A native of the Dominican Republic,
Agueda Jimenez put her legal training and
accounting skills to work in 1991 after she
was laid off from a job at an insurance
company. She opened Jimenez Market on
Union Street in Lynn at a time when the
street was crime-ridden and lined with
closed businesses.
With her family’s help, she expanded her
business into an accounting and notary public service. Jimenez
spent long days shuttling between the store counter and her backroom
office where she helped customers prepare tax forms and
deal with naturalization problems.
She was diagnosed in 1998 with a stress-related illness that
affected her muscles and limited her movement to a wheelchair.
Instead of quitting work, she moved her operational base to her
Mount Pleasant Street home and drew on her motto, “To succeed a
lot you have to sacrifice a lot” to continue working.
Jimenez is an active member of the Lynn community who has
given her time to St. Joseph’s Church, the Hispanic Festival
Committee, Essex County Community Organization, where she
helped spur improvements in Salem’s Point neighborhood, and
Lynn Economic Opportunity, where she served as treasurer.
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