The Hands That Rock The Cradles Impact Business And Politics – with Amber Infusino – [Ep. 191]

Linda J. Hansen:  Welcome. Thank you for tuning in to this episode of the Prosperity 101® Breakroom Economics Podcast. My name is Linda J. Hansen, your host and the author of Prosperity 101®- Job Security Through Business Prosperity: The Essential Guide to Understanding How Policy Affects Your Paycheck, and the creator of the Breakroom Economics Online course, the book, the course and the entire podcast library can be found on Prosperity101.Com. I seek to connect boardroom to break room and policy to paycheck by empowering and encouraging employers to educate employees about the public policy issues that affect their jobs. My goal is to help people understand the foundations of prosperity, the policies of prosperity, and how to protect their prosperity by becoming informed, involved, and impactful. I believe this will lead to greater employee loyalty, engagement and retention, and to an increased awareness of the blessings and responsibilities of living in a free society. Listen each week to hear from exciting guests and be sure to visit Prosperity 101.Com.

Thank you so much for joining with me today. I think you'll enjoy today's episode, but before we begin, I need to just gently remind people to check out our website, Prosperity 101. Com, and please go to the Prosperity partner link. You'll find it at the bottom of the website and you can link there and you can choose to support in whatever amount you'd like to support this podcast and the work of Prosperity 101®. We need your continued support. Thank you to every single Prosperity partner that we have that helps to keep these broadcasts on the air. So please go to Prosperity 101® Dot and click on the Prosperity Partner link to help support these podcasts. So with no further ado, I'd like to get into this episode, and you may have noticed the title's a little bit different. We talk about the hands that rock cradles today. My guest is Amber Infusino, and she and her husband own Firehouse Performance, a business in Kenosha, Wisconsin, which she'll tell you about. But she is also the chapter chair of the Kenosha County Moms for Liberty as well as the Wisconsin ambassador for Moms for Liberty. She started the first chapter in Wisconsin. She's a mother of three grown children and has four grandchildren. She is very active in the fight to save America and to promote freedom and liberty for America and across the world. So thank you so much for joining with us today, Amber. I know the listeners will be really blessed to hear your story.

Amber Infusino: Thank you, Linda, for the blessing of having me this morning.

Linda J. Hansen: Well, it's great. We have a mutual friend who introduced us, and immediately I knew I wanted to have you on the podcast because your story is not unlike others. It's very unique to you, but it's not unlike so many people. You shared with me that you really weren't involved in politics. You weren't that engaged in what was going on in schools or in the state capitals or the national capital, and you just went about your life. You ran your business, raised your family, and didn't think much about being engaged in politics. And you actually were more liberal for most of your life. And tell me exactly what began to awaken you to what's really happening in America.

Amber Infusino: Well, owning the business kind of changed it for me. Again. Yes. Grew up liberal. I was under the notion that our government was going to take care of us. It was in their best interest, basically, growing up, that was the way my mom taught me to live. We weren't very involved in politics. We never talked about voting. Everybody should have free insurance. And it was more about the empathetic, which I reasoned with. But then when we opened our business, that's when I started realizing free doesn't exist. And I'm watching my husband, who is on a 30 deg below zero day on the O'Hare Expressway with cars flying by, working 15 to 24 hours a day, and then there's somebody on the other side that wants to share in his wealth while they're not doing anything. So that's kind of when it switched it to me to where I've always believed in hard work, But I changed the notion to where free doesn't exist. I mean, we're all working hard for our families, and we do a lot with community service. And for me, that was a way to give back, to take back that government, taking care of our community. I thought that it could come from us as a business on our own determination versus the government saying, take, take, and then spread that wealth.

Linda J. Hansen: So many people learn about how inefficient and ineffective government is when they start to run their own business. Thank you. Tell the listeners what your business is and what you do. And why was your husband on the O'Hare Expressway in that cold weather?

