Podcasts about this is who i am

It's #PrideMonth again! And here we are nearly half way through the #YearOfUs and Pitney has tons of personal experience with all the good parts and the scary parts of coming out. Living authentically in the extremely homophobic 1980s sometimes meant violence, but mostly it meant a courageous and empowering THIS IS WHO I AM. That was your content warning.   Promos: FriGay the 13th https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frigay-the-13th/id1347721895 2 Skeptical Chaps http://www.2skepticalchaps.libsyn.com/ (Want to swap show promos? Email us!)   We love you for listening! Please take a moment to rate and review us, and earn a STICKER! (Everyone loves stickers!) And please subscribe or add us to your favorites list on your favorite platform so you never miss a show! And share us with your cool friends, not the lame ones.   Questions? Comments? Complaints?    Write to us at PitneyAndAmelia@gmail.com!  Tweet at us at @bitchenboutique! https://twitter.com/bitchenboutique Stay up to date by liking our Facebook page! https://www.facebook.com/Pitney-Amelias-Bitchen-Boutique-1082838478590821/   If you want to be supportive without a lot of stuff cluttering your feed, follow us on Instagram at @pitneyandamelia! https://www.instagram.com/pitneyandamelia/ And if you're feeling generous, buy yourself a little something at our merch shop and help to support our show! (Turn off that Content Filter to see the "uncensored" stuff!)  https://www.teepublic.com/stores/bitchen-boutique?ref_id=30433&utm_campaign=30433&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=Bitchen%2BBoutique     Who the heck are Pitney and Amelia? A gay guy and his fat friend talking about everything! We've got 40 YEARS of stories to share about stuff we love, stuff that annoys us, people we've known, places we've been, and things we've seen. Geeky, silly, and always opinionated. NAMES ARE CHANGED TO PROTECT THE GUILTY!     We may be awful, but we're right! Here, queer, and in your ear. Every other Friday.     The Bitchen Boutique is all about mental health and openness and honesty and if you're in crisis and in the US, call or text 988, or go to 988lifeline.org to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.  And if you just need some friends, you've got two right here. LGBTQIA+ | Comedy | Pop Culture | Fandom | Horror | Spirituality | Mental Health #ComingOutStories #ComingOut #GayPride  #LGBTQIAplus  #Comedy #PopCulture #Fandom  #Horror  #Spirituality #MentalHealth

Welcome to the Northgate Church Podcast! Nick Pengelly of the Northgate Leadership Team brings us this week's teaching titled "This Is Who I Am". This is a recording from our 10.30am service on 19th November 2023. Find out more about Northgate Church and how you can get involved: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://northgate.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ church@northgate.org.uk 01244 394670 Connect with us on social media: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://facebook.com/northgatechurchchester⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://instagram.com/northgatechurchchester⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/churchnorthgate

