Alfredo Malamana, BCEDC Member, and the American Dream!
My name is Alfredo Malamana, married to Rosa Malamana for 25 years. We have 4 children: 2 boys and 2 girls of the ages 24, 21,18 and 9.
I am originally from Angola. Angola is a country south west of Africa. Angola was in a civil war for 32 years run by a dictator President who was in power for over 30 years. I used to work for Chevron as a Helicopter Dispatcher. I left my wife and our 3 children in Angola and fled the country for political asylum. I arrived in the United States in 2005 with $200 in my pocket.
I stayed at a Lutheran Pastor’s house for almost 2 years while I was waiting for my immigration status to be approved, it was approved in 2007. My family arrived in the US in March of 2008 with the assistance of Calvary Church in Souderton.
During that time, I volunteered at Calvary Church, Souderton, various area Lutheran churches and Care and Share also in Souderton. I was part of team from Calvary Church that went to Mississippi to help the Katrina victims. I believed that if I worked hard, believed in God and in the American dream- things would.
I took ESL classes, attended leadership programs and went to Bucks County Community College while working two jobs. I worked at CL Weber in North Wales as Machine Operator and Indian Creek Foundation as Residential Instructor. I went to school and took care of my family.
In 2010 I started my own business shipping cars to Africa, and I started travelling to Asia buying food and sending to Africa. In 2012 we had our fourth child. In 2014 I decided to open a business. I bought a cleaning franchise with Vanguard Cleaning System, Philadelphia. I did not know anything about cleaning, but I learned.
In 2015 after being in the US for ten years working hard and following the American Dream, I started to see a change in my life. The salesman at Vanguard Cleaning System believed in me and told me… “Alfredo, I will help you reach your goals if you promise me that you will be reliable. I said yes.” A few months later I was nominated Franchisee of the Year 2015. The same year our first son joined the Marines.
My company performs carpet cleaning, floor stripping and waxing, window cleaning and power washing. We cleaned hospitals, schools, and commercial offices. We have 8 employees and some sub-contractors. When Covid19 hit the world, my company lost a few accounts. I wanted to find something more stable that is when I decided to open a Dollar store idea.
The Dollar Outlet of Chalfont opened in October 2020. Dollar Outlet, 4275 County Line Road, Unit 15, Chalfont, PA 18194, https://dollaroutletofchalfont.com/.
I have always trusted God believed in him and believed in myself. God has placed good people along my way to help me and I cannot stress enough how thankful I am for all of them.
