LOS ANGELES — The food at Gogo's Tacos draws crowds and lines, but it also gives back to the community.

Ever since she was a little girl, Brittney Valles knew she wanted to be the kind of boss who helped not just her employees, but lots of people.

"I always knew that I wanted to be in charge and the boss of something," Valles said. "And I knew I wanted it to be something a little more hands-on."

Valles is staying true to that childhood dream as the owner of Gogo’s Tacos, a new taco stand that she created solely to fund and facilitate her goal of helping members of the community. It’s a social enterprise disguised as a taco stand.

Valles is already the owner of Guerilla Tacos, a popular, high-end taco restaurant in the city. Tacos is what she knows best. But after losing a friend, Juan Carlos Cantoni, to suicide in 2020, Valles said she needed more purpose in her work.

“Making great food is always a priority but, it wasn’t enough anymore. Having lost people, it wasn’t enough.”

So Valles created the Juan Carlos Cantoni Foundation alongside Gogo's Tacos. The foundation aims to support people between 18 and 28 years old in whatever they need to get a leg up.

“Like, what is it that you want to do?” Valles explained. "What are the barriers that are in your way that we can alleviate? And then helping them execute that. So if it’s like, 'I want to be a lawyer,' 'I want to be a doctor' or whatever, and maybe you don’t have the money for school, or maybe you don’t have the childcare because you have kids."

Coupled with a few angel investors to get the project going, a permanent 20% of all proceeds go towards funding the foundation.

One of the people in Valles’ program is Andrea Cano, a 19-year-old mother of two who wants to be an immigration lawyer.

“She’s helping me with my GED, with a tutor and to start going to college,” Cano said. “She’s motivating me and there to support me.”

In addition to helping her career, Cano’s goal also includes getting her kids out of their current neighborhood and set up in a home that’s more stable and safe.

“We want a home, a place for me, him, and my kids, and…we’re gonna do it,” Cano said, smiling with confidence.

Valles noted that in the first year of the program, she was able to help five people. Her goal for 2022 is to help nine more people like Cano.

"If we can just make things a little easier for people who have not generally had things easy, that’s the ultimate goal," Valles said.

In honor of her friend Juan Carlos, Valles hopes that Gogo’s Tacos, the social enterprise disguised as a taco stand, will make just a few more people feel supported in this world.

Applications for the 2022 Juan Carlos Cantoni Foundation are now open. To apply, visit here.