Chris Newbold:  Hello friends. Welcome to the Path to Well-Being In Law podcast, an initiative of the Institute for Well-Being In Law. I'm your co-host Chris Newbold. I'm always thrilled and to be with my co-host, Bree Buchanan. Bree, how are you doing?  Bree Buchanan:  Doing great, Chris. How are you?  Chris Newbold:  Good, good. As our listeners know, I just want to reset this. Every time we do a podcast, I think we're welcoming new listeners in to the wellbeing movement. And Bree, one of our passions is to continue to introduce thought leaders doing meaningful work in the wellbeing space within the legal profession and in the process build and nurture a national network of wellbeing advocates intent on creating a culture shift in the profession. And I think we are super excited about our guests today because the ability for us, I've always thought that the secret sauce of creating a culture shift in this profession is the ability to engage in storytelling and the realities of what people's lives have been like in law and to give people platforms to tell their story.  And we are really thrilled to be welcoming Julian Sarafian to the podcast, a noted social media influencer who is really a champion for mental health based upon his own personal story and what appeared to be just a straight direct success track in law. And so Bree, why don't I hand it off to you to introduce Julian, and we're really excited about where the conversation's going to take us today.  Bree Buchanan:  Absolutely. And I think Julian and his ability to do the storytelling and pull people in, and another thing I'm excited about, Julian, having you today is somebody that is of a younger generation than us because that's critical. One of the things I often say is that the legal profession will change. It will, because as the younger generations come up to positions of power, I truly believe they're not going to tolerate basically the working conditions that predominate through the legal profession right now. So it's inevitable. But I would say Julian is somebody who is accelerating that change to his work. So I'm going to give you a quick introduction of him and then we'll get to meeting Julian really quickly here. And I also will say, Julian, that you have such a humble bio. I am really impressed with that. So I try to refrain from pumping it up, but there's a lot of humility here and I see that as a great sign for somebody.  So Julian Sarafian is a lawyer and content creator, but owe so much more. That was my editorial. His law firm For Creators by Creators PC is the premier law firm focused on representing content creators and social media influencers. As a content creator himself, Julian produces videos and blog posts related to the legal profession, law and mental health on TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram where, drum roll here, his cumulative following is nearly 350,000. He's given multiple TEDx talks, the cost of success that he did dove into what originally made him viral, his mental health story as a high achiever who faced mental health challenges along the way, culminating in him quitting his job in Big Law during the COVID pandemic. And there's a story there. He has written and published op-ed pieces in the American Lawyer, Law360, Business Insider, Bloomberg Law, and CNBC. And his advocacy for mental health has been covered by the New York Times and Bloomberg Law. So Julian, welcome. We are so delighted that you're here with us today.  Julian Sarafian:  Thank you Bree and Chris for the very warm introduction, and I'm very happy to be here, excited to talk about these really important issues with you guys.  Bree Buchanan:  One of the things I really appreciate so much and looking at, thank you for giving me this excuse to spend a lot of time on TikTok, by the way.  Julian Sarafian:  Oh man. I don't know if I'll say you're welcome to that one.  Bree Buchanan:  But it's been, you really are such clearly a spokesperson for what I find is so important, which is humanizing the practice of law, realizing that we are human beings with basic needs and honoring that. And so tell us a little bit about why you're so passionate for this work, because it really does come through. You've been doing this work for a good number of years and are so consistent, never let up the throttle on this. So tell us your story.    Julian Sarafian:  Yeah, yeah, very happy to. And I'll give the shortened rundown version of the mental health story that you alluded to earlier, and this is the thing that brought me into social media. I've always been the stereotype and archetype of "success in academic world." Valedictorian in high school, UC, Berkeley in three years, worked at the White House when I was there, onto law school at Harvard, and now I'm in Big Law at 24 years old, making the $225,000 salary, including bonus at the time. But it wasn't all starry-eyed and fun and games on the inside. When I was studying for the LSAT, I had panic attacks. There were periods of extreme loneliness and isolation in college. I had a nausea and breathing disorder for most of my twenties. That was stress and anxiety induced, but I didn't know that at the time.  And throughout this entire period, the world is telling me, you're doing fricking awesome. You are getting the best grades, you're going to the best schools. You're getting the best job opportunities. You're a winner, Julian. This is exactly what you should be doing. Everything you're doing is right. Even though on the inside there was a lot of turmoil and my life in many ways could have been a lot more enjoyable and fulfilling. This culminated in the pandemic when I think I'm not alone as a lawyer or even as a professional when I say that it was a very tumultuous and rough period on the mental health front. Personally, I was stuck in the same room week after week after week after week. And Big Law at the time was only getting busier ironically, I think clients wanted a way to feel powerful and in control, and an easy way to do that was to boss around their Big Law associates and their attorneys that they have on staff.  So work accelerated. My mental health and the habits that I had built to this point in my mid-twenties were not sustainable, to put it mildly. That resulted in burnout. It resulted in anxiety developing and taking over more and more of my life, basically making me feel like I couldn't enjoy or even sit and relax something as simple as a TV show or a movie. And that eventually led to mild depression and feeling like everything was turning gray. I didn't feel like I had purpose anymore, and I felt completely helpless, no matter what I did to try to fix this it wasn't working, working out wasn't going to work, watching TV wasn't going to help, playing video games that didn't cure this. So I took the step of accepting, you know what? I have no idea what I'm doing here. I'm going to go and check myself with the mental health services with my then medical provider, Kaiser, and see what they say.  I get handed the diagnosis of severe anxiety and mild depression at the time, and it was definitely a wake-up call. Okay, this is a lot more serious than I realized. This is going to take a lot more effort, energy, and time to heal from and learn to manage than I originally thought. And so that led ultimately to me investing time in therapy, in journaling and meditation and all of these fundamentals that I encourage everybody out there to practice regardless of how they feel their mental health is, because I think it's just a good balance, especially in our day and age of being constantly overstimulated, speaking of TikTok, Bree, that's what that app is. And eventually it came to a point where I felt like I was gaining a lot more out of my time spent advocating and working on my mental health than I was doing the Big Law associate corporate job at my old firm, Wilson Sonsini, which was frankly earning me a big paycheck and looking good on a resume, but I didn't find the work intrinsically gratifying or fulfilling.  And certainly the culture was not one, in my opinion, that was steeped in innovation, pushing the envelope or prioritizing wellbeing. And that's not to say that Wilson specifically was bad, if anything, I think my old firm is excellent in that regard, but it's an industry-wide phenomenon, which I'm sure we're going to talk about in this conversation. So I ended up quitting that job outright, not knowing what I was going to do next, posted my mental health story, which I just described to you on LinkedIn, out of the blue and on a whim, no real impetus or motivation behind it other than if this helps one person, then great. Because I went through this and I think it's important for people to know that, and ended up going viral. I get thousands of messages supporting me, telling me that it made a huge impact on people's lives, and I see that there's clearly value here.  And I ran with that momentum. I went onto every social media platform that I could think of. I wrote articles about mental health, and I continued telling my story everywhere that I could, which led me ultimately to TikTok of all places, which at the time in 2021 for a millennial like me was, isn't that the dancing app for people in Gen Z? But it's very much more than that. And it's been the engine of growth for thousands of creators. And now being a creator, myself and attorney for creators, we can talk about that angle of its importance and relevance. But to make the answer short, Bree, I think the thing that led me to social media was the importance of advocating for mental health because I thought that it was important for other people out there who may be going through similar things that I went through to know that they're not alone, number one. And to know number two, that there is a path out of it and that there is a sense of community out there for them that welcomes them.  Now, that said, when it comes to humanizing the legal profession, it's been an unfortunate reality in my own platform building that talking about mental health for 60 seconds versus talking about a Big Law firm for 30 seconds, the first video is going to get 5,000 views, the second one's going to get 50,000 views. And this was something that I realized and faced very early on in my creation career, a constant tension between what people actually want to hear and in my opinion, what is more relevant and pertinent and important and purposeful. And so I don't mind, and I have no issue unpacking the legal profession for folks outside of it who don't have easy access to a lawyer that they know. Our profession is very buttoned up, it's very guarded. And I think because of its extreme importance in how we function as a society, it's really important that people understand the basics of how it works and what it means. So anyway, long-winded answer, but happy to continue. Go from there.  Chris Newbold:  Yeah. When we think about going to law school, when we think about what practicing law is going to be like, when we think about success, when we think about all those things, I think I continue to remain convinced, and we've talked about it on this podcast before, that there's this notion of an expectations gap as to what you think it's going to be versus what it is. And then the natural realities that once that sets in, you made a very bold move to depart and to leave. I think a lot of folks in your situation stay cross their fingers, turn to self coping mechanisms and other things that just then start to couch them.  When we think about wellbeing, when Bree and I do, we try to think about it in a holistic, how do we set people up for professional success? And then just that reality that oftentimes more often than not, there's just a lot of people in our profession that when you ask them whether they're professionally satisfied, the answer is no. Yet they stay and endure. And I don't want to say they suffer, but they suffer and oftentimes they suffer in silence. Is that fair based upon your followers and what you're seeing from your community?  Julian Sarafian:  Yes, it's exactly correct. And it's what I saw in the industry in Big Law when I was there. And I think again, at my old firm, I was at one of the better places that was more human. It was a West Coast based law firm. I worked with the most relaxed, relatively speaking, and most humane partners. And yet I could still see in so many of these partners' eyes and the way that they carry themselves, the inherent unhappiness and not being able to spend more time with their family, or in my associate colleagues feeling like they were trapped and not knowing what to do or feeling powerless to make a change.  And it's no surprise if I say I think that lawyers tend to be risk averse people. And I think that combination of being so risk averse with the system that we're going to discuss but has a lot of things pushing against folks' wellbeing, especially in Big Law, it creates a perpetual cycle of folks feeling trapped, feeling powerless, feeling hopeless, and like you said, turning to self coping mechanisms a lot of the time looking like substance abuse disorder, which is rampant in the profession, certainly binge-drinking and these days, I think increasingly marijuana use and even opioids.  Chris Newbold:  Yeah. Julian, your story again, it feels like your first viral video was your three minute, This Is Me, This Is Who I Am, This Is My Story, launched or struck a nerve with a community that has built into a following, and I'm just very interested in how that occurred, and how you embraced that and how your followers have reacted to not just your story, but now your position as the champion for mental health.  Julian Sarafian:  Yeah, I think social media to some degree is a formula. So when I first started it was experimenting with having fun while trying to advocate for mental health. Let me do a skit that roasts Harvard kids for avoiding saying Harvard when they're asked, because it's fun. Why not? It's so different than what I was doing in my old job. It was refreshing. But then let me do a trend and talk about three signs that you might have anxiety, see how that goes. But I saw over time that something that really sticks on the app is raw authenticity and being vulnerable and showing up in front of the camera as a human being as you are and just saying your piece, whatever that is. Clearly I knew what that was for me at the time, and I still do. It's not like it's changed a whole lot.  It's showing people that outside the sheen of everything that they look at and think is the greatest and the perfection and what they aspire to be, that it could be much darker on the other side. And it's something that many people refuse or don't ever talk to because their pride gets in the way or they're afraid that people will judge them or things of that nature. So you're right. When I initially posted my mental health story, that was the first thing that went viral. It got me up to, I think 12,000 followers let's say, but I didn't stop there. I continued that narrative and that discussion of tearing down what you think success is people and what it actually can look like on the other side. And I continued telling my mental health story in different ways, wearing a suit in one video, embellishing certain parts and focusing on other elements of grief, for example, or the pressure of going to law school and the videos continue to go viral time after time after time again.  Obviously it was a lot to adjust to at first suddenly having hundreds of thousands of followers, none of whom I know. These are people that chose to hit the button on the internet. I couldn't tell you the first thing about them for the most part, other than that they're an incredibly supportive group of folks, and many of them relate to what I was talking about in one way or the other, be it because they're a high achiever or they've struggled with schizophrenia or they have a family member that they've lost to suicide. I think all of them felt connected to what I said in some capacity, and that drew them to me initially. And in the long run, they've been only supportive and kind both to each other and to me as the leader and creator of the community.   Bree Buchanan:  That's really so impressive. And I'm not surprised, I guess I'm a believer in the goodness of people. And when you create a community around that, we do see that. And I'm just wondering what kinds of strategies you've used around your mental health and just in life and being your very best that you've shared with them that seemed to resonate.  Julian Sarafian:  Yeah. Honestly, this part of the discussion I think is a lot more boring than some people would prefer because a lot of it is the basics. It's 10 minutes of meditating every day. It's going to therapy and accepting that you don't have the answers, and that's okay. It's reading books about mental health to educate yourself and gain perspective. It's journaling when you feel overwhelmed. And probably the most important, especially for high achievers who struggle with chronic overwork is learning how to set adequate boundaries. Because certainly for myself, being a chronic workaholic my whole life, you build habits of consistently and continually multitasking for one. And on top of that, when you're always working, you don't really need to set boundaries because you're always working. That's the default. When you're not working, okay, you're not working for those X number of hours per day.  But the problem with building those habits and lack of boundaries is that it bleeds into everything else in your life, your personal relationships, the way that you manage things outside of work, even basic things like exercise and dieting and eating well. And if you don't set those boundaries in the long run, that's how things become really dangerous when you don't feel inspired or fulfilled by your work, which a lot of lawyers, as we've discussed don't, and that makes these mental health conditions and the misery exponentially worse. So I think if I had to summarize it in one sentence, what's resonated the most with my community is remembering to take things slower and that that's okay.  Bree Buchanan:  Great. Wonderful.  Chris Newbold:  Julian, is there anything that you've learned from your audience, from your followers that you've found either interesting or insightful as you continue to see their stories come back to you?  Julian Sarafian:  Yeah. For me, the biggest thing is that there are always more people than you realize out there that are struggling that you'll never know. So many people message and comment about being in similar situations where they feel isolated and alone, that no one understands what they're going through, that everybody thinks that they're one thing, but on the inside they feel a certain way. And for me, that's just a constant reminder of the trope that you hear when you're young, that you should never judge a book by its cover because you have doctors and high power lawyers, partners in law firms that reach out to me, Am Law 50 firms who tell me in a similar vein that everybody thinks one thing of them, but they don't think the same way and they don't feel the same way to a point that it's very concerning for them.  Bree Buchanan:  Imposter syndrome at the highest levels.  Julian Sarafian:  Some of that certainly yes, definitely. And also a mismatch of I think their internal sense of worth and what they want versus the external validators that they're receiving, which are very easy to define themselves by. What I mean is being a partner of a Am Law 50 firm as an example, it's going to be hard for somebody not to be impressed by that. And they're going to get respect from everybody around them. They're going to get praise, they're going to get a ton of money, they're going to get power and influence. All of those things are external validators telling them, this is good. This is what you want. This is positive. We like this. But on the inside, that's probably not what they really want in some cases. And no number of external validators can change that and will alter that feeling. They have to take action to find something else that better resonates with them.  Bree Buchanan:  Yeah, big disconnect.  Chris Newbold:  Julian, one of the interesting things, I think, a couple weeks ago I spoke in front of the National Conference of Bar Presidents on the future of wellbeing, and one of my observations was that one of the things that has me optimistic about where things are going is a couple things. One, that society's talking about mental health more, just more engagingly everywhere in all facets of life. That's good that more people are telling their stories, more people are hitting the pause button saying, I have an issue. I need a space to be able to talk and clear that before I reengage. That's healthy.  And then the other part that I think is, Bree mentioned earlier is there's a generational shift that's clearly in play right now in society and in particular the legal profession. You got the baby boomer generation that's reaching that retirement age, although retirement sometimes doesn't come traditionally for most lawyers. And I'm curious about just some of your perceptions on the incoming generation of lawyers that we're going to entrust the legal system too, and as it relates to wellbeing, some different opinions frankly about what they're hoping to have as an experience as a lawyer or in law or sitting on the bench or whatever they ultimately pursue. I just think that there's some things that are in play that are very different than historically have been the norm.  Julian Sarafian:  Yeah, I think that's exactly right. Our generation and certainly the younger generation realizes that the world moves really fast. And in our day and age, especially with social media, you can become an entrepreneur from your bedroom with a camera in a month making six figures a year just like that if you know what you're doing and if you create valuable content. And that's just one example of the way that innovation in our current day and age leads to economic opportunity and prosperity. All of this means when they work really hard, when we work tremendously hard to get into the best law schools, to get the best grades, to get the best Big Law summer associateships and full-time jobs, when we get there, there is some expectation, some, that the firms are going to be high caliber, are going to be innovative, are going to be pushing the envelope, are going to represent that level of thinking, analytical mindset and hustle that got us to that associate position.  That's certainly what I expected, and it was something that I was disappointed to find when I got there that as you mentioned earlier in our conversation, our profession is very slow to change and it's very resistant to change. And because of that, there is, I think, a shock factor that hits people in their twenties. We're talking about the younger generation of attorneys when they get there as a first year associate and they realize we're doing things operationally that we could have improved on 20 years ago, the culture seems to be stuck in the mid 2000s. Why are we still using email when we could use project management software like Asana, for example, that's more efficient? And I think the folks that get impatient and try to change it from within, myself as one of them, eventually self-select themselves out of that industry because of this frustration, because we're devoting the vast majority of our living waking hours to this employer.  And clearly it's a transaction, we get money in return, but when we put in all of our energy and purpose and time into this institution, we want it to match similar values to the ones that we have. And when they're too slow or they're too dismissive of what the younger generation thinks, because that's just not the way we did things last year, that's just not the way we do things, period. It doesn't encourage buy-in or build morale amongst the younger associates and the younger generations of lawyers. And what will probably result in the longterm is an increase in folks flocking to the areas of the legal profession that are more open to innovation and more open to new ways and lines of thinking and more focused on wellbeing. For one example, being a solo practitioner like myself, I never expected to be a solo practitioner when I quit my job in Big Law. And yet here I am in large part because I enjoy legal work, just not on the terms that Big Law was offering.  And being a solo practitioner, obviously you can run your own schedule, but it's not just being a solo practitioner, it's going in-house at progressive companies. It's starting a smaller firm with multiple associates at the same time. And I think that self-selection is important, but it's also important to note that when we're talking about Big Law specifically, I don't see it changing much in the long-term or even the midterm because I think the people that stay in it, even from my generation and the younger generations, I think are ones that are more or less okay with what the culture offers and what that lifestyle is like. And so though there will be movement on the edges, more benefits for folks to get therapists, maybe a mental health day here and there, maybe a reduction in the billable hour requirements, I think it's going to be really, really slow and too little, too late for a lot of people who value the things that I've been discussing earlier, innovation and open-mindedness, et cetera, et cetera.  Chris Newbold:  So the sense there is that they would look to make sure that people knew what they were getting into and find that group of folks that are willing to do that.  Julian Sarafian:  Yes, that's right. And the people who are not willing to do it will self-select themselves out, like myself and many colleagues at my level, good friends of mine who were like-minded all left the industry too.  Bree Buchanan:  And many women, for example, are leaving or self-selecting out too, because it's just not, what they get in return is not worth what they're asked to give up basically.   Julian Sarafian:  Yes. A 100%.  Bree Buchanan:  It's a huge issue right now. I'll just say we having a high level discussion and about these things and the image that's popping into my mind, Julian, is one of your TikToks where talking about the inefficiencies and old school style of law firms where you're going on about having to go through and insert Oxford commas-  Chris Newbold:  Oh, yes.   Bree Buchanan:  ... a thousand pages or something. That was just such a great little demonstrative piece there. I love that.  Julian Sarafian:  Oh yeah. And among many other stories, one of the moments I had before quitting that made me really realize I had other things I wanted to do was spending 45 minutes copy and pasting entries from an Excel document into a Word document and billing a client, whatever it was, 750 an hour for it. And that was the task. That was what I was expected to be doing. That was good job, Julian. And in the same period of time I realized I could write an article about getting into law school and probably help some underprivileged kid out there reframe their expectations. What am I doing? Copy and pasting for a big paycheck. Yeah.  Chris Newbold:  Well, Bree, should we take a quick break? And I think this is a good time, obviously so this podcast is being sponsored by ALPS Malpractice Insurance. Obviously that's my employer, so I'll be a little favorable to that. And it's interesting that one of the things that we see at ALPS is, again, a large number of folks coming into the solo space and the small firm space looking for something different, looking for something that has the type of balance that they're seeking. So it reflects, Julian, a little bit of your own personal journey of just that reality of maybe there's a different pathway for me and maybe it is in an area that has a little bit more flexibility and balance. And so I think that's interesting. So let's take a quick break and we'll be right back.  Okay. We're back with Julian Sarafian and who's just got a really compelling personal story and has leveraged that story into becoming a champion for mental health, particularly through social media channels. Julian, I think it's fair to say that one of the things that's resonated in your ability to attract a following has been, one, your authenticity, and two, your willingness to be a truth teller when it comes to the realities of the legal profession. Tell us again, just your perspective on both where the profession is today, what some of your inclinations are about where it's heading. And I know you probably to be more likely an optimist than a pessimist, but just tell us what you see on the horizon as you think about this particular issue and the intersection of our ability as lawyers to deliver in a high functioning legal system.  Julian Sarafian:  Yeah. Well, I think you're right, Chris, that I am an optimist and just since I quit my role in Big Law and started speaking out, I can't count the number of stories of similar folks that have come forward on and off social media talking about similar issues, the lack of purpose, feeling like there was other things in life calling them, realizing that being locked into this bubble of working as a mid-size law firm or Big Law attorney or even solo practitioner just wasn't for them, and they wanted to explore other things. On top of that, social media has accelerated the ability for culture to be built and normalized in not just the legal profession, but everywhere. And what that does has, and what it will continue to do is shed a light on, first of all toxicity. And one example I think that's prominent as of late is the Barbara Rainin scandal where folks had sent racist and sexist emails around and the internet went wild over it. And I don't know what these folks are doing now, but certainly I can promise you they're not well-liked in the public sphere.  Things like that for me speak to the power that every individual has in our system to use their voice to both inspire other people and call out toxic or unreasonable expectations or habits that folks in the profession put on them, which in the long term I think will lead to mental health and wellbeing and being more reasonable with our expectations on ourselves, being cool and being normal and being the default setting. And those are the things that we need to make happen if we want these old ideologies to fall by the wayside. And I think it will happen and it already is happening. It's just going to take time for that culture shift to actually impact institutional policy and the structural incentives, for example, the billable hour that I think are holding the profession back irrespective of the culture, but I am optimistic and I think it's only going to get better from where we are now, and it's already gotten a lot better in my perspective in the last few years since the pandemic and coming out of it.  Bree Buchanan:  Yeah, I'm glad you said those two words, billable hour and the third rail of the legal profession here, and since you invoked it, I was going to ask you about it anyway, but what about that and any other barriers you see that are just endemic to life in Big Law, but the billable hours, something that people say, if we could just change that-  Julian Sarafian:  Yeah. Well, I think the problem is in the American culture of work, the goal is to be number one at all times and make infinite money, period. Legitimately that's the goal. There's never a target, okay, for any business or firm, certainly the most competitive amongst us. It's make as much as possible. And when you tie your revenue to the number of hours that you work, which is what the billable hour is, this is the result that we get. When you mix that with the American culture of work, it's chronic overwork, it's continually billing all the time because you want to make more money for your boss, or the partner wants to make more money for themselves, or you want to look really good for your senior associate because you want to go up for partner eventually, and you know that that will help. All of it comes down to money, and the reason that it comes down to money is because it's being tied to the hours that we work.  On top of that, there are psychological damages that come with the billable hour structure. When I was in Big Law, I remember thinking every day, okay, I could either get lunch with a friend for 30 minutes or bill half an hour. I'm going to probably bill half an hour most of those times because every moment that you weren't working felt like an opportunity cost to be getting more work done and hitting that target for your bonus, or again, looking better for your bosses. You mentioned things that firms or the industry can do to push back or help restructure itself to avoid some of these problems. For the life of me, I can't tell you why firms don't do this, but this is partially why I left the industry. It would be the easiest thing in the world to just create different segments of salary and bonus structure based on how many hours you bill.  This is basic math. I'm talking fourth grade math. Okay. If you bill 1500 hours, you get paid a 150. If you get 1700, you get paid a 170. You hit 1950, you get paid 200. And magically suddenly, I think firms will find, okay, if we make less money from this person, that's fine because we also pay them less. The try hards are going to continue to try hard because that's what they want to do and they want to make more money, but there won't be an inherent pressure on every single associate to fall in line and work their tail off. There also won't be an intra competitive mindset amongst associates to out bill each other or a stigma, oh, you didn't hit the bonus, you're screwed. That's a big no-no, you're not going to rise up the partner now, and you're probably not even well liked. You'd get rid of all of that.  Instead, you'd have a more healthy system of people who, okay, they want to work a little bit less hard, they'll make less money for it, and that's okay. Before I quit my job in Big Law, I actually went part-time at Wilson, and part-time in Big Law is literally that, it's a pro rata percentage of hours that you take on is the percentage of the salary full-time that you receive. I don't see any reason why that sort of structure cannot be institutionalized broadly, not just in Big Law, but in Midlaw and small-law too. And I think that that would just give people a lot more autonomy and feel a lot more in control of their own destiny, which can help alleviate a lot of these pressures.  Bree Buchanan:  Yeah. And the consulting that I do with Big Law, I see a real issue around the billable hour, and it's not just it in and of itself, it's the lack of transparency around what the law firms really want. And so like you said, the default is that you just keep working. When you're not really clear what's expected of you, then you always, always just work.  Julian Sarafian:  Pretty much.  Bree Buchanan:  Yeah.  Julian Sarafian:  Well, and honestly, I don't know if the firms even know what they want to be blunt. The partners are moving around half the time to other firms because they're getting offered more money, and the partners themselves are overworked.  Bree Buchanan:  Absolutely.  Julian Sarafian:  If the leadership team is overworked and can't spend inadequate amount of time thinking and processing what the community, broadly speaking, needs, we shouldn't be surprised that things are getting lost in the shuffle.  Chris Newbold:  And Julian, is that a business model reality or is it just a lack of an awareness to one, talk about what the employee's objectives are versus what the firm's objectives are and to make sure that those are in part aligned?  Julian Sarafian:  Yeah, go on.   Chris Newbold:  Well, I was just going to say is it... Because it still seems like we're lacking the conversation as to what the collective ambitions are, and again, there's an employer and an employee, and so there is a power dynamic there, but that doesn't necessarily mean that both objectives can't be met if there's transparency and communication on the front end.  Julian Sarafian:  That's exactly right. Big Law and many law firms, not just Big Law, will tout themselves on annual growth rates of 10%. Okay, let's go to the other side of the economic spectrum of technology companies or startups where 10% means that your stock is going to nose dive because that's a joke, 10% for some of the smartest, you're telling me the smartest, most ambitious, hardworking lawyers all in the same bucket and under the same umbrella, you can only grow 10% a year? What are you guys doing? But they tout themselves and they're proud of that because as a collective that is, let's just do what we did last year. That's the norm. It's a short-term model of thinking, in part because I think partners are looking at their own paychecks, they're compensated based on the performance of the firm that year. They're not going to see the value in generating long-term revenue 10 years from now because they're looking one year ahead.  So to your point, I think the cost of training a new associate is something to the tune of $200,000. By the time an associate is a mid-level in Big Law as an example, that is the most profitable time for the law firm, when nearly 80 to 90% of their worked hours and billed hours is pure profit. When these firms don't curate themselves or open themselves up to what the younger generation, junior associates have been asking for basic things, more strict boundaries on weekends, maybe a more flexible dinner reimbursement policy, all of these collective things that lead them out the door before they reach that mid-level stage, the firm loses hundreds of thousands of dollars in potential revenue. I'm just one example of the type of person that I didn't dislike the practice of law. I do a very similar practice now on my own.  I would've stayed if certain conditions were being met, if I felt that the culture were more cohesive, that associates were taken care of, that there was a long-term vision that included me in it, rather than what felt like a very short-term model in between distractions meant to, Bree, to your point, shield leadership from being truly transparent with the younger ranks. So I think in the long run, it's something that technology companies figured out a long time ago, that happier employees are more productive employees, more productive employees generate more value for the business, but the legal profession hasn't really cared to adopt that, and so I think it's pretty obvious that it would be financially beneficial to them in the long run. But that requires long-term thinking. And I question if these firms-  Bree Buchanan:  That's right. That's right.  Julian Sarafian:  ... I question if these firms really have that or care about it, because truthfully, the people leading them are folks that are looking at their annual paycheck every year, and some of them, dare I say, have no real loyalty to the institution of the firm because when another firm comes along next year and offers them three million more for their book of business, they jump.  Bree Buchanan:  Yeah. Yeah, I was about to just comment on that. Absolutely.  Chris Newbold:  Well, good. Julian, I guess the last thing that I just wanted to explore is, again, thinking about creating a culture shift in our profession. It could take decades, it could take, there needs to be education awareness. We know that that's probably at its peak right now relative to historical norms, a lot more folks doing, it's hard to not go to a state bar annual meeting in your jurisdiction and not hear something or see something about wellness. That's good. That doesn't necessarily amount to a culture shift, but it's definitely a precursor to most social movements that there needs to be an education awareness, understanding and appreciation that there's a problem and that we can all be part of the solution. So there's that element of it.  I have to think that some of the work that you do on social media has the potential to be an accelerator of that culture shift, because again, you're providing platforms for people to come forward, tell stories, share experiences, and the more that we normalize those experiences, the more that we can appreciate that it's okay to come forward and share those experiences because that will serve as a catalyst to change. As you think about the future, how do you think about that and how do we try to do this more quickly than await decades if we're really serious about achieving a mission of putting wellbeing as a core centerpiece of professional success?  Julian Sarafian:  Well, first of all, I think what you guys are doing with your work in providing a platform like this podcast and opening up a space for these conversations, that's incredibly important. Working directly in the space, creating content about it, starting the conversations with employers or colleagues or friends, all of that is crucial. But in the longterm, I think the power of the internet and what social media provides is, and this is changing, but right now I still believe this is true. If you post a piece of content, you're entering the 1% of the folks on social media who are creators, whereas 99% of people on the internet are consumers. And so my platform and what I've built with advocating for mental health, breaking down barriers in the legal profession, in some ways, I hate to say it, but it's not that special. When I talk about Big Law firms and what people talk about and what Cravath feels like on the inside, these are things that everybody in my law school talked about openly and knew about, but they just never cared to put that on social media or talk about it openly.  And I understand that there's a lot of apprehension with putting yourself out there on the internet and with social media. The Internet's written in ink. You can't take back what you say, and it will potentiall chase you around forever, and you have haters who are going to potentially disagree with you and attack your character or how you look, et cetera, et cetera. But at the same time, you can be part of that process and inspire who knows how many people with a simple post, even reminding your own network about the importance of mental health and wellbeing. It doesn't need to be a tell all mental health, raw vulnerability story like I did. It could just be an insight that somebody learned talking to a colleague about how Big Law wasn't always cracked up to be, or I'm a lawyer and I thought I'd love the work, but it turns out it's really draining.  The more conversations and the more courage that we can have to bring these things to light, I think the more encouraged and inspired other people will be to do the same and to actually accept where they are at, which in the long run will lead to the important thing, which is action, putting pressure on employers, signing onto petitions, attending wellbeing conferences, supporting creators who talk about these issues, writing and creating content about wellness in the legal profession and its importance, or just crafting and being part of leadership initiatives in state bar associations, for example, to help the process move forward. So I think something that everybody can do at a baseline is talk about the issues. And if they're feeling courageous enough post about it digitally, even if it's something they've never done before.  Bree Buchanan:  Lots of tales of courage here. It takes a lot of... Yeah. Especially-  Julian Sarafian:  The internet right now is not a fun place.  Bree Buchanan:  Yeah. Yeah.  Julian Sarafian:  Let's be clear, in 10, 15 years, I think it will be, and I think LinkedIn is the safest platform right now, but when you normalize anonymity and the ability of people to say things behind masks, which is what TikTok and Twitter and Reddit are all pretty much normalized, have normalized, it could be ruthless on top of the harass of effects. If you talk about something controversial and have people harass your home and send police to your door and all that, it's not a great system we have right now, and our 9,000 year old Congress folk have yet to regulate it adequately. So I'm not holding my breath on that one, at least right now.  Bree Buchanan:  Absolutely.  Chris Newbold:  Well, awesome. Julian, thank you for joining us on the podcast.  Bree Buchanan:  Thank you so much.  Chris Newbold:  We certainly want to continue to build bridges with you and between I Will and other influencers like you. Again, I think it's a critical component to what we're working to do, to be inclusive of the strategies and the techniques that have really proven to be so successful for you and your aspirations to do your part, and sharing your own personal story and sharing that authentically with your followers. And again, so many of them are coming forward with reciprocally and sharing their stories back. That's the type of, I think, interaction that does lend itself toward culture shift. And we're very thankful for the work that you're doing.  Bree Buchanan:  Absolutely. Thank you, Julian, for your work and your courage.  Julian Sarafian:  You're very welcome guys, and the feeling is very mutual.  Chris Newbold:  All right, so we'll be back in a couple of weeks. Bree and I are exploring some variations in doing some different things with the podcast, introducing some different segments and so forth. Again, storytelling a big part of what we want to be able to aspire to do. Start making some predictions, start focusing on some of the research that's coming out in the wellbeing and law space. There's just a lot of opportunity for us to be able to, as Julian said, get more content out there into the public domain and be initiators of dialogue in this important area. So we hope that you'll tune in for that. So signing off, be well out there, friends. Thank you.  Bree Buchanan:  Take care.   

