Alfreda Benford has an incredible story to tell. She is one of the many women who completed the tall task of becoming educated and setting out to break the glass ceiling. Through her hard work, she figured out the process of the American dream. Now, she is a business owner, minister, project management, and the co-founder of LiftUp Kids.

Her Journey to Being a Business Owner

Alfreda said at eight years old that she wanted to be an attorney. She had big goals from a young age, but she also had big obstacles. She became a teen mother, with two young girls by the age of 17.

Her journey led her to a Christian university where she completed a degree in Christian Ministry where she used that degree for a corporate job in which she battled her way to the top of a male-dominated administration. Over the span of her corporate career, she pushed to become the VP of Customer Support for a multi-million-dollar company. She was one of the only women in the industry and she was the only woman of color in the company after 18 whole years of working there.

“I never seen another Alfreda coming in. And not only did I not see another Alfreda come in, as I sat in boardrooms, as I presented proposals to these multimillion dollar men, and convinced them to make a decision based upon the information that I had acquired.” - Alfreda on breaking barriers in her corporate role.

Then one day, an old supervisor called her and offered her a job. She took the chance, and the chance was the thing that helped her to take control of her life and was an opportunity that chose her.

Learn more about Alfreda on Power of 52 Podcast.