Karina Struble, owner of Straight Line Painting. Photo by Marco Flores, JEFAS Magazine.
By Christina Fernández-Morrow
The women who raised Karina Struble in Talca, Chile — her single mother, grandmother, and aunts — taught her that courage isn’t the absence of fear; it’s moving forward in spite of it. Their influence propelled her from fry cook to owner of Omaha’s only Latina-led commercial and residential painting companies.
Roots in Chile: Lessons in Courage
Born during a brutal dictatorship, Struble learned to overcome fear at an early age. With limited access to higher education, she became an expert in survival. From hitchhiking her way to the beach for a moment of peace to teaching herself how to play instruments, she found lessons in circumstance. “I was not one for school,” she says. “But I’m always learning.” That drive now fuels Shaver Painting and Decorating and Straight Line Painting in Omaha.
Struble developed business skills through real-world experience, a foundation she continues to build on in her life and businesses. Arriving in the U.S. with $80 and a guitar, she found work cleaning homes within three days. She used that money to buy a bike to get to work in the Florida heat, and ate frozen pizzas so she could send money home to her mom and siblings. But cleaning is a solitary job. She wasn’t meeting people or learning English, both essential to thrive in the U.S.
A Mother’s Drive for Success
Inspired by motherhood, Struble took an overnight job at a burger chain. After her shift ended at 5 a.m., she had just enough time to shower and snuggle her infant son before heading to the local community college for English classes from 9 to 2. “My arms were covered in burns from the grease. I memorized the English menu and the prices so I could move into a different position taking orders,” she recalls. That brave and strategic move was the first of many that changed her life. Fifteen years later, she was supervising six restaurants, more than 200 employees and earning awards for her managerial skills.
The confidence Struble gained speaking up at the burger chain and the on-the-job training motivated her to persuade her husband to leave his job after their move to Omaha. They emptied their 401(k) and invested their savings into purchasing a painting business. “I no longer wanted a corporate job where the values did not align with mine,” she says. “I wanted to own my time, create my income, and spend time on things I enjoy like mentoring, training and self-development.”
Wanting more, Struble enrolled in entrepreneur classes at La Fuente Business Center, where she made connections in the home improvement industry.
Karina Struble, owner of Straight Line Painting. Photo by Marco Flores, JEFAS Magazine.
Building Businesses from Passion
After months of painting commercial walls alongside her crew, Struble felt something was missing. Her grandmother’s voice echoed: “Home is where the people you love spend the most time.” Commercial painting was profitable, but it wasn’t feeding her soul the way creating cozy family spaces could, so she shifted her focus, and thus, Straight Line Painting was born, transforming houses into welcoming homes like the women in her family created for her.
Struble envisions her future filled with mountain hikes and ocean sunsets, living her grandmother’s wisdom in ways the older woman never could have imagined. By helping subcontractors — especially women and those navigating language barriers — establish their own LLCs and avoid profit-draining middlemen, she’s creating a network of empowered entrepreneurs.
Turning Fear into Opportunity
Struble leads with a grateful heart, knowing how difficult it is battling the doubts that keep a lot of Latinas from pursuing their dreams.
The women who raised her in Chile planted seeds of bravery.
“Overcoming fear is a challenge. I decided not to listen to that childhood voice that said, ‘Without a degree you are no one.’ I turned my fear into courage, knowing what I am capable of,” she says.
As a token of her achievement, when Struble became a U.S. citizen she bought herself a new guitar. Every note she plays is a reminder of how far she’s come: from a young woman in Chile with little more than courage, to a business leader creating homes, opportunities, and hope. Her story is proof that acts of bravery, no matter how small, can paint a future filled with limitless possibilities.
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