     Bridgette Williams is an entrepreneur who allows divine inspiration to guide her, and it hasn't steered her wrong yet. Currently, she owns two thriving businesses. Bridgette's latest product of divine intervention is Demhaj Poetry Lounge, located in High Point, NC.       The name Demhaj is significant for many reasons. “When I first conceived the idea of the coffee shop, I remember thinking about how much love and joy my son brought me so that I would name the business after him. I wanted people to feel what I felt in a way.  My son's name is Jahmed, so I said I would name the shop Demhaj (Dem-hage),” Bridgette said with a little lift.       “The first time the idea about a poetry lounge and coffee shop came to me, I was a young mother and met a woman named Teresa at the social services department,” Bridgette shared. “I was sitting in the waiting room, and there was this older woman staring at me. So, I smiled and introduced myself. We started talking, and she told me she was a poet.” This intrigued Bridgette because she had been writing poetry since she was thirteen years old.       “Writing was a therapeutic outlet for me. I have drawers full of poems I've written over the years.” As a result of Bridgette's passion for poetry, she and Teresa found an instant kinship that exists to this day. “Teresa was one of the first people I shared my vision about the poetry lounge with. I told her I wanted to create a space where people could come together and express themselves while enjoying each other's company. I asked myself, ‘What brings people together? Coffee.'” The idea came to Bridgette in 2003, but it would be eighteen years before she would see it come to life.       “It's funny how you plan to do something, and God redirects you,” Bridget laughed. “In middle school, I was part of a mentorship program. A young lady from North Carolina A&T State University came, and she had such a positive effect on me. She made me want to do something with my life. I was so inspired by her that I wanted to become a mentor.”      After graduating high school, Bridgette started at Winston-Salem State University in Winston-Salem, NC. Still very passionate about helping others through mentorship, she enrolled in a program to become a certified mentor. “Rebuilding the Walls of Hope was the name of the faith-based mentorship training program I attended. Marie Carter led it,” Bridgette explained. Her goal was to start her own mentorship program for troubled teens eventually. But when she started planning, Bridgette was led in a different direction.       “When I say led, I mean God literally redirected me to something completely different from what I thought I wanted to do. I was playing around with names for the mentorship program, and God started dealing with me about a home health care agency,” Bridgette said, laughing as she remembered the unexpected and confusing shift. “Before I knew it, God had given me a name and a plan on how to start a home healthcare agency. I knew it was God because I had no idea how to start or run this kind of business.”      In 2006 Faithful Nurses Healthcare Inc. was born.  It's been seventeen years since Bridgette followed God and launched her first business, and it's still going strong. After starting the home healthcare agency, Bridgette switched her degree to nursing. But the demands of being a young wife and mother caused her to leave college a year short of graduating.       “Life was very demanding during that time. Anyone who knew me before then knew the “happy, fun-loving, and easy-going” Bridgette, but I think somewhere along the way, I lost my spark,” Bridgette admits.      In 2021 Bridgette found herself as a single parent. Bridgette was living life with no net or restraints for the first time in over twenty years. Over the years, she continued to share with her family and friends her vision for the poetry and coffee shop.      Newly single, with her only son in college, Bridgette was in unfamiliar territory. “Everything was different. I was on my own, my son was independent, and for the first time in twenty-one years, I could think about what I wanted and what would make me happy. I won't say it was easy,” Bridgette admitted. “I had to overcome the fear of failing. This would be the first time I did something like this alone. After what I'd gone through, I wasn't ready to have one of my lifelong dreams fail.”      Bridgette decided to step out on faith, putting everything she had behind her new business venture. Since her son had heard her say for years that she would open this café, he didn't take her seriously initially, but after seeing the energy she was putting out, he soon got on board.       “It seemed as if as soon as I chose to trust God with my dream, he put everything into place,” Bridgette shared. “Since opening the Demhaj Poetry Lounge, I have my smile back. The spark that made me, me, is back, and I'm grateful. From the moment a customer walks in, I pray they can feel the love, peace, and genuine joy I feel daily. Demhaj is not just a place to get great coffee. It's a place where people from every walk of life can come and feel comfortable expressing themselves, meet new people, and enjoy being part of something beautiful.” To learn more about Demhaj Poetry Lounge, you may visit their website at www.demhajpoetrylounge.com  You may also call them directly at 336-307-4105 To learn more about Faithful Nurses Health Care, you may visit their website at www.faithfulnurse.com or by calling them directly at 1-888-598-1882 ext 2, or by calling 704-598-1882 ext 2   To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram. You may also follow this podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.

