Daily Inspiration: Meet Mary Rose Bush

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mary Rose Bush.

Hi Mary, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born in the Philippines to Mr. and Mrs. Roberto Acosta. I am the 3rd among 11 children in the family. I finished my Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and Accounting, I also completed my Masters’s Degree in Business Administration and Corporate Management. I have a unique passion for cooking so after I enrolled in culinary school and completed a Culinary Arts program in Cebu City, Philippines.

I met my husband, Garrett Bush Online In 2019. Garrett works in the sports media as a radio and television host. When I met him he had just finalized his divorce. He seemed like a genuinely great guy. He was also very eager to meet me. I must admit, I was a little skeptical at first. But after talking to him every day on the phone I knew he was the right man for me. In 2021 we were granted a K1-Visa and I moved to Cleveland, Ohio.

My journey starts after I graduated from high school with Highest Honor at the age of 16. I left the mountains where I grew up and went to Cebu City to attend college after I received a full scholarship at the University of Visayas, Cebu City, Philippines. I finished my degree in 3 years after taking advanced classes in the summer at the age of 19. I also receive a government scholarship under the program PESFA.

I was also a working student as a restaurant staff while completing my college degree. 9 days before my college graduation my Mother passed away. Before she died I called her to let her know that I made it and would want her to march with me on my graduation day. That day she wanted me to promise to help my siblings with their education. Although it was strange, I promise to help my siblings and will take care of them. 2 days after our conversation she passed away. I was determined to fulfill my promise.

After graduation, I was promoted by the company I was working as a restaurant staff to a new position as an Internal Auditor. I accepted the job since I have to send money back home for my siblings’ education and support. After 2 years as an Internal Auditor, I was promoted to Business Controller of the entire Business of my boss. I manage all their businesses ( 5 branches of Shakey’s Pizza Restaurant and 5 branches of The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf) located in Davao City. I was compensated well enough to support my sibling’s education and living support.

After 14 years of working in the same company and most of my siblings have done college I gamble to open my own Business which is a Restaurant/Café the first Study/Co-Working Space Café Concept in Cebu City, Philippines. It was booming but the competition was so tough with big corporations. The concept was copied and big corporations opened just a few doors down from my Shop. This taught me my first major lesson in business.

I had to perform a feasibility study to decide whether I should stay in the location to compete with larger competitors with deeper pockets Or should dig deep and try to weather the storm. I ultimately decided to sell my business while it was still profitable. I learned that sometimes you have to know when to cut your losses. It turned out to be the best decision for me in the long run. I was running myself into the ground by trying to wear every single hat in the business.

I was the Owner, Chef, Maintenance, Server, and DishWasher all at the same time. I would come home after 16 hours and cry myself to sleep. This experience taught me the value of collaboration and delegation, I eventually sold the business to a rich businessman and took the money, and invested it into a lifelong dream for my family. A home to call our own, I was able to build a house in the mountains that my younger siblings could call their own. I knew the embarrassment that came along with not having a place to call your own.

I knew what it was like as a young woman who felt insecure because I couldn’t afford deodorant, I never wanted them to have to go through what I went through in my early teen years. Unfortunately one of the strongest earthquakes ever registered in the Philippines destroyed our home. I never look at it as a loss. The house served its purpose and made us stronger as a family by the time we spent together under the same roof.

Everyday life was extremely hard Growing up in the mountains in the Philippines. We slept 8 to a bed with no electricity, running water, plumbing, or telephone. We came from a farming family and earned what little we had by selling our crops in the market in the middle of town. My mother only had a 4th-grade education and couldn’t read or write.

I did odds-and-ends jobs and also didn’t put much emphasis on schooling. My mother sometimes regretted not taking school seriously while she was younger and often made it a point to encourage me to graduate college and to help my 10 siblings do the same. The only thing I truly regret is my mother not being able to see me graduate college. She died unexpectedly 9 days before graduating with my Bachelor’s Degree.

However, I did get to speak to her over the phone before she passed. She made me promise that I would make sure that my siblings had the same opportunities as I did. She knew education was the key to getting out of generational poverty. Nearly 20 years later I have kept my promise to her. All ten of my siblings have graduated or have post-secondary education. My youngest brother Bert is a sophomore in college. He’s my last one!

After I sold the shop my boss learned about it and hired me back and offered me the same position and compensation. They are truly good employers. The company has played a big part in my success and in fulfilling my dream to educate my siblings but I didn’t see myself growing old or settling in the Philippines. After traveling to 13 countries (Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Macau, China, Indonesia, Thailand, Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos) I wanted to settle in a country whose calamities and disasters are not like the Philippines.