Amber Infusino: We own firehouse performance, and we started in 2000. My husband bought it on a lunch hour. We used to kind of work out of our home, and he became so busy that he saw the blessing that was being presented to him that his knowledge was going to take him further. So he took the leap of faith and bought a little corner shop and came home and told me, by the way, we're going to be opening up our own shop. And I was in it because he's an extremely hard worker, and I trust in all that he does with. He's very knowledgeable, and we do automotive repair, Harley repair. We started out with just that, but then he branched out and added towing into it. So that is why he was on the expressway at 30 below 00:24/7 so we tow twenty four seven. And we are a small family owned business. If somebody calls, it was either myself, my husband, or my 18 year old son that would answer the phone. My father in law, my mother in law, the kids all grew up there. Everybody had to do their time so they could see the benefits that the business bought us, as well as what hard work will get you. So 24/7 we are the business that answers the phone after midnight. There are several that do not. And I'm very proud to know that if there's someone stranded on the side of the road, which we've had many calls with women in the middle of the night, and no one will answer their phone to help them. So we are very proud to say that we're on it. We will always send a driver out there. We want to make sure that we're taking care of our community, and that's our business and our passion. We want to help the people around us. So it's been very good to us. We're very blessed. The towing has really taken off for us with our business word of mouth. We've got a great reputation for us, so we don't have to go crazy on advertising. We do great work. We stand behind our work. We do a lot with our community to support, whether it be our local police shopping with reader or doing readers or leaders shop with the cop. Anything that we can do to help our community, that's very important to our business.

Linda J. Hansen: That's exciting. And you are like so many other small businesses and family owned businesses around the nation that you're working 24/7 you're giving back to your community. You're engaged as a family, as community members, and it's so important, and that's really the bedrock. The greatness of America is all these families and small businesses all around. It isn't big government, like you were saying, big government that wants to pay for everything. I mean, they can't pay for anything until businesses make the money that sends them the tax dollars that then they can use. So if they're putting business out of business, there's no tax money, and people become enslaved. It's just a vicious circle. And those of us who've lived a long time and look at history can see what happens when a nation heads this way. Our nation is very much headed that direction to destruction. But I do want to tell people, listeners, if you are in the Wisconsin or Chicago area and you want to know their phone number, we will be sure and give it out to you later so you can put it in your contacts. And if you are ever stranded on the side of the highway, you can call them. And so we'll make sure that that information and how to get a hold of their business is given. At the end of the episode, you said that you were really thinking the empathetic thing. It's just like so many people. If you don't believe in big government, if you don't believe that government should pay everybody's health care, if you don't believe that government should have a mandated income for everyone, if you don't believe that government should provide housing, if you don't believe all this, it's somehow you're cruel, you're insensitive, you don't care, but you found that that is actually not true. Yes. And you live in Kenosha, Wisconsin. And many people may remember in the summer of love, as it's referred to now, in 2020, when cities were burning all over America, you were living in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and that was really what began your wake up call. Tell me what happened.

Amber Infusino: Well, our business was about a half mile down the road from where the incident with Jacob Blake took place.

Linda J. Hansen: Okay, maybe you can just. For people who maybe don't remember, listeners, if you remember, in the summer of 2020, violence erupted all over America after the George Floyd riots in Minnesota, in Minneapolis, which now a lot of truth has come out about that. And we can see we were lied to about how he died and everything else that has all come out now three years later, after the country has suffered such unrest. But violence erupted in cities all across America. And in Kenosha, we had the incident with Jacob Blake and Kyle Rittenhouse, and Kenosha was on fire. So tell me when you first heard about what was happening. Tell me your experiences of that night.

Amber Infusino: It's surreal. I get chills just thinking about it. I just remember hearing the sirens. We were out at a local restaurant, and then we started looking at our phones and reading the local police scanner. And the incident, as I mentioned, was about a half mile from my business, and we're at a little corner shop residential area, kind of an urban area. And immediately we think of our community. But as a business owner, we also think about our livelihood, which is putting food on our table for our family. And when the riots started, the peaceful protests, many of them were going right around the entire blocks of our business, several businesses. We had businesses running around trying to hurry up and put plywood up. Volunteers just. We went through the whole downtown and many businesses, helping them board up their businesses because we knew what was coming. I've never witnessed so many people coming. They were infiltrators. They weren't even local people that were here. It was constant drivers with no license plates and car loads of kids. And you can trust your gut to know that something wasn't right, that these were not people that were from our community. Break in after break in was happening. It was surreal. And the marches that were going around town, people were in their house. We had curfews set up. We had to be home by 08:00 so you would basically leave work, have to hurry up and get things for your family to get their dinner or whatnot. You needed, and be home by 08:00 p.m. To obey the law, to not have any incidents. Whereas bus loads of people were coming into our city, and they didn't care about the 08:00 p.m.. Curfew. It was law and order, didn't matter to them. And we had complete chaos. It was fires, alarms going off. A local museum was vandalized. It was just the most insane experience I've ever had in my life.

