South Africa in March 2022.”
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