Latest news with #HeatherRivera
Business Insider
03-06-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
A Gen Xer bumped her pay to $100K by taking on a second office job with her employer — and she works a side hustle to manage the stress
Heather Rivera doesn't need to leave her office building to work her second job. The 53-year-old holds two roles — as a production manager and an operations manager — for brands that run out of the same single-story facility in Lawrenceville, Georgia. "It's really a matter of prioritization — knowing which fire to put out first," Rivera told Business Insider. When Rivera started her second role in 2020, her pay increased to about $100,000 from roughly $60,000. Additionally, when she accepted the extra position, she initially worked 80-hour weeks but has since scaled back to about 60 hours. While Rivera admits she's a bit of a workaholic, the extra income has allowed her to boost her retirement savings and put money toward a side business teaching arts and crafts. "I probably wouldn't have taken the second job without the money," she said. "But it was more about fulfilling something, adding value." Over the past two years, Business Insider has spoken to more than two dozen Americans who are working multiple jobs to boost their earnings, afford expensive items, and save for retirement. While many appreciated the extra income, they said it can come at the cost of burnout. Working on her side business helps her manage stress In 2011, Rivera began working as a production manager at BPI Outdoors, a sporting goods manufacturer. In 2020, she was coaching the operations manager of Quake Industries — a brand operated by BPI Outdoors — on ways to improve processes when this person left the company, and this position became available. Rivera said the CEO of BPI at the time asked her if she'd be willing to take on the extra job because of her expertise and the time she had spent coaching the previous manager. After thinking it over and negotiating her pay increase, she decided to accept the offer. Rivera said juggling two jobs was particularly difficult when she started, in part due to COVID-related disruptions. But she said she's streamlined processes over time, which has helped make her workload more manageable. She added that having insight into both companies — one of which sources parts from the other — has enabled smarter inventory planning. For example, if she sees BPI is running low on parts it gets from Quake, she can help adjust accordingly. Rivera's main strategy for reducing the stress of working two jobs is one that she acknowledges sounds counterintuitive: She's taken on a third job. "I handle my extra stress through my own personal business — by taking on more work," she said. In her spare time, Rivera makes crochet items like hats and blankets. She also has an Etsy store where she sells her handmade items and crochet-related materials. She said crocheting calms her and has helped her manage stress over the years. Her dream is to build a business teaching crocheting to older people and children — two groups she believes can benefit from accessible, hands-on activities. She said it's an idea she's been working toward for years. She's taught classes at her local public library and hopes to eventually launch a mobile, in-person classroom that can travel to senior homes and youth programs. "This is something I'm building so when I retire, I have that company as kind of a supplemental income," she said. Rivera said the additional income from taking on her second job has helped her invest in the business and allocate more money to her 401(k) — she estimated that 25% of her earnings go toward retirement savings. Additionally, she said juggling two roles has strengthened her leadership and communication skills — qualities she believes will be critical in getting the business off the ground. "A lot of what I've learned from managing people at the two companies I get paid to work for has helped me work with individuals on my dream job," she said.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Yahoo
Speed bumps petition gains support after child killed by car in Springfield
SPRINGFIELD — Heather Rivera laughed when she remembered her 'sassy' 6-year-old granddaughter who dubbed her 'hamma' and her grandfather 'hampa' when she was learning to speak. But that laugh turned to sadness when she talked about how her grandchild Khloe Rosario Quinones was struck and killed by a car on May 12 while playing with other children in front of her home on Newland Street. Determined that no other parent or grandparent in the Brightwood neighborhood will face the same pain her family is going through, Rivera started a campaign to add speed bumps on Newland Street. 'She was an amazing baby. Sassy,' Rivera said. 'She was loved by everyone.' Khloe, who loved to dance, was Rivera's only granddaughter. She also leaves behind her mother Honesty Quinones, father Wilfredo Rosario, several siblings and many other close family members, she said. On May 12, Khloe was playing in her front yard and riding her bike when a car struck her a little before 5 p.m., Rivera said. She was rushed to the nearby Baystate Medical Center in a private vehicle and died at the hospital, police spokesman Ryan Walsh said. 'All parties involved have been accounted for,' police said shortly after the crash. Khloe's death is being investigated by the Springfield Police Traffic Unit and the Motor Vehicle Homicide Unit. Police have released few details since, referring all other questions to Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni. A spokeswoman for Gulluni said the investigation is ongoing but did not comment further. Rivera said her granddaughter, a kindergartener at Brightwood Elementary School, was struck by a driver who was speeding down the residential street. 'There are a lot of children, not only on the street but in the whole neighborhood,' she said. The spot where she was struck is marked with flowers left by friends and family members. Rivera has started a petition on to gather support for the installation of speed bumps on Newland Street to force drivers to slow down. She has collected nearly 600 signatures online as well as others from her neighbors in Brightwood. People can sign online to support the effort to place speed bumps at Rivera said she is hoping the petition will convince the City Council to install three speed bumps on the street, one at each end and a third in the middle near where her granddaughter was struck. City Councilor Maria Perez, who represents the Brightwood neighborhood, said she is in contact with Rivera and Quinones and is starting the process to install the speed bumps and looking at other ways to slow traffic. Perez said she is working with Christopher Cignoli, the city's Department of Public Works director, to begin the process. 'We are going to put a community meeting together to talk about it,' she said. In the short time she has been collecting signatures, Rivera said she is thrilled to see she has also received support from other city officials, including School Committee member Joesiah Gonzalez, who signed the petition. Gonzalez, who represents the Brightwood area, is running for City Council this year. He said he isn't just a city official: He is a neighbor who owns a home one street over from Newland, and he is the parent of a daughter who is a year younger than Khloe. 'It is horrendous,' Gonzalez said. 'It is a densely populated neighborhood with a lot of children. Let's get on top of this.' The problem is the neighborhood is laid out between two main streets, Plainfield Street and Riverside Road, that run roughly parallel to each other. In between those streets is the neighborhood, and drivers cut through the side streets such as Newland, Orchard and Washburn without slowing down. The side streets are narrow and cars are parked on both sides, making it hard to see anybody, especially a child, at a high speed. It isn't just the speeding that is a problem. People also blare music and have installed after-market mufflers that are loud, creating quality of life issues, he said. Based on the fact there are three elementary schools — Brightwood, Lincoln and German Gerena — and Chestnut Middle School that serve the neighborhood, Gonzalez estimated about 2,000 children live in the area. He said their parents shouldn't have to worry about them playing outside in their own yards. He praised Rivera for her advocacy and efforts to make a difference in the neighborhood. 'This isn't a blame thing. To get action on things like this, it takes a community effort,' he said. While Gonzalez said he is in favor of installing speed bumps on Newland Street, he said he knows it will take time. He pledged to work with Police Superintendent Lawrence Akers, Mayor Domenic J. Sarno, his fellow School Committee members and those on the City Council to try to get dedicated enforcement in the neighborhood. 'We have to be there to stop speeders, tow cars that are not registered and insured and cars that are clearly outfitted for drag racing,' he said. 'Let's put a fire under each other's butts. The community needs us to do it.' Number of older homeless adults increased nearly 20% this year in Hampden County 'His mercy was never returned': Jordan Cabrera sentenced to 12-15 years for fatally shooting Jahvante Perez This is how much untreated wastewater went into the Connecticut River last year PVPC working on two-decade plan for bikers and pedestrians Read the original article on MassLive.
