Today we’d like to introduce you to Sonia Jupiter.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Sonia. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I was born and raised in Pakistan where I attended an all-girl Catholic school. Ultimately, I had an arranged marriage which brought me to the United States at a young age.
Unfortunately, life took a different turn and I found myself fleeing to the Houston Area Woman’s Center. It was a challenging time for me as I had no clothes, no job, and was uncomfortable communicating in English. I felt lost and very homesick. Nonetheless, I was very blessed to fall into the care of a great organization. I didn’t have much of any American clothes; my first piece of skirt and a blouse was from a thrift store and I had to learn to be comfortable wearing and walking in a skirt. It is also there; counselors suggested that to help me get over my cultural shyness from men, to get a better command on English language and get comfortable with American culture; I should take group classes in Ballroom dancing.
My beginnings in dance were not easy for me. First, dancing with men was something that ran counter to my very conservative upbringing in Pakistan. I worked hard to overcome my shyness and it took me several months until I could bring myself to even look my partners in the eyes! In addition, I could not afford dance lessons, but God had a plan for me. Fortunately, one of my first jobs was helping at a dance studio. Some of the senior lady students there took an interest in me and encouraged me to get into the ballroom dance competition world. Initially, I competed in Ballroom Dancing and then started to teach. Through the support of a growing number of loyal students, I was very fortunate to start my own business, Sonia’s World of Dance. (http://houstonrentalvenue.com, http://www.dancestudiohouston.com)
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
There were a number of challenges encountered along the way to owning my own business. That included saving enough money to rent the space at a good location for the dance studio and working with contractor to build it out. Initially, he was responsive and appeared to be professional, but it was not long before I found out that he was taking advantage of me. After he had used up a significant amount of my savings, I learned that his work was not up to code, and he had not even gotten permits to do the work. Ultimately, I sued him and won the case. I felt like it was a victory for other women – not just me because I think that he felt he could take advantage of a female from a poor country. Despite my feelings of overwhelming frustration, I did not give up on starting my business. I stood in line at the Houston City Permit Building for hours, alongside mostly male contractors to get the proper paperwork done. Due to the loyalty of my students and a considerable amount of determination, I was finally able to open my first studio in Houston’s Galleria area in 2005.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Sonia’s World of Dance, LLC – what should we know?
I had a desire to help people that are grieving a loss of a spouse so I partnered up with some psychologist’s patients while they are in therapy; we work on helping them heal in a healthy way to grief a loss of a spouse and we also help them build new friendships with other students
I grew from them into offering Dance for Marriage Strengthining and one of our clients have been AVANCE- A Non-Profit Organization: We have worked with them in providing “dance therapy” as a way for participants in the Marriage Strengthening Project to help manage their stress.
Having a wonderful base of students of faith, I get asked to donate our services and space to help Religious Organizations and one example is of Congregation Birth Shalom, they held a fundraiser for their synagogue and we provided lessons and choreography to the members of the synagogue to hold dance performances for their charity event.
Also, offering Employee Wellness Program for companies and one of our clients is a hospital, we help keep employees healthy and fit through their employee wellness dance program.
I have been approached by schools to provide dance lessons to their students, like the School of the Woods where we prepared them for the end of the year Parent/Student dance. The classes helped instill confidence in the students as well as introduce them to a potential hobby.
I am proud of my studio space, which is a beautiful huge facility in the heart of the Galleria Area and is now also available to Rent for Events like: Cooperate Events, Holiday Parties, Birthday Celebrations, Small Weddings and more.
It has been important to me to support organizations helping women facing significant challenges, animal shelters, and children with disabilities. I have donated my time, my staff’s time, studio space, and held charitable events to raise awareness for these causes.
I have been fortunate to have been nominated for and received awards, including being Woman Entrepreneur of the Year by the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce and as a finalist in the National Association of Women Business Owners Optimist Award. The recognition is not just for me, but for everyone who has helped me get to where I am today and for that I am extremely grateful and the person I am most grateful for is my wonderful daughter Laila – the love of my life.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Diversity, size and love of the arts make Houston a great city for a business like mine.
Contact Info:
- Address: 5535 Richmond Ave. Houston, TX 77056
- Website: www.dancestudiohouston.com & www.houstonrentalvenue.com
- Email: soniasworldofdance@yahoo.com
- Facebook: Sonia’s World of Dance & Event Rental Venue
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