Latino Profiles
The Molina Family Profiles: Josephine Molina
Josephine Molina was eight years old when her father began the family business that would grow into the Forbes 500 giant it is today. It should be obvious by this fifth story on the Molina family, that working in the startup, Molina Healthcare, was a family affair.
“I helped with filing and yard work and, as I got older, I got to learn the computers,” Josephine Molina, the youngest of the Molina children of David and Rose Marie Molina, begins to explain.
“I did billing, administrative things. And I worked in Billing all through high school and I worked all through college.” She was so committed to the family business that Josephine Molina ran the Business office in Sacramento while attending California State University, Sacramento.
Josephine Molina and Landscaping
Then, there is that story about landscaping.
“We all helped with landscaping. Being the youngest, I was not allowed to use any of the fun equipment. I was in charge of picking up equipment and pulling weeds and sweeping up glass.”
But, she couldn’t resist the lure of the power tools. “I remember once, my dad let me use the “weeder” and I was so excited and I didn’t realize how heavy it was,” Josephine Molina fondly remembers, “I made a big divot in the lawn. I was back on trash for the rest of the summer.”
It’s obvious, after interviewing all the grown-up Molina adults, that working for the start-up family business was special. “It was something we all did together. And then you’d stop and we’d have lunch, sit down with my dad…it was family time.”
The Life of Art
Josephine Molina attended Long Beach City College and graduated from CSU Sacramento with a dual specialization in literature and social anthropology. “Another running joke in my family is I took puppetry in college.”
Jokes aside, Ms. Molina is serious about her affection for the Arts. “Growing up and being a product of the Long Beach Unified School District, we had such a rich arts program…growing up in the ‘70s.”
Molina laments the cuts to arts budgets and the focus on Math, Science, and technology. While praising the latter, she feels strongly about the former.
“I think that’s to the detriment of our kids. I think that children need a well-rounded education and I think a big part of that is they’re going to connect to the world and other people through the arts.”
Josephine Molina makes her point, “It makes us more connected and empathetic people.”
Ms. Molina is so committed to the arts that she founded The RuMBa Foundation of Long Beach, where she also serves as President and Chairman of the Board. The private foundation is dedicated to bringing greater access to the arts for children in the Long Beach Unified School District.
For Josephine Molina, her goal is not only for students to experience the arts. “But, I would also like them to understand that Long Beach is a thriving art community and that art is all around them. So, this is a way we can help provide resources so they can access the arts.”
Legacy According to Josephine Molina
“Honestly, I’d like to be remembered for being kind. Of all the things I teach my children, I think the most important thing I teach them, is to be kind and to be helpful.”
Ms. Molina has simple life goals, “I want to be a good neighbor. I want to be a good mother.”
She elaborates assuredly, ” I think it’s not about the big things you do in life. It’s the thousands of little things you do..”
There is no grand plan, according to Josephine Molina, that her legacy is to be the queen of Long Beach. “No, someone needs help, can we figure out a way to come together and help them? That’s how I want to be remembered. Someone who was there to help when and how they could.”
