Suzzaraine ‘Raine’ Visda was flying high. At 30, she seemed to have it all: a glamorous job, a nice home, a beautiful family.
Having saved enough from her years of work as a flight attendant, she and husband Joff decided it was time to pack her bags. In October 2019, Raine took her final flight with Saudia Airlines and headed back home.
Home is at Field Residences in Parañaque City. It was her abode: a home close to all the commercial places she had frequented while still renting an apartment in Sucat, and also to her second home, the airport. It was perfect for her needs: providing her with the conveniences of being close to everything and with the breathing space and neighborliness of a subdivision. She and her young family moved into their one-bedroom unit in 2018.
Raine thought of using her passion for make-up to work as a freelance make-up artist or finding employment in a local airline so she could spend more time with her daughter Kiara while her husband did fieldwork in Laguna.
And then the pandemic broke, and the airline industry went into a tailspin. Even her make-up skills could not be put to use at a time when everyone had to stay home and events were prohibited.
Raine had to find a way to break out of the economic crunch and do something to help her husband financially. It was at that time that she saw an open invitation for residents to become part of The Good Guys Weekend Market, which initially sold fresh fruits and vegetables and is now marketing cooked food, pastries, and other edibles so residents would not have to leave their homes for their food needs.
Raine wasted no time and immediately worked on honing her skills at her other passion, baking. She started selling banana bread, cookies, and ensaymada.
With each weekend market, her confidence in both her baking and entrepreneurial skills became stronger. She started adding different flavors to her baked goodies – every piece made with the passion and love she has for her daughter after whom her business, Kiara’s Oven, was named.
In true pay-it-forward fashion, she even encouraged another resident, Yen, an online seller, to join the market.
Raine and Yen are now part of the original batch of SMDC The Good Guys Resident Entrepreneurship Program, which has grown to 300 residents across SMDC properties in Metro Manila. Together they inspire other residents to turn their passion into income-generating ventures.
Raine has found her wings once again. She and her husband have been able to keep their beautiful home. She has found the perfect job: a full-time wife and mom who bakes for her community on weekends.