The natural hair revolution has begun, and Black women are fully embracing it. It's common to see black women wearing their natural hair in all its curly, coarse, silky, and robust glory. Companies that cater to the naturalist with products that promise to promote healthy growth and beautiful locs and tresses are also becoming more and more commonplace. So many products claim to be good for natural hair but are petroleum jelly with fragrance and ground sage. With so many options, how do we decide which products to use and what to look for? Porscha Davis, owner and proprietor of The Salon by Porscha Danielle, is a natural hair stylist who has made it her mission to cut through all the hype. As a seventeen-year veteran in the styling industry, she has a lot of wisdom to offer, but surprisingly becoming a hair stylist wasn't on her “when I grow up” list. “As a kid, I never thought about cosmetology as something I wanted to do.  It just wasn't an interest of mine.  I didn't learn how to braid until college,” Porscha explains. “A guy friend of mine came and asked me to braid his hair. I was like, ‘I don't know how,' and I was okay with that,” Porscha said, laughing. “But he insisted I braid his hair.  Finally, my suitemate came in and wanted to know what the commotion was about.  I told her what was happening, and she said, ‘Oh, that's easy. I can teach you.' So, she did. And it was absolutely horrible!” she scoffed. “But I kept trying, and eventually, it got better. Then other guys started asking me to braid their hair. I initially said no, but then they offered to pay, and the rest is history.”  Porscha continued to practice braiding until it became her “side hustle.” We all had one in undergrad. It wasn't until she had a frank conversation with her mother, did Porscha see becoming a stylist as a real option.  Today Porscha is a professional hairstylist and event promoter.  Her salon is located in Greenville, South Carolina, and is known as, The Salon by Porscha Danielle.  As a natural hair stylist, she has no shortage of clients, but it is time to look toward the future.  On June 4th, 2022, Porscha hosted her first Knotty-N-Natural Hair Festival. Owning a hair salon and styling hair are not the only things important to Porscha.  She is committed to serving her community and hundreds and thousands of people at once.  With the Knotty-N-Natural Hair Festival, she is able to do that.  “A lot of people have a lot of questions regarding natural hair.  With the festival, I am able to connect trusted vendors who have trusted products with individuals who need their questions answered,” she says.   The 2022 Knotty-N-Natural Hair Festival hosted over 500 guests. Porscha projects that the 2023 festival will see over 2,000 guests. Porscha states, “It's getting bigger and better. This festival is not just about hair, but it's a safe space for us to come and explore what is beautiful about us (black Americans).” To learn more about the Knotty-N-Natural Hair Festival, please visit www.knottynnatural.com  You may also contact Porscha Davis at 864-501-5112.  If you are in Greenville, SC, please stop by her salon, The Salon by Porscha Danille, at 637 Congaree Road.   To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may also follow us on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box. You may also follow this podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box. For advertising opportunities, please call 336-340-7844, or send a detailed email to huamimagazine@gmail.com

In this weeks episode, Pastor Randy continues his sermon through 1 Corinthians in a sermon entitled "This Is Who I Am."

