Lorena Granado and partner Gaspar Román lost their home and leather goods business when bushfires swept through the heritage town of Mogo, 280 kilometres south of Sydney, on New Year's Eve.

The couple moved to Mogo more than 17 years ago to raise their three children and opened Roman Leathergoods, a shop dedicated to selling and repairing leather items.

Lorena has been instrumental in the Business Council’s BizRebuild program to rebuild Mogo, including the establishment of a pop-up mall. Along with other local business owners Lorena has helped to bring the business community back to Mogo.

As a community advocate, Lorena represents small businesses in fire affected communities, and has been on the frontline of both the impact and recovery efforts of Australia’s 2019-20 bushfire season.