Linda J. Hansen: Right, and you mentioned the term peaceful protests. I remember hearing all summer that these things were peaceful protests. As we watch cities burn and people get killed or injured and businesses be destroyed. And I've talked with other business owners in Kenosha, and some of them have even shown me where bullets came into their building, where we came and embedded in the walls and things, because there was just so much violence. So the peaceful protests of 2020, or many of the violent protests that happen around the country that are called peaceful, are far from peaceful.

Amber Infusino: Several friends lost their businesses, even historic businesses.

Linda J. Hansen: Yes, it was very sad for Kenosha, and Kenosha will never be the as. As this was happening with you, and you mentioned how these marches continued. So this wasn't just a one night occurrence, like, obviously the violence erupted on this one night, but then it continued and continued and continued. And it took a long time for things to settle in Kenosha, as it did in many of the cities around the country. And during that time, you begin to see things from a different perspective. So you mentioned before how your mind was changed regarding owning a business, and having a business helped you see that business drives the economy. Government does not drive the economy. And so what else changed with you? I know you eventually went on to become involved with moms for liberty, but that was not something that was on your bucket list to do. So how did that transpire after?

Amber Infusino: Well, the riots and other peaceful protests, then we got into the election season, so that was very obviously telling there. I voted, did my civic duty, and then I just kind of questioned the results. I kind of questioned some things that were happening local. And again, it was no different than the COVID response. When you question. People looked at you that, like you were anti American or why would you question this? And again, my mindset is not the way that I was brought up. I never questioned anything. I just went with the grain. Well, I'm not that person anymore. Now I ask questions. I want to know answers, and I want to do it in a nice way. I'm not trying to be condescending. I'm just looking for answers. So when I started questioning, the election, lost some friends, lost family members, I try to keep it separate from our business. I don't want to preach my views as far as business, but we did acclimate people to vote. We wanted people to be civically engaged. No matter how you voted, just at least come to the table. But after that 2020 election, and when I was part of the recalls, I saw things differently. So it was just the questioning of it, and then being reprimanded while doing that was kind of got my mind thinking. So that's when I started looking into moms for Liberty. Once the lockdowns happened, well, not actually once the lockdowns happened, but after that first year of believing my government was taking care of me. So I was 2020, the good citizen questioning, but not really walking the boat. 2021 hit. That's when I'm like, I have to do something. And as a business owner, I was a little apprehensive. I talked to other business owners who had stepped up in 2020, and they did come for their business. They created chaos for them, called corporate, tried to take people from their jobs, their livelihood, boycotts. So I was worried about it. I talked to my husband, but when we talked about it, if we don't speak up, we won't have a business to even worry about saving. I believe our country will be in chaos if we don't speak up. So it was that walking that fine line of being able to speak up, doing it in a respectful way, being strong for my business. This is my livelihood. I'm not separating the two. But I'm going to be vocal. You know what I'm saying? My business is my livelihood. It doesn't define me, but I'm going to protect it just as much as I'm going to protect the children and defend America.