Before the 2020-21 pandemic, the stigmas around mental health were alive and well. As the world was becoming increasingly aware of the realities of mental health, it was still easier to put those who suffered into neat categories that could be explained away. As the global community adjusts to life post-pandemic, we find that the truth about mental health issues is that anyone can suffer from them. Add to it the stress and anxiety brought on when the world was paused for a year, and we see a new level of “woke.” But now that our eyes are open, what do we do? Reketta Brown, a North Carolina Licensed Professional Counselor with over twenty years of experience and her new initiative, is here to help answer that question. Thrive Foundation is a Guilford County-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that educates children, families, and the community on the importance of mental health awareness. This next level in servicing our communities wasn't something that just happened. “I've been sitting on this nonprofit for about three years,” Reketta explained. “Where Wrights Care Services focuses on treatment and care for individual clients and their families, the Thrive Foundation focuses on training professionals in the community, the schools, and different organizations on the importance of mental health awareness.” Reketta is the founding director of Wrights Care Services. “Wrights Care Services is a privately-owned, full-service behavioral healthcare agency. We are committed to providing clients with a personalized approach to behavioral health and substance abuse services.” As a mental health care provider, Reketta says that she always knew that she would be in the service of helping others. “I grew up in the church as a PK (pastor's kid),” Reketta explains. “Watching my parents serve in the church and the community inspired me. I knew that when I grew up, I would be in a profession that focused on helping others.” A compassionate heart and empathetic spirit are essential when helping people with mental health issues. Ignited with the understanding that serving others was her destiny, Reketta set her sights on nursing. After testing the waters as a C.N.A., she felt like her calling was taking her in a different direction. Reketta attended Winston-Salem State University. Reketta continued to push forward by attending North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and receiving her Master of Science in Rehabilitation Counseling. Her first business was a joint venture between her and two friends she met while earning her master's degree. Behavioral Health & Wellness Care Services was launched in 2006. Then in 2009, Reketta and a partner started Wright's Care Services. For the last thirteen years, Wright's Care Services clinicians have been servicing North Carolina, the Triad, and surrounding areas in emotional restoration and recovery. But Reketta saw that there was more to be done. “In this post-pandemic climate, we see more and more people experiencing mental health issues or symptoms exacerbated by the stresses of pandemic life. This exposed gaps in care and the availability of information,” Reketta explained. “As we worked with our clients, we received questions from healthcare providers, parents of students, and leaders of professional and religious organizations. A lot of these questions can't be answered in counseling. This was an opportunity for education and awareness.” From this understanding, the Thrive Foundation was born. The Thrive Foundation focuses on training and empowering patients and their families.  “At the Thrive Foundation, we foster hope and resiliency in the communities we serve. This is done by providing programs and resources that help empower, educate, and evolve communities. Our trained team of mental health advocates is committed to building emotionally healthy communities.” Moving forward, Reketta's goal for Thrive Foundation is to continue laying the groundwork and building relationships between the public and mental health professionals. To learn more about The Thrive Foundation, please visit their website at www.thrive-wellness.org You may also follow The Thrive Foundation on Facebook by putting Thrive Foundation in your search box. To learn more about Wrights Care Services, please visit their website at www.wrightscareservices.com  You may also follow them on Facebook by putting Wrights Care Services in your search box. To learn more about Huami Magazine, you may follow us on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may follow This Is Who I Am Podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box. To be a part of this podcast or to advertise in Huami Magazine, please send a detailed email to huamimagazine@gmail.com You may also contact us directly at 336-340-7844    

According to Merriam-Webster's online dictionary, one definition of fashion is to give shape or form to make, construct, or create (something), usually with careful attention or by using imagination and ingenuity. In so many words, this clearly defines who Stephanie Hobbs is.   The talented fashion designer developed a passion for fashion as a young girl. Stephanie was born and raised in the small town of Morrow, AR, and learned early on about the importance of looking appropriate for every moment. “As a little girl, I would walk around in my mother's high heels and model myself by what she showed me,” she says. “I inherited my mother's style and sense  of fashion, and it showed.”   She was known as the stylish one amongst her friends. She loved helping others arrange outfits for any event, big or small.  When they would go out, others would notice their unique style and ask who created such a look. Stephanie says she wasn't thinking of making a business out of her craft during that time, but after so many suggestions, praying about it, and speaking with friends, she decided to give it a chance. On June 16, 2018, Style Me Stephanie was launched in Hot Springs, AR. Stephanie's business doesn't stop at fashion shows and styling. She has a long list of services, including personal/fashion styling and wardrobe, personal shopping, virtual styling, photoshoot consultations, closet revamps, and fashion show coordination. She also has her product line on her website. Additionally, she is a brand ambassador for Bag It Up Boutique in Arkansas, SBDNC  Apparel in Georgia, and a Lead Wardrobe Stylist for Chrissy Bryant Photograph, an independent contractor with Q Clothier.  Stephanie's clients' transformation and the development of their confidence are what drive her. She also shares it's the positive feedback and testimonies that help her look forward to working with the following new client.  Moving forward, she plans to become more involved with philanthropy and give back to her community. She plans to give back financially and by educating teenage girls in fashion and etiquette. To learn more about Stephanie Hobbs, please follow her on Facebook by putting her name in your search box.  You may also follow her on Instagram by putting stylemestephar in our search box.  You may also visit her website at www.stylemestephaniear.com To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram. You may also follow this podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.  

Joseph Wallace is the founder and CEO of YMA (Young Millionaires Association) Wealth Management Group in Spartanburg, South Carolina. If you are looking for business solutions, Joseph and his team are your “problem solvers.” “I solve problems. Think about it for a moment. You want to start a business but don't have a business plan. That's a problem. You need capital for your start-up, and you don't have it. That's a problem. Your credit needs attention. That's a problem. All of these issues are roadblocks to entrepreneurs. My job is to help navigate and eliminate these roadblocks so business owners can grow and succeed.” Born and raised in Miami, Florida, Joseph didn't always have the focus he needed to envision his future. “I grew up in a two-parent household, but there wasn't always a lot of money. My parents struggled to make ends meet, and sometimes that struggle made for a stressful home environment,” Joseph explained.  Like many youths, I was seduced by the culture that specific music and movies glorified. He knew the path he was on would lead him to a bad end but not understanding his purpose; he chose to live in the moment. “Like most kids in my neighborhood, I fell in with the wrong sort of people. My parents and grandmother tried to point me in the right direction, but when you're young and think you know it all, you don't listen.” At twenty-one, Joseph says he took his first steps toward purpose. He joined the US Navy.  The Navy didn't give Joseph purpose, but it gave him the tools he needed to pursue the purpose of his life.  “To this day, I am grateful for what I gained in my seven years in the US Navy. I learned fortitude, self-discipline, and a new understanding of respect. These were all of the things I was missing. Most importantly, as a search and rescue team member, I learned to push myself beyond my personal limitations.” In 2009 Joseph felt that he had exhausted all of his resources in San Diego and was considering moving back to Miami. His mother had recently moved to Greenville, SC, and suggested he come there. “I knew I needed a fresh start, but I didn't want to go backward. The thing about understanding problem solving is that even if you are the problem, you have to be willing to get out of your own way. I had to learn the difference between my voice and the voice of God. Moving to Greenville was God putting me back on the path to my purpose, and I have never looked back.” Joseph has grown and expanded his business while helping others realize their dreams of successful business owners and entrepreneurs.  Joseph and his wife and business partner Rebecca are taking YMA Wealth Management Group to new heights. Their goal is to create a one-stop-shop for all things relating to building or growing your business on a firm foundation.  To learn more about Joseph Wallace and YMA (Young Millionaires Association) please follow him on Facebook by putting Joseph Wallace in your search box.  You may also follow him on Instagram by putting YMA (Young Millionaires Association) in your search box.  You may also visit their website at www.ymawealthmanagementgroup.com To learn more about Huami Magazine, you may follow us on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may follow This Is Who I Am Podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box. To be a part of this podcast or to advertise in Huami Magazine, please send a detailed email to huamimagazine@gmail.com You may also contact us directly at 336-340-7844

Richard Steadwell is living his dream of being a self-employed entrepreneur. He is the owner and operator of Kingzi Barbers Lounge in Charlotte, N.C., and the Kingzi Royal Skincare Collection. Although Richard has always possessed the creative spirit of an entrepreneur, there were limitations he says he had to overcome before he could realize his dream. “I've always been good with my hands. I love being creative and using my imagination. I always knew that using those natural talents would make me happy.” Richard called himself a kitchen barber because he's been cutting hair since he was a teenager, but he never thought of it as a career. Richard was born in North Carolina but was raised in California. In the tenth grade, he decided school wasn't for him. “I was struggling and getting into trouble a lot. I had convinced myself that they were teaching me the things I wanted to know. Deep down, part of my reasoning was I felt like I was an embarrassment to my mother, and I didn't want to keep putting her through that, so I quit.” Richard explained. “My mother wasn't happy about it, but my mind was made up.” Richard's mother gave him two options, the military or trade school. Due to health issues, the military wasn't a good fit, so Richard went to the Earl C. Clemmons Job Corps center in Morganfield, Ky. “My mother drove me to the center because she was serious about me not sitting up in her house without a job or trade of any kind. She said if I was going to be grown, I had to make a way for myself.”   While in Job Corp, Richard took several certification classes, including a business course. The one thing he stayed away from was getting his G.E.D. “If I had been wise and not so worried about failing, I would have just gotten my G.E.D. while in Job Corps. Things would have been a lot easier for me, and I would be farther than I am today. But, what can I say? I was young and didn't want to listen to anybody." In his lifetime, Richard has done just about every laborious job there is. He was a self-proclaimed jack of all trades and master of none.  After years of going from one unfulfilling job to another, Richard decided he wanted something more. One day, not long after his fortieth birthday, Richard was sitting in his barber's chair and shared his idea of going to barber college.    Immediately Richard looked into starting barber college at Park West Barber College in Greensboro, N.C. As he read the requirements, the first thing that stopped him I his tracks was the requirement of a high school diploma or equivalent.  “There I was again. Every time I tried to move forward, I found myself coming back to the same roadblock. All these years later, my decision to drop out of high school was still haunting me. I sat there thinking about what I wanted and the time I had wasted. I have to admit I was terrified of going back to school, but I decided I couldn't spend one more day letting fear hold me back.” Richard enrolled at Gilford Technical Community College, Jamestown, N.C., and started working towards his G.E.D. He transferred and finished the program at Alamance Community College in Graham, NC. After receiving his G.E.D, Richard started at Park West Barber College in Greensboro, N.C. From there, he became an apprentice barber. Richard was an apprentice barber at Bennett's Barber Shop in Charlotte for four years.  As Richard worked as an apprentice barber, he was free to explore his creativity.  Richard noticed a small selection of beard and skin grooming products for men. The scents were basic and didn't represent all men, especially black men. That is how Kingzi Men's Skincare Collection was born. Putting what he learned about sales and marketing in Job Corps, Richard is preparing to put the Kingzi Royal Skincare Collection on the shelves of major shopping centers all over the country. But for now, the skincare line can be purchased locally at Kingzi Barber's Lounge. To learn more about Richard Steadwell and The Kingzi Royal Skincare Collection, please send him an email to richardsteadwell@gmail.com You may also follow Richard Steadwell on Facebook and Instagram by putting Richard Steadwell in your search box. To learn more about Huami Magazine, you may follow us on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may follow This Is Who I Am Podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.

Like most urban communities around the United States, Gary, IN is rich in culture and diversity.  According to a recent count, Gary's population consists of nearly 76,000 citizens, with African Americans representing the highest ethnicity at 78%.  Having such a decisive edge compared to other races, the Black experience in Gary is defined by hard work, resilience, and durability.  Like most urban communities, Gary has seen its share of crime and violence, and during the 1990s, it was once labeled as one of Indiana's most dangerous places to live.  Fast forward to 2022, that stigma has faded away, and Gary's identity is being rebuilt by those who believe that its greatest days are within distance.  That is the story of Michael and Shelice Tolbert of Tolbert & Tolbert Attorneys at Law.  True to their roots, they are building one of Indiana's top law firms in the heart of Gary.  Having their practice based in Gary, Indiana, is critically important to this power couple.   Michael and Shelice have enjoyed 15 years of marriage.  Their union appears to be almost purposeful.  They both pursued careers to practice law.  Michael received his formal education in the Gary, IN, public school system.  He later attended and graduated from Valparaiso University as an undergraduate and Valparaiso University School of Law.  He is a believer and faith-based individual and professes that nothing in his life would be possible without God. Shelice was also formally educated in the Gary public school system and later attended Wittenberg University in Springfield, OH.  After graduating from there, she came back to Gary and “followed” Michael to Valparaiso School of Law.  She describes herself as a family-oriented, homebody, down-to-earth type of person who desires to help others.    Tolbert & Tolbert Attorneys at Law opened their doors to the public on January 26, 2015.  However, Shelice says the idea to open the firm was conceptualized many years before that.  Michael says they like to describe themselves as a litigation boutique, meaning they do complex litigation for individuals, cities, towns, municipalities, and higher exposure litigation matters, involving millions of dollars hanging in the balance.  Often, companies engaged in complex litigation matters will hire them to help guide them through the process.  However, they do not do any family law or criminal cases.  Additionally, Michael is a certified mediator, a resource their firm utilizes for Alternative Dispute Resolutions.   Michael and Shelice are proud to share that Tolbert & Tolbert is a Christian-based firm.  “We openly pray in our office.  We have scripture everywhere,” he says.  Their mission statement is Christian-based as well.  “Our mission is to honor God by rendering compassionate litigation services to businesses, organizations, and individuals”.  Michael says their mission statement is placed in two strategic places in their office; one at the front of the office and the other at the back door.  “It's the first thing you see in the morning and the last thing you see before you leave.  It's a constant reminder of who your source is, which is God and not man.  That inspires me, knowing that I have a God who has blessed me enough to have a wife and family who cares about me and be able to have a successful business and help people in our community.  We are doing what we love in a community that we love and loves us back. For those who may follow in their footsteps, the Tolberts offer some advice.  “Always believe in something.  Pray to God for what you want and speak what you want.  Be positive and stay encouraged.  Just because there is a bump in the road, or things are not happening the way you would like for them to, “it doesn't mean that it's not meant for you.  Stay the course and persevere.  Things will get hard sometimes, but if they weren't hard, everyone would be doing it,” they shared.   To learn more about Tolbert & Tolbert Attorneys At Law, please visit their website at www.tolbertlegal.com To learn more about Huami Magazine, you may follow us on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may follow This Is Who I Am Podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box,.

