Tracey Waters
Fontana, California, Senior Team Manager

When I first joined Cookie Lee, my purpose was very specific: to be able to purchase all the jewelry I wanted without having to pay full price! I didn’t see the big picture, so, as I began to earn more money, my goals continued to be very specific and short-term, like braces for my son, a housekeeper or our next vacation. But the more I focused on the money, the more I realized that it controlled my viewpoint, attitude and how I valued what I was doing. I experienced huge highs when I had a big show, but was so disappointed when a show wasn’t as successful. Using the money as a driver just didn’t work for me.

The turning point for me came during my second year in business as the holidays were approaching. I decided I wanted to do something for the homeless. I contacted a local women’s shelter and donated $600 in jewelry for the shelter to give to the women as gifts. My focus began to change from how much I could receive to how I could use my business to give to others.

The highlight of my experiences with this business happened while I was on the 2010 Dream Getaway Trip to Punta Cana. For the past six years, I have been supporting a young girl named Karen Leticia who lives in the Dominican Republic. I knew she lived outside of Santiago with her parents and four siblings, but, other than that, I didn’t know much about her. When the trip was announced, I immediately thought of her. As it got closer, I decided to contact the agency and ask if it would be possible to set up a visit with her. I learned that the city she lives in is about 7 hours from the resort in Punta Cana where we would be staying, but the agency agreed to transport her three hours to Santo Domingo if I would travel the other four hours to meet her there.

Many arrangements later, I found myself waiting at the agency in the Dominican Republic to meet Karen Leticia for the first time. When the door opened and she ran to hug me, it was one of those moments when you don’t know what to say but the emotions say it all. I was then able to spend several precious hours giving her an experience she had never had: the opportunity to shop in a mall for an afternoon that was all about her. She was so sweet and grateful, it broke my heart to say goodbye.

Many of us support children around the world, but never have the opportunity to meet them or understand the impact we are having on their lives. I probably never would have gone to the Dominican Republic if it weren’t for Cookie Lee’s Dream Getaway Trip to Punta Cana. I am forever grateful that I was able to have this experience. It impressed upon me even more just how blessed I am with my Cookie Lee business and how important it is to bless others and pay it forward. This business has changed my heart and how I view other people. It is something I will do for the rest of my life.

Jenny Elizarrez
Walnut, California, National Director

So many things have changed about Cookie Lee since I joined 15 years ago! When I began, I never imagined what it would grow to mean to me and how it would change my life. My husband Fidel and I were both teachers. And, although teaching was my full-time career, I worked three other jobs in the school district to earn extra money. I did this so I would be able to help my children pay for their college education, and so Fidel and I could retire early from teaching.

When my friend, Rachel Adkins, introduced me to Cookie Lee I was immediately drawn to the jewelry. When I told Fidel that I would like to try this new business, he was very supportive. Within two weeks I had made my investment back! The price point was perfect for the teachers I worked with, and all I had to do was walk around wearing my new jewelry and I would get orders. I had finally found a business that was fun, easy and stress-free! I’ve enjoyed a lot of success with the company and have earned every single Dream Getaway Trip that Cookie Lee has offered! Some of my commission checks grew to be even larger than my monthly salary for teaching for 30 years, and, three years ago, I was able to reach my goal of retiring early with Fidel.

Since retiring from teaching, my family has faced several challenges that have made me say, “how wonderful it is to have Cookie Lee in my life”.

First, my 25-year-old daughter Andrea was diagnosed with complex regional pain syndrome, which has caused her to be confined to her bed and in terrible pain daily. Unfortunately, not even morphine has helped. We finally found a doctor at the UCLA hospital who does special nerve treatments for Andrea’s condition. However, he does not accept any insurance. If it were not for my Cookie Lee commission check, I would not have been able to pay the $2,000 for each treatment. Then, in March, my husband Fidel had to have heart surgery. He is doing much better after the surgery, but thankfully, Cookie Lee also helped to pay the medical bills that the insurance didn’t cover.

Lastly, since my retirement, a need has arisen for me to take primary responsibility of caring for my brother Patrick, who is 47 years old and mentally disabled. If it were not for my Cookie Lee business, I would not have been able to take an early retirement and be available to care for him or afford a caretaker to help me with him on the weekends.

When I joined Cookie Lee 15 years ago, I couldn’t have foreseen how much I would need it in my life. It has given me the ability to support my family in ways I never would have been able to provide otherwise. Now I say, “what a blessing Cookie Lee is!”

Kendra Rovello
Kansas City, Missouri, Team Director

A little over three years ago, my husband suddenly passed away. I was a stay-at-home mom, and, in an instant, I became a widowed mom of two small children, and I needed to get a job. As a registered dietician, I’d already gone the demanding-career-route working in a burn and trauma unit for years, but I didn’t want my children to have to deal with another huge change when they’d already gone through so much.

An unexpected solution came my way when I admired someone’s necklace; a Cookie Lee Consultant who had just started three months ago. That morning, I had been praying for a way to earn money that would also work for my family, so I decided to be open to the idea of a Cookie Lee business even though I’d never sold anything in my life.

I spent a lot of time researching the company, circulating the catalog and asking everyone I knew what they thought of Cookie Lee before making the decision to join. I loved that it was a low-cost investment, there were no monthly or quarterly minimums and I would receive 50% gross profit.

It was very important for me to go in with a plan. I figured out how much I would need to sell to cover our expenses, then I interviewed babysitters and figured that cost into my business plan. Although I started off slowly, I found success that year and set a goal to purchase a home since I had to sell ours after my husband passed away. A year later, I achieved my goal and was able to purchase a home for me and my children with my Cookie Lee income!

For us, Cookie Lee is not only the sole income for our family, it is a business that works for our family. I also home school my two children, and I’ve been able to structure my business around our family responsibilities and involve my children in tasks like bringing in jewelry shipments and stamping envelopes. I explain to them what we get to do with the money when we are successful (family vacations and fun extras), because it helps them to understand what we are working toward.

There was a lot of trial and error in the beginning as I tried to figure out how to balance everything. The biggest challenge was getting past my fear that I would fail. Eventually, I realized that no one was watching, I had nothing to lose but my own pride and that it was all in my mind; yet the success I could earn was unlimited! My main goals continue to be supporting my family and paying off our new home in five years, but Cookie Lee rewards us so much along the way, just for working our businesses! I’ve earned so many bonuses, including the Dream Getaway Trip for the past two years. But, most importantly, Cookie Lee has given me the ability to support my children without sacrificing my time with them.