I research and learn about how to immigrate to Canada. I went to Canada in 2017 on a work Visa. In 2019 I will go back to the Philippines to complete the final process of my Permanent Residency in Canada and do my biometrics in my home country. While my permanent residency, I met Garrett Bush through an online dating site. I was already 33 years old. I decided to withdraw my PR application in Canada and move forward with my relationship with Garrett Bush and process my visa in the US.

While processing my US Visa I work as an Accounting Officer in a Construction Company in Manila. Garrett visited me in the Philippines in 2019 and proposed to me. Right, when he was back in the US he filed the initial paperwork to obtain a K1 Visa. The petition was approved in March 2020 just days before the global pandemic and borders were closed. I was stuck in the Philippines locked down due to Covid -19 and I decided to write letters to the US Embassy to see if I could get our Visa case expedited.

After countless letters and appeals to the American Embassy in the Philippines, I was granted an expedited interview at the US Embassy in Manila. Two months later my visa was approved and was on a one-way trip to America. I entered the US in May 2021 and married last July 31, 2021. I filed my Adjustment of Status and was granted an expedited Work Authorization and on July 4, 2022, I received my permanent residency in the United States.

I am currently working as an Accounting Manager at Wrap-Tite, Inc a manufacturing company located in Solon, Ohio. I am also doing immigration services to help people from third-world countries properly process visas in Canada and the US and to increase their chances of visa approval by properly submitting applications and providing the right documents.

I’ve been serving people from different parts of the world like the Philippines, Ghana, South Africa, Kenya, India, the Middle East, Germany, Italy, Singapore, Thailand, Canada, and the US. I started a vegan-inspired cosmetic line called Bush Line Beauty. I created it for people who have very sensitive skin that doesn’t wear a ton of makeup.

I embrace the natural look and I’m big into making women of color comfortable in their skin. We are launching a really big Marketing campaign for the project in mid to late December. I’m also part of the research and development team for my husband’s fragrance which will be out in the spring. I love being out and meeting new business owners, entrepreneurs, and creatives.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It wasn’t easy I have lots of struggles and obstacles I grow up poor in a mountainous part of the Philippines my teenage years were mostly survival. Everyday life was extremely hard Growing up in the mountains in the Philippines. We slept 8 to a bed with no electricity, running water, plumbing, or telephone.

We came from a farming family and earned what little we had by selling our crops in the market in the middle of town. My mother only had a 4th-grade education and could read or write. I did odds-and-ends jobs and also didn’t put much emphasis on schooling.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am currently working as an Accounting Manager at Wrap-Tite, Inc a manufacturing company located in Solon, Ohio. I am also doing immigration services to help people from third-world countries properly process visas in Canada and the US and to increase their chances of visa approval by properly submitting applications and providing the right documents.

I’ve been serving people from different parts of the world like the Philippines, Ghana, South Africa, Kenya, India, the Middle East, Germany, Italy, Singapore, Thailand, Canada, and the US. I started a vegan-inspired cosmetic line called Bush Line Beauty. I created it for people who have very sensitive skin that doesn’t wear a ton of makeup. I embrace the natural look and I’m big into making women of color comfortable in their skin.

We are launching a really big Marketing campaign for the project in mid to late December. I’m also part of the research and development team for my husband’s fragrance which will be out in the spring. I love being out and meeting new business owners, entrepreneurs, and creatives. I have a very diverse personality and experience. What sets me different from others are my life experiences and journey and what brings me to who I am today.

We’d love to hear what you think about risk-taking.
Since I left the mountains for city life for my dream to finish my degree. I was only 16 and had never been to major cities in the Philippines. I grow up in a small town in the Province of Leyte (Ormoc City). I only have a few dollars (100) from the sale of the crops my parents gave me. It was the biggest risk knowing what life was ahead of me in a big city. I have to work part-time, wash my roommate’s clothes, and become a nanny just to pay my rent and school miscellaneous fees.

I also risk all my savings to open my first business which is a Restaurant Cafe that I sold after a year of operation. I also travel to Canada to work without any relatives or family. Although I am a risk taker person I am also careful in my decision-making. I have a computed risk and I do research and educate myself on every risk I made. By God’s Grace, I am mostly guided by the right decision-making.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.bushlinebeauty.com
• Instagram: @socialrosas85
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosie.bush85/
• Twitter: @rosieb85
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/RosieB85
• Other: https://live.vcita.com/site/fifthdimensionimmigration