She is known for her unceasing devotion to serving others, an attribute the Upstate area of South Carolina has grown to cherish and appreciate. Without hesitancy, she eagerly answers the call to assist in any way, whether in business or from a personal perspective.          In addition to leading and serving, Ava Smith is also an accomplished entrepreneur. She is the owner of Flat Fee Recruiting and Ava Smith & Associates. Flat Fee Recruiting is a permanent placement recruiting firm that provides quality employees at affordable rates. It also assists companies in various industries and with all types of vacancies.      Ava Smith & Associates is a full-cycle HR Consulting firm that operates as an outsourced HR Manager or Director for small businesses, non-profits, and ministries throughout the United States. Some offered services include onboarding, compliance, benefits, risk management, wellness, and training.      The New Jersey native holds a Bachelors of Science Degree in Human Resource Management from Limestone University and is a Lifetime Member of the Sigma Beta Delta Honor Society. She has over 25 years of experience as a Human Resources Professional. That includes employee relations, compliance, recruitment, retention, and training. Ava began her career in the non-profit sector and shifted into manufacturing, the corporate arena, and staffing.   Throughout her career, Ava progressively moved upward in her positions, serving in various roles from HR Assistant to HR Director. In August 2002, Ava began her own firm, HR Specialties, which specialized in providing HR services, training, and recruiting. She later expanded this firm by adding additional experts and rebranded it into what is now widely known as Ava Smith & Associates. In 2010, she formed a permanent placement agency called Flat Fee Recruiting. Her agency received the Minority Business of the Year Award in 2013 through the Greenville Chamber of Commerce. Ava is also a noted Diversity Trainer and has delivered hundreds of sessions throughout the Southeast since 2005. Her clientele involves corporations, manufacturers, non-profits, service organizations, government officials, municipalities, universities, hospital systems, local chambers, and faith-based organizations.     When asked what she loves most about what she does, Ava shares how she loves bringing solutions. “I am a problem solver for businesses that need HR support without having the workload that requires a full-time position. I also love being a part of their business strategy team. My clients include me in their vision and long-term plans, and I assist them with walking it out.      To learn more about Ava Smith and Associates, please call them at 864-448-0939.  To learn more about Flat Fee Recruiting, please give them a call directly at 864-326-4211 or visit their website at www.flatfeehiring.com   To learn more about the Huami For Kids Magazine KidPreneur Business and Talent Showcase that is taking place on 11/19/2022, please call 336-340-7844, or send a detailed email to mykelmediaco@gmail.com   To learn more about Huami Magazine, you may visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com  You may also follow us on Instagram and Facebook by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also follow this podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To purchase your copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please visit www.revodellcleveland.com or call 336-895-8995

Synergy is an interaction or cooperation giving rise to a whole that is greater than the simple sum of its parts.  The term synergy comes from the Attic Greek word συνεργία synergia from synergos, συνεργός, meaning “working together.” Wikipedia        Daymain Smith is the founder and CEO of Synergy Hospitality Group, based out of Atlanta, Georgia.  His mission is to help African Americans conceive and receive the wealth and authority that comes with not just living their dreams but owning them.        Daymain is a living example of the adage, “the only time you see success before work is in the dictionary.”    Daymain grew up in a small urban community in Mobile, Alabama.  He  admits that there are many layers to the path that led him to where he is today.  “I didn't grow up with a lot of money.  My parents split shortly after I was born, and my grandparents primarily raised me.  So, for the most part, my story is a lot like most kids who live where I lived,” Daymain explains.  “My father was a pastor, but my mother struggled with addiction.  So I had a wide range of influences in my life, and from all of it, I learned that there isn't anything I can't have if I was willing to work for it.”    Synergy Hospitality Group is a faith-based company.  Its business practices and principles are rooted in Daymain's Christian beliefs.  “I'm not perfect, nobody is, but I don't shy away from the fact that who I am in my faith is who I am in my company.  I strive to do things the right way and make good choices when it comes to how I deal with my investments and investors.  I am happy to say that my partners and I are like-minded when it comes to that.”    “I want to help anyone ready to believe they are built for more.  I had to learn the ownership side of hospitality," he says.  “The greatest compliment I've ever received was when a young black high school student told me he wanted to be a business and hotel owner like me when he grew up.  I knew then that he could see himself as more than what society wanted to label him.  I felt like he was waking up to the knowledge that he was built for more."   To learn more about Daymain Smith and Synergy Hospitality Group and Synergy Financial Partners, please visit their websites at www.synergyhospitalitygroup.com and www.synergyfinancialpartnersinc.com You may also contact Daymain Smith directly at 202-350-1151   To learn more about the Huami For Kids Magazine KidPreneur Business and Talent Showcase that is taking place on 11/19/2022, please call 336-340-7844, or send a detailed email to mykelmediaco@gmail.com   To learn more about Huami Magazine, you may visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com  You may also follow us on Instagram and Facebook by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also follow this podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To purchase your copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please visit www.revodellcleveland.com or call 336-895-8995

              Sawand L. Belcher is the founder of Belcher & Belcher Properties, LLC, also known as Buy Triad Homes. Sawand and his wife LaMicah have five children, with number six on the way. Don't be fooled by his easy-going casual demeanor; Sawand is serious about leveling the real estate field. He makes buying and selling real estate look easy. After building his company from the ground up, Sawand is ready to show just how easy it is to own our future. His real estate coaching services, This Is Me Taking Action, will show you step by step how to navigate the world of real estate, and you'll be making a profit in no time.        Sawand learned early in life that anything worth having is worth working for. “I've always been a great salesman. I remember when I was in sixth grade, my dad told me I couldn't have something. But he said I could have whatever I wanted if I had my own money. So, I went over to his computer and came up with the catchy phrase, Wan's Lawn & Dog Sitting Service. I made some flyers and started cutting people's grass. I did that all the way through high school.”         Sawand went to college at North Carolina A&T, where he studied political science, but in his senior year, his life took a new direction.  “I loved my time at A&T. I studied political science not because it was my passion but because my parents wanted me to. My aunt, Hon. Romonda Belcher was the first African American female judge in Iowa. My parents wanted me to follow in her footsteps. But in my senior year, I found out I was going to be a father. That changed everything.”        Sawand, always the entrepreneur, bought his first car by buying auto parts online and selling them locally. With him and his partner expecting their first child he had to shift things into high gear.    To learn more about Sawand Belcher you may visit his website at www.thisismetakingaction.com   You may also follow him on Instagram by putting This Is Me Taking Action in your search box.   To learn more about Huami Magazine, you may visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com  You may also follow us on Instagram and Facebook by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also follow this podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To purchase your copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please visit www.revodellcleveland.com or call 336-895-8995

Black artists and their work have long been marginalized as untrained, uneducated, and lesser than their White counterparts. The terms “Black art” and “Black artists” by definition prove this marginalization. The artist is seen as Black first, and then through a less than approving lens, their work is viewed in its own little box, unworthy of comparison to the likes of a Rembrandt, a Van Gogh, a Picasso, or a Warhol. They aren't seen as impressionists, abstractists, sculptors, cubists, expressionists, or realists. They are merely Black artists that make Black art that only Black people could understand and appreciate.    Ukwensi Chappel sees art as art. In 2018, Ukwensi Chappell opened Gallerie Ukwensi, located in the Ghent District of Norfolk. Ukwensi opened Gallerie Ukwensi to do what other gallery's wouldn't: expose and educate people to the beauty of art crafted by Black artists. A tour through his gallery reveals something deeper, something powerful and beautiful, rooted in centuries of exclusion.   Ukwensi takes the time to greet every customer, young or old, Black, White or purple, rich or poor. He doesn't just greet people; he engages with them.    When asked why he knows so much about not only a particular piece, but the artists themselves, he says “Most galleries in the area didn't greet me when I came in, and if they did, they didn't tell me about the art. But every piece has a story, and every story was an experience by the artist.”    Ukwensi's art, rich abstracts made of layers of crushed glass and pigments suspended in clear enamel that form 3-dimensional kaleidoscopes, line the main wall. He calls his work “My windows to your imagination.” No matter what you think you see in his work, its correct.   To learn more about Gallerie Ukwensi at Ghents, please follow them on Facebook and Instagram by putting Gallerie Ukwensi at Ghents in your search box.  You may also visit their website at www.gallerie-ukwensi.com   To learn more about Huami Magazine, please follow us on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com   To follow this podcast on Facebook and Instagram, simply put This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To purchase your copy of Is My Time Now: Caregiving 101, please visit www.revodellcleveland.com. You may also contact Odell Cleveland directly at 336-895-8995

In this special Diversity in Practice podcast, we are delighted to have Dr Sarah Meisch Lionetto, Director of Arts, British Council and Jeremy Goldstein, creator of The Truth to Power Café who shares with us more on a special digital theatre project called "This Is Who I Am". "This Is Who I Am" an art project of autobiographic monologues by disabled artists from Singapore and the UK to raise awareness and foster access and inclusion. Jeremy Goldstein felt that stories by underrepresented disabled artists from Singapore in the United Kingdom might go unheard and unacknowledged. Therefore, this project aims to be a platform for the underrepresented to voice out and share their stories. As a result, the goals of this digital theater project are to promote awareness and generate understanding. In this way, we may perhaps transform conceptions of disability and build more inclusive cultures. So, while this work focuses on disability, its underlying values extend well beyond disability to all oppressed groups. And, as the project's title suggests, it invites us all to consider who we are, how we see, and how we view others. Commissioned and presented by British Council Singapore Created by Jeremy Goldstein (London Artists Projects) Singapore Edition: Co-created, Developed and Directed by Jen Heyes (London Artists Projects) Subscribe to the BritCham Singapore Podcast on your favourite player, and if you're listening on Spotify or Apple, please take a second to give us a 5* rating if you enjoy the show. Signup to our newsletter for more information and the opportunity to request topics and guests in future episodes, or head to our website. Thanks for listening!

