SHEBOYGAN, Wisc. — On the outskirts of the downtown Sheboygan area, you’ll find Venezuelan restaurant Arepa House.
Co-owner Javier Zavarce runs the kitchen like any other business owner, but the road to this bustling daily routine wasn’t easy.
"I didn't know anything about Sheboygan, even Wisconsin,” he told me at one of his booth tables.
Zavarce moved from Venezuela seven years ago during the worst economic crisis the country has ever seen. He worked manufacturing jobs at first, but he and two of his friends wanted something more — a way to share their culture with the rest of Sheboygan.
So they came up with the idea for Arepa House but weren’t sure where to start. None of the three had any prior business experience in Venezuela or the U.S.
Watch: Bringing Venezuelan culture to Sheboygan.
“It was a hard part for us…different language, different rules,” Zavarce recalled. “We couldn’t find the right ingredients for our food. It was totally new learning for everybody.”
Luckily, they met Abraham Loya — a pastor as well as the president and founder of Centro Comunitario La Cima.
The group helps integrate Hispanic people into Sheboygan community while guiding them to their highest summit, or “cima” in Spanish.
"I feel like I'm the father of Hispanics here in Sheboygan,” Loya smiled.
The nonprofit supports the community through resource connections.
Focus areas include:
- Business consulting
- Mentorship
- Housing
- School and childcare
- Legal
- Food insecurity
- Job placement
- Neighborhood clean-up
But Loya says they avoid what they call "toxic help."
"When people are dependent on you or the government or whoever is around,” he explained. “We want to empower, so that's the mission.”
In 2023 alone, Centro Comunitario helped more than 9,000 people in one capacity or another — people like Zavarce.
"I think no, we couldn't do it without that help,” he said, looking around his restaurant that opened in April
"The first two months were crazy, incredible. A lot of people came in to try something different, and everybody left this place happy."
Now, only about half a year in, Zavarce feels empowered with sights already set on big goals: more menu items and future expansion.
“That’s our biggest dream — to tend to more people…and share our culture.”
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