Linda J. Hansen: Very good. And you have the mindset that so many business owners have. I actually was on a webinar earlier today that included Andrew Crepuchettes from Red Balloon. I've had him on as a guest. He runs the nation's leading non woke Job board for freedom loving employers and freedom loving employees. And Michael Seifert with Public Square and now Public Square. I forget the enormous amount of businesses that have now registered their businesses and products on public Square and the amount of consumers that are engaged with public Square, which is the freedom loving alternative to Amazon. And so we can have a freedom loving economy, we can conduct business and do so in a way that protects our domestic supply chain, which is something very important to me and it should be to all Americans. Protects our domestic supply chain, which not only protects the quality and consistency of products and things here in America, but it protects jobs, so it protects families and helps provide for local communities because we have this supply chain but also really supports the values that made America great. And you have really decided to step up. You noticed things were happening in the schools. You're concerned about what's going on with children in the schools, the curriculum that is being used. And just to clarify for anyone listening, Moms for Liberty is never advocating to ban books. They are not advocating to ban books. They're not advocating to burn books. They're not that. And Moms for Liberty isn't just a bunch of bigoted white women or something. There are people from all walks of life. There are liberal and conservative women involved with Moms for liberty. There are men involved with Moms for Liberty. It is a huge organization that has grown out of a concern for not only our nation, but the next generation of young leaders for our nation. So as we think about the hands that rock the Cradle, which I mentioned in the title of this episode, we've often heard that phrase, the hands that rock the cradle rule the world. Well, it's kind of true because we need to, as mothers and if fathers are listening, it's up to you too, grandparents. We need to really help that next generation one know that they are valued, they are precious, they are made unique and special by God. They have a plan and a purpose for their life. And we want to help them develop their gifts and abilities to their fullest potential and fulfill their destiny, whatever it is, whatever it is that lights their fire and is calling them to do, to contribute to the world, we want them to grow, to be able to do that in freedom. And so tell me, what led you to decide to start the first chapter of Moms for Liberty in Wisconsin?

Amber Infusino: Well, after a lot of soul searching and praying on it, and as I mentioned, discussing who our clientele was and knowing that having faith that our business was going to be okay, that's when I started looking in 2021, trying to find any help for what was happening. So I happened to see something on Megyn Kelly. She had a little article on Moms for Liberty, so that planted the seed there. Then I went to the website, started watching some things on Tiffany and Tina, who are founders, that started Moms for Liberty and the resources that were available hooked me in. The partnerships that they had with Prageru Leadership Institute, MacGyver Institute, everything. It was just phenomenal knowing that there was help. So if you had questions I wasn't being was they would help you find the answers that you were looking for. Again, COVID kind of the mask mandate kind of got me into the game. But after that, we saw what else was happening. It may have planted the seed with COVID what we saw the curriculum, we saw the restorative justice in schools. We saw kids that couldn't read or write. But my graduation rate is 87% in my local community. And to me, I always call it COVID math because it doesn't add up. So I just basically sent in my application. You have to do a little bit of homework. They have you read some of the Constitution. They want you to go in front of a local school board, ask a question, which, when I say I stepped out of my comfort zone, I am somebody that I'm camera shy. I can talk to a lot of people, but I'm not much of a public speaker. I've always kind of just done my own little thing. I'm not looking for any publicity, but I knew that I had to step out of it. To me, there was nothing radar worth fighting for, and I had to face that fear. So I just did my homework. I stood up in front of a local school board and asked my question of if they were teaching CRT in school. And of course, they told me they weren't, which we know is a lie. But now I know I did learn from that, because I know how to word my question differently. So that was one of the benefits of some of the training that I was able to go through with moms for Liberty was learning how to ask the questions, to dig, to find out the information. So stepping outside of my comfort zone, doing public speaking now, basically, we just want people to participate in what's going on at the local level, read a school agenda, attend a school board, which, I'm ashamed to say, I had never attended a school board until 2021. I was always very active in teacher PTO, teacher appreciation, volunteering, grading papers. If a teacher was too busy to do whatever they needed, I was the girl. No matter what grade it was, all three of my kids were very blessed to know that I was. Well, they may not have thought of it as a blessing at the time, because I would have been on it, but I was very active. But I didn't attend a school board meeting until 2021, so I learned from that. And what we try to do is just get parents to be involved in that. It's a simple step. If you can't say, maybe even be in person. Most of them are streamed, so you can do it from the comfort of your own couch. But still being active in your child's.