Energy Check-in - This Is Who I Am by Lil Kim feat Swizz Beats and Mashonda --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/shedopetarot/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/shedopetarot/support

Vanessa Joy Amorosi (born 8 August 1981) is an Australian singer-songwriter and recording artist. Her combined album and single sales have reached over two million worldwide. She is known for her wide belting range (being able to reach a C#6 with ease) and her ability to vocally cover various genres of music including pop, rock, blues, jazz and gospel. Amorosi started performing in shopping centres and local council concerts under the supervision of her family. She also performed on Young Talent Time. Amorosi rose to fame in 1999 with the release of her debut single, "Have a Look", which reached gold status in Australia. The following year, she achieved international success with her debut studio album, The Power. She performed at both the 2000 Olympic Games opening ceremony and its accompanying closing ceremony in Sydney. Her performance of "Heroes Live Forever" at the opening ceremony gained international acclaim and recognition due to the enormous live vocal range. To date Amorosi has received a total of 16 ARIA and APRA nominations. She has won an APRA award with "Shine", a VIVA Comet Award for "Best International Newcomer and an ARIA No.1 Chart Award with "This Is Who I Am".

This Is Who I Am by Francesca by 826 Valencia's Message in a Bottle

New Orleans, LA native Nykisha Banks loves to dance.  Dancing has been in her blood since she was three years old.  She shares, “As a child, I was one of those kids who cried on stage.  That didn't sit too well with my instructor, and my mother was told not to bring me back to participate until I was ready.”  That time didn't come until she was age eight.  From there, Nykisha found her footing and continued to dance and flourish.  She has danced in many productions, all the way to high school.  After graduating, she worked with a dance company where she traveled, continued her training, performed, and ultimately became a dance instructor.  Today, Nykisha owns In the Key of Dance Studio based in Conyers, GA.  She also has founded a nonprofit organization, In the Key of Dance Performing Arts Inc., and published a book, A Dancer's Leap Into Accountability.  Her book details her 22 plus years as a dancer and dance instructor.  Nykisha teaches ballet, tap, jazz, modern, lyrical, and musical theater dance with her studio.  She also offers a thorough stretching and conditioning regime, starting at age three up to eighteen, and it's available for some adult classes.   Nykisha's success as a dance instructor and business owner is rooted in her ability to connect.  She is very imaginative, loyal, and, most importantly, an effective communicator.  Her success in the small things translates to everyone else's success, while her goal as a business owner is to be prepared for whatever the day may present. Nykisha has always found a way to give back, and it made sense for her to launch her nonprofit.  In the Key of Dance Performing Arts Inc. sponsors children in need after a thorough interview process.  “I am committed to nurturing my community by providing art enrichment through dance.  With the nonprofit, our mission is to provide lifelong tools that will aid in building a disciplined lifestyle from a solid technical foundation.  There are many ways to reach our youth; we just happen to do it through dance,” she says.  Nykisha says her inspiration comes from seeing her dancers grow as individuals.   “Seeing them no longer calling their parents feeling upset or wanting to give up because they felt like their teacher was too hard on them shows growth to me,” she shares.   To learn more about In The Key of Dance Studios, please visit their website at www.inthekeyofdance.com You may also follow them on Facebook and Instagram by putting In The Key of Dance in your search box. To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To purchase a copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please call Odell Cleveland at 336-895-8995 or visit his website at www.revodellcleveland.com

When trying to envision the bigger picture of one's life or career, the bumps and pains are not always realized on the journey of becoming an accomplished professional. Although most of us would prefer that we coast through life on easy street, the truth is that no one accomplishes anything in this world without the scars to prove it.    This is the case for inspirational domestic violence advocate Latosha Barnes of Chicago, IL. The founder and director of Patricia's Place domestic violence shelter serves Chicago's west side and south suburban communities. She knows firsthand what it is like to endure the pain and scars of domestic violence. “My first experience with abuse occurred when I was a young girl. I experienced my mother being beaten and introduced to drugs by her ex-husband. Despite my grandmother attempting to shield me from this violence, it would not take long before I realized what was going on.”    Although Latosha hoped never to endure the kind of life that her mother chose to overcome, it would not take long before her family's history caught up with her. At the age of 20, four months after marrying her first husband and now a mother of two young children, Latosha began to experience the trauma of spousal abuse.    Latosha shares how she, her mother, and grandmother stuck out relationships that would lead to broken bones, hospital stays, and multiple calls to local police. She even watched her ex-husband go after one of her daughters while she attempted to protect Latosha from yet another attack. Enough became enough, and Latosha finally got the courage to file for divorce. “I knew that this was going to be the hardest thing I had ever done. I realized that I was stuck in a pattern started by my grandmother, and now seeing one of my kids endure her first form of abuse, God made it clear that it was time for me to walk away."   After walking away, Latosha's future of success would begin to take shape. Beginning with a bachelor's degree in interdisciplinary studies and master's degrees in criminal justice and addiction studies, she also started to put her efforts into helping other women, men, and children escape abusive situations.    Along with opening a safe home for other abuse victims, Latosha is quickly becoming a voice for the voiceless through her recently published book, Un-Veil: Surviving Domestic Violence, a memoir and 10-step self-help activity and resource guide for surviving spousal abuse. She is also in the process of publishing her second book entitled, Pieces of My Childhood, which will share an in-depth journey of her life and will be available through She Publishing, LLC.    She has begun several domestic violence teaching and counseling programs through Patricia's Place such as the S.T.A.R. Program (Surviving Traumatic Abusive Relationships) and Purple Power. These tools allow women to learn what resources and support systems are available. She has also started a program for kids who have lived in a family of domestic violence.   To learn more about Patricia's Place, please visit their website at www.patriciasplace.org     You may also contact them directly at 708-996-4900 or 773-900-3301   If you are a victim of domestic violence or know of someone who is a victim of domestic violence, there is help.  Visit the National Coalition For Domestic Violence website at www.ncadv.org.   There is also a hotline available to report domestic violence or get assistance with domestic violence.  The number is 1-800-799-7233   To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To purchase a copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please call Odell Cleveland at 336-895-8995 or visit his website at www.revodellcleveland.com  

Serreta Boson is the owner of Sarge's Famous Pickles, a company based in Little Rock, AR founded on faith and a lot of hustle. Led by Serreta, she has taken a gourmet pickle recipe, a gift from her father, and turned it into a full-time business. Now, the word is out about how good her pickles really are. “I named the business Sarge's Famous Pickles to honor my father. He is a Vietnam veteran, and all his buddies called him Sarge, so of course, the name just stuck,” she says. “We are a company built on faith, family, and community. Our faith is what holds us together and allows us to move in excellence. We always use products from our community and strive to represent our home state of Arkansas well.”    Born in Benton, AR, the hustler ideology was embedded into her mind at an early age. Along with her siblings, she was taught how to make a business out of anything, from lemonade stands to fireworks, all from the steps of their front porch. She could probably sell you a pair of dirty socks; she states that she was just that good. Serreta recalls when her family was the only ones in her neighborhood that owned a VCR (video cassette recorder). They would charge kids around the neighborhood to watch movies on it; Fifty cents to watch a movie, plus twenty-five cents for drinks and snacks. Those were early indications that entrepreneurship would be a part of Serreta's future.   Serreta's journey has seen its share of ups and downs. Early on in life, she was diagnosed with epilepsy, and by 2010 the seizures associated with the disease started to worsen. Her doctors found a tumor on her brain, but it wasn't cancerous. “That was a horrifying moment for me, but with the good news, I had to get out of here. I had stuff to do, kids to raise, and not time to be sick,” she says. Yet, by 2016 the seizures had become uncontrollable, and she was required to have brain surgery to alleviate the problem. Serreta was then told she could no longer work because of the attacks. This was a significant setback for someone raised to hustle, but Serreta still held onto her faith.   Serreta's father, Sylvester Boson, who is the original chef behind these amazing pickles, told his daughter to come home for a while. He would teach her how to make his famous pickles during her stay. She always told him how he should make it a business, but he never got around to it. Things would change once she got her hands on his recipe. Once it was perfected, Serreta took the initiative of turning her father's delicious pickles into a business. By December of 2018, Sarge's Famous pickles came to life. By January 1st, 2019, everything skyrocketed for Serreta and Sarge's Famous Pickles.    This all happened in Nashville. She got her business license and trademark and went straight to work. She went to every barbeque, chicken, and fish restaurant, trying to sell her pickles. There were a few no's along the way, and she became a little discouraged but still knew they were going to be a great success. Things changed when she made a stop in a bookstore. There, the owner tried one and became so amazed by her pickles that they bought a case from her, right on the spot, and began selling them in their store. That experience gave Serreta the fire she needed to keep going.    Serreta's main focus, other than making sure those pickles stay delicious, is to work towards her goal of owning her very own farm. “I want to watch pickles grow from a seed to the storehouse,” she shares. As for the future of Sarge's Famous Pickles, Serreta didn't want to share all her secrets but know this pickle lady has some big things coming."   To learn more about Sarge's Famous Pickles, please visit their website at www.sargespickles.com   You may also follow them on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, by putting Sarge's Famous Pickles in your search box.   To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To purchase a copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please call Odell Cleveland at 336-895-8995 or visit his website at www.revodellcleveland.com

Today's message is titled "This Is Who I Am; This Is What I Do." Sometimes, we have spiritual amnesia as to what God can do through Jesus. We have always known these things yet have moments of forgetfulness. This message will be a reminder of the power that Jesus has through our prayers and in our healing and wholeness. Let's not forget his power! #HillChurchMcminnville

When it comes to experiences, Wendell White has many. The current Milwaukee, WI resident was born and raised in the Englewood section of the South Side of Chicago, the “Wild Hundreds,” as Wendell explains. After leaving foster care, Wendell moved into the projects with his mother and family. Unfortunately for Wendell (and many children in inner city, African-American communities), he returned to a world full of drugs and violence. What made Wendell's situation exponentially bleaker, he didn't even have to leave his project apartment to find it.  His own family sold the drugs and contributed to the violence. “When you're a child and you're watching your mom and family sell drugs, how does someone tell you to go to school and get an education? Everybody around me sells drugs and they are lucrative! My uncle was making $50-60k a day! I was twelve years old, and one day he gave me a bag with over $250,000 to hold for my auntie. He had all the cars, and everyone admired him. I wanted to be like my uncle. When he left, I went into the bathroom and saw all that money. I decided right then and there I was going to sell drugs. But at 12-years-old, you don't understand all that comes with selling drugs. You don't see that death, prison, and violence come with selling drugs. All you see is the money. You don't see how you're destroying people's lives.” Soon after that decision, Wendell joined a gang and quickly realized that gang life wasn't the glitz and glamour he thought it was. Not only did he learn that he would start nowhere near the level his uncle was, but he was now a gang member in one of the most violent cities during its most violent time in history. According to the Chicago Police Department, from 1991 to 2004, there were 3,422 gang-related murders in Chicago. That's an average of 244 murders per year. Wendell saw no other way to live. It was all he knew and taught, and turning to his family for guidance offered no respite. Even his own kidnapping didn't turn him away. “I started making money, big money. We were buying cars, flashing cash, but one day God decided that wasn't the plan. I was kidnapped, beaten, and left for dead. That was the beginning of my transformation. The person that did it to me was near and dear to my heart; he set me up. But God spoke to me and told me to repent. I was in the hospital for eight weeks, but when I got out, I didn't know anything else. I was eighteen and all I knew was selling drugs.” Wendell moved to Milwaukee soon after, and though he had changed locations, his mindset hadn't. He continued to sell drugs, yet one day, it all stopped, but not through any choice of his. “One day, my phone just stopped ringing. I was selling drugs every day, all day, then one day, my phone just stopped ringing. I realize now that God has always been with me. He stopped it." Soon he would begin to attend church.  He also wrote a book, The Devil Thought He Had Me, and launched a mentoring program.  He says, "We all need a mentor; we all need somebody to help us navigate through life, not really trying to control, but to teach us how to be accountable. I feel that I can get enough of the men and the youth. If I can just get to them and talk to them. Tell them my story and the things I've been through. We could make such a huge impact. Not just in the cities of Milwaukee and Chicago, but in the entire world." To learn more about Wendell White, you may follow him on Facebook by putting Author Wendell White in your search box.  You may also following him on Instagram by putting wendell_24 in your search box. To learn more about his mentoring program, Wendell White Speaks, please visit his website at www.wendellwhitespeaks.com To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To purchase a copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please call Odell Cleveland at 336-895-8995 or visit his website at www.revodellcleveland.com

