When Claudia Badillo began to accumulate debts after she lost her house cleaning job when the pandemic hit, she decided to sell food.
"I invited a friend who is good at cooking and we agreed that she would cook and I would take care of the sales and deliver orders," Badillo said. "We would distribute the profits equally."
The preparation and sale of Central American food kept Badillo from falling into a spiral of debt. "The first few months before I sold food, my children and my friends were lending me (money) to pay the rent, utility bills, car insurance and tuition at the cosmetology school I attend," Badillo said.