Linda J. Hansen: Life, that's so true. And it's actually not only active in your child's life, but your tax dollars are paying for what goes on in that school. So whether you have children or not in the school district, you need to pay attention to what is happening and talk to school board members, find out what's really going on. And many parents now, and grandparents and even people without kids would be aghast if they saw the pornography in the schools. And to people who say, oh, these moms for liberty and these conservatives are just fighting and they want to ban books and all that. I heard one person say it so well that you don't teach trigonometry to a kindergartner. So we're not saying that people can't publish these books. I mean, we believe in the First Amendment, too, right?

Amber Infusino: Absolutely.

Linda J. Hansen: But we're saying we don't want our tax dollars paying for it, and minors should not be exposed to that.

Amber Infusino: There's laws against that.

Linda J. Hansen: There's laws against that. Just informing people about what's really true, because the media will really twist everything to make it sound like we're just against everythiNg. Well, absolutely not. And making sure that children can grow up to develop their fullest abilities. They can read well, they can write well, they know how to handle a job interview. They know how to handle life. And that is not necessarily what is being taught in schools. Now, at the average public school, this.

Amber Infusino: Is what I travel with now, and now I'm forced to read filth to.

Linda J. Hansen: Educate myself well, actually. And for listeners, this is an audio podcast, so she just held up. But list the titles of those books so the listeners can ask their school board members if these books are available in their schools.

Amber Infusino: Genderqueer, lawn boy, Fun Home Flamer. All boys aren't blue. Me and Earl and the Dying girls later. Gator A is for activists. These are titles, and these have been found in local schools right here. People like to say that we're creating fires. No, the fires are going. We're trying to put them out. This isn't manufactured. They're there.

Linda J. Hansen: They're there. Yes, this is true pretty much everywhere. I actually have friends in another small town in Wisconsin where I raised my kids, or where we raised our kids, I should say. And I understand that there. There was quite a lot of concern about the books that were available in the schools, even the elementary schools and the very young ages there as well. And so parents, grandparents, business owners pay attention because it matters. And so when you are a business and you are looking to hire people, are you more concerned that they can read and write, carry on a healthy conversation, be able to have intellectual ability as well as the emotional stability to handle the demands of a job? And that is what we really need to be cultivating. We should not be telling people that boys can be girls and girls can be boys and then crippling them and potentially sterilizing them for the rest of their lives when they're way too young to make those decisions. So this is just not okay. And this will not only affect those individuals and their families and everyone down the line for generations, but it affects our economy, it affects the business climate, it affects everything about America and what we hope to accomplish as a nation, and it affects our place in the world. And so this is just so important. So I loved what you said when you said you're not creating a fire, you're trying to put one out. So I would say also, you're exposing the fire.

Amber Infusino: Shine in the light. Shine that light.

Linda J. Hansen: In order to put a fire out, you have to know there is a fire, and someone has to grab the fire alarm or reach for the fire extinguisher. I mean, you cannot have this just continuing to go. And the fact that there's so much negative press and so much uproar against groups like moms for Liberty or those of us who are trying to expose things is because the deeds that are done in darkness are not necessarily those that are the best for a culture. And so we're just trying to bring out truth, bring out light. And you are a great example of a typical mom, typical business owner, typical community member who just was going about their life and realized that something doesn't seem right, and you decided to take a step and get involved. And that's what I really try to help people understand. Whether, you know, whatever your role, whether you're a parent, grandparent, business owner, student, it does not matter. You can have a role in making sure we promote freedom and truth here in America, and you can step up and do the next thing. You don't have to do everything. You don't have to do what she's doing. You don't have to do what I'm doing, but pick one thing that you can do. And if you don't know, I mean, just ask God to show you what it is that he wants to put before you that you are perfectly created to do. So, Amber, before we close, what would you say to business owners out there who want to help their employees or even their customers understand, stand how all of these policies affect the vitality of a business and therefore their ability to provide paychecks, to provide services to the community, et cetera?

Amber Infusino: Well, it starts with all of us being involved. Every business should make sure that their employees can get out, number one, to vote on Voting day. I'm amazed at how many people will say that they can't leave to even go vote, even though we have absentee voting going on now and there's plenty of opportunities. But contribute again, the government doesn't make money unless we keep the economy going. And many people, again, I learned that the hard way. I know it now. And I try to tell people again, it starts with the American dream. Capitalism is a good thing. Many, you see, we have advocates on the other side that call us names and try to make us. This is the American dream, and I want that for everybody, even our employees. I want an employee that is empathetic, but my employee that I want to hire is an employee that thinks like an owner can check the feelings at home. Really, the feelings can stay at home. You have a job to do with our business. We're a family. We are a family. But we want to contribute to our community first. We want to take care of. It always starts with ourselves. We want to take care of our employees, take care of our community, and then it spreads out. So any employer that isn't kind of in the game, I think we're missing out. I mean, we are the definition of what America is, you had a dream, you went out, you did it. And now we want to, just like our veterans did, fight for our freedoms, save our freedoms, and keep prospering.

Linda J. Hansen: Exactly. And as I mentioned in the title, the hands that rock the cradles, they actually can impact business and a nation. We really can. As moms. Moms, I encourage any moms out there, any grandmams, anybody get engaged. Like I said, you don't have to do what Amber's doing. You don't have to do what I'm doing. But pick one thing, one thing you're passionate about, one thing that maybe you've heard from this interview that you can do to help America stay free and become a great country once again. And we want to make sure that all your children and grandchildren can grow up in freedom and they can fulfill their American dream. So, Amber, if people want to get in touch with you in regards to moms for liberty, how should they do so?

Amber Infusino: Well, we have the local chapter, moms for Liberty, Kenosha County. And then if you're in an area where you don't have a chapter, you just go to national site and momsoliberity.org, and you can kind of narrow down and find out what your closest chapter is. You're always free to email me at anfacino at momsforliberty kenosha.org, and I'd be happy to answer any questions. Again, my goal with the ambassador position that I'm working on is to get a chapter in every county that we can in Wisconsin and shine the light on your local community again. Start your local chapter, get that family going, and shine that light, and let's help protect the innocent, the children.

Linda J. Hansen: Well, that is really inspirational. And so, everybody listening, you might be a mom or a dad, but let's help get.

Amber Infusino: We need our dads.

Linda J. Hansen: Yes, we do, indeed. And so let's help get local chapters in every county, because the family is where it all begins. And rocking that cradle is important because those are the leaders for tomorrow. If people want to reach you at Firehouse performance, whether for towing or for repair work, what is the website and the phone number for your business? Firehouse performance in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Amber Infusino: The website is FHPkenosha.com. The phone number 24/7 for towing is 262-656-0773 let's give that phone number one more time. 262-656-0773 and my husband, Brian, and my son, Sam, my youngest, will be. They are the hardest workers I've ever met in my life, so we hope you never need us for a tow, but if you do, we're there for you.

Linda J. Hansen: Well, that sounds great. Well, thank you so much, Amber. Do you have any other closing comments before we leave this episode?

Amber Infusino: I would just like to thank you, Linda, for this great opportunity, and you are a blessing. I do count you as one of my blessings, so I'm very grateful for you.

Linda J. Hansen: Well, thank you so much and I hope that this interview inspires people to get involved and listeners, you know how to reach Amber now, and you always know how to reach me through Prosperity 101®. Com. And if you like what you hear and are blessed by what we do, please consider being a Prosperity partner. Go to the link on the website or become a full fledged sponsor where we can promote your business on the podcast as well and on the website soon as well. So thank you so much, Amber, and we look forward to following the journey of Moms for Liberty and to the success of your business. So thank you.

Amber Infusino: Thank you.

Linda J. Hansen: Thank you again for listening to the Prosperity 101® Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, share, and leave a great review. Don't forget to visit Prosperity101.com to access the entire podcast library to order my newest book, Job Security Through Business Prosperity: The Essential Guide to Understanding How Policy Affects Your Paycheck or to enroll you or your employees in the Breakroom Economics online course. You can also receive the free e-book, 10 Tips for Helping Employees Understand How Public Policy Affects Their Paychecks. Freedom is never free. Understanding the foundations of prosperity and the policies of prosperity will help you to protect prosperity as you become informed, involved, and impactful. Please contact us today at Prosperity101.com to let us know how we can serve you. Thank you.