Kara Darby: How To Give Yourself Permission To Get Back Into Life Meet Kara, is a legal and business professional pursuing a juris doctor from Seattle University School of Law. Experienced legal assistant with a demonstrated history of working in the law practice industry and C.O.O. in the real estate investing industry.   What You Will Discover:  [9:29] Parents Can Be Happy And Chase After Their Own Dreams [12:28] We Care About Our Children [23:05] This Is Who I Am [30:16] Accepting Each Other For Being Ourselves [40:26] Slowdown And Pause And Soak Up How Beautiful Life Is Because It's So Short [45:33] Parents Need To Be Championed   Relevant Links:  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kara-l-darby-2a091368/ Website: https://www.networkventuresgroup.com/   To learn more about what we do and how we do it. SUBSCRIBE and SHARE this episode with someone that could get value from it. Don't forget to VISIT our website: https://www.austinlinney.com/ To explore more ways that you can benefit from our amazing content.   #podcast

Whattttt upppp, welcome back to episode 5 of the Consciously Unbecoming Podcast where we are getting to core of our self. Taking a look at all of the beliefs that have been thrust upon us and deciding, is this a belief about myself, about others, about the world, that I want or do I need to relearn this belief and see it through my own lens. Most of our beliefs, we didn't choose:They were just there. Inherited from our families, our ancestors, our upbringing, the neighborhoods we grew up in, our religions, society, the states, the countries, we live in. There are so many sets of social standards within each of those things that I just mentioned. It's uncomfortable to take our masks off that have forced us to conform to all of those societal standard.For some of us, its' so uncomfortable, we go our entire lives never truly leaning into our identities. Never truly embracing who we are. Never truly speaking out loud to the world and saying THIS IS WHO I AM. What's worst than stepping outside of those norms, and removing the mask, is staying hidden, keeping a piece of yourself hidden, denying who you are, to fit a BS standard.We get to change our minds about the direction our lives are headed. We get to course correct. We get to step back and decide who we are in the season of life we are in. There's no set path. Texts from last night:Today we are going to see where this conversation takes us but, Lisa, I wanted to touch on something we were texting about last night because I think it pertains to the ultimate theme of this episode which is addiction. Energy shifts in the lunar cycleSetting intentionsI am a big believer in energy. I believe the moon controls A LOT of energy. And, that when ppl mention they are setting their intentions for this full moon cycle, or the new moon cycle, it's not some BS thing. It's science, bebe. Addiction:Addiction to chaosAddiction to numbing our feelingsAddiction to workAddiction to the pursuit of something, someone, MPREAddiction to being betterWe as a society have to DO instead of simply just being!ENJOY,Jess and Lisa

A woman of many talents and titles, Dr. Trina Pratt wears them all well.  She is addressed as professor and also CEO.  However, the most essential title she has is that of mom. For nearly ten years, Pratt dabbled with the idea of launching her very own line of organic baby food. Last year that small idea became a big reality. Little Chéngers LLC was launched in December 2020 as a subscription service for organic baby food. The company's motto is “Super Foods for Super Kids”. The line includes eight different flavor options: blueberry spinach, banana strawberry, mango, sweet potato, sweet potato with apple ginger, sweet potato apple and ginger, applesauce, and applesauce with ginger and cinnamon. The subscription offers plans of two or three meals per day on a weekly, bi-weekly, and monthly packages. Meals can be purchased individually as well. The premium food selection that Little Chéngers offers is explicitly tailored to enhance a baby's developmental milestones. Pratt is a proud graduate of North Carolina A&T State University, Temple University, and most recently, The University of North Carolina Greensboro, where she received her Ph.D. in Kinesiology, concentrating in Community Youth Sports Development.  After becoming a new mom in 2010 to Ché, Pratt's life changed forever. With her son as the main focus of her life, she became very conscious of his needs, mainly growing and developing. As the time came for Che' to start eating solid foods, Pratt says that she headed to the grocery store and purchased a very popular line of baby food like any other new mother. “When I returned home and tried to feed it to Ché, he rejected it. My son normally had a healthy appetite, but I had never seen him do this before, pushing away a spoon full of food,” she says. Initially, she continued to take the advice of others and kept trying to feed it to Che', hoping that he would eventually begin to like it; but that didn't go so well. Pratt became concerned about her sons' reaction to the newly introduced baby food. She shares that he would eat other things like baby cereal and drink his milk just fine, but he wasn't a fan of the baby food. Next, she decided to taste the baby food for herself, and after one spoonful, she knew why Che' didn't want to eat it. “It was horrible. The food tasted terrible, and I, too, had a difficult time eating it. I knew I had to do something about this,” she says. Pratt then decided to do some research of her own and began discussing food options with some other moms. She wasn't able to find many mothers who made their children's food at home, as she knew for busy single mothers like herself, it was easier to pick some up from the grocery store. Running out of resources, she turned to her family for help, consulting with her grandmother, mother, and aunts for some sound advice. “As a child, it was my great-grandmother who fed me mostly and showed my mother how to take different foods and cut them into very fine peices, making it suitable for me to eat as a baby. It made sense for me to come back to those who fed me,” she says. It proved to be the right decision for Pratt. As she got better at creating new foods for Ché, Pratt came up with the great idea of Little Chéngers. Pratt's hope is for Little Chéngers to continue growing and thrive toward success. Despite some of the challenges she has faced, her goal is to expand and market her products nationally and globally, connecting with consumers that may not necessarily look like her. The Little Chéngers brand is for all baby's, and she hopes to ensure that parents have access to it. To learn more about Little Chengers LLC, please visit their website at www.chengers.com You may also follow them on Facebook and Instagram by putting Little Chengers Baby Food in your search box. To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To purchase a copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please call Odell Cleveland at 336-895-8995 or visit his website at www.revodellcleveland.com

A company is only as good as its leader. Without a great guide, the company or business can experience stagnant or depleted growth. Shawn M. Nicholson, a business leadership coach, helps other companies, small businesses, and individuals obtain the successful leadership they wish for. Ultimately, his coaching can provide inevitable prosperity for all who work with him. Shawn is the founder of SMN Square Inc., located in Richmond, VA. It is a consulting/coaching business that helps executives of small companies, organizations, or non-profits find sustainability in their corporation by learning how to communicate effectively, with self-awareness of employees and directors, and teaching them sustainable habits that can grow their staff.  As a result, the seven-month program gives his clients a chance to rise within themselves and be better prepared for their customers. “I'm a third-generation entrepreneur on both sides of my family, my maternal and paternal. I often tell people that I knew exactly what I wanted to do, even at the age of eight. I wanted to be a business owner.” Shawn grew up watching his father and his father's brother manage a business in construction. In that time, he watched as they led other employees and gave instructions that helped build the company. Although he did not choose his father's business, he learned that you must care and provide great leadership among your peers to receive wealth and successive victory. Shawn provides different pathways for individuals to take, like one-on-one coaching or team leadership activities. He also provides an assessment and stakeholder interviews that help determine the kind of leader you are and what needs to be worked on for the corporation at hand to stay above water. In light of this, the time and effort put into the transformation is not his only reason to help, but it's Shawns' drive to change institutions that keep him going. His goals go beyond the vocational schools he has established in Richmond and Hampton, VA. There are plans soon to have another vocational leadership school internationally in Cape Town, South Africa. He hopes to expand himself way past the borders of America so other people may have the same opportunities for advancement. SMN Square, Inc. extends its generosity outside of their clients. Shawn offers his expertise to colleges in his area like Stratford University and Virginia State University Reginald F. Lewis College of Business. VSU, a local historically black college, partners with Shawn to help bring the next generation of black entrepreneurs and great business leaders. His other contributions are to the J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College board in dual enrollment and the workforce. Soft skill training and participating in hiring events in similar manner are other ways Shawn and his company give back to those who sow into him. To learn more about SMN Square Inc., please visit their website at www.smnsquare.com You may also follow SMN Square on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter by putting SMN Square in your search box. To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To purchase a copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please call Odell Cleveland at 336-895-8995 or visit his website at www.revodellcleveland.com

Who is Karena Washington? “I am an educator, author, and someone who enjoys the serene moment's life has to offer,” she says. A native of West Helena, AR, she graduated from Central High School in 2000. Next, she enrolled at Central Arkansas and received her undergraduate degree in business in 2007. With her academic accomplishments taken care of, she then worked with kids with special needs. “This had nothing to do with my degree in business, however caring for kids truly pulled at my heart, so much so that I decided to make a career of it,” she says. She then moved to Missouri in 2007, settling in the area of St Louis where she eventually learned of a school district whose sole purpose was to provide education and inclusion opportunities for kids with special needs. She got a job as a paraprofessional and the rest is history. She began working on her master's during the fall of 2009 and graduated in December 2012. Three months after receiving her Masters of Arts in Teaching, she was hired as a Special Education teacher. As an author, the first book she co-authored was The Lost Coin.  The collaborative works make reference to women who have lost something, and instead of seeking God, they relied on their intuition and direction for self-fulfillment.  Karena shares her decision didn't make her situation any better, it actually made it worse. In the other part of the book Karena talks about losing her parents. “When you lose your parents, both of them, it makes you feel empty,” she shares.  While enduring her loss, someone came along, and made her feel loved again, and provided a sense of family.  However, this was far from what was about to happen.  The person she thought was her saving grace would turn out to be a nightmare.  She lost emotionally, financially, and physically.  All because she wanted to be a part of something. With all that Karena has endured, the loss of her parents, and being trapped in an unhealthy relationship for years, she is still able to smile.  It's hard to take the joy from a person who has seen life at its darkest levels, losing on all fronts, and still hanging in the fight long enough to see God move.  This proves that her joy has been validated. The advice she offers to others who may follow in her footsteps as an author is to follow your heart.  “Be authentic. Speak from your heart.  Listen to your inner voice so that you are following the path that needs to be followed. This will ensure that you reach the people who need you the most.  Stay real to yourself and understand that no one cares more for you than you do for yourself."  It hasn't been a smooth ride, but it's the road that God prepared for Karena to travel. “Honestly, I wouldn't change anything. Every part of this journey has taught me lessons that have not only been beneficial to me, but have helped others that I've crossed paths with,” Karena says.   To learn more about Karena Washington, please visit her website at www.unabbridgedsolutions.net.  You may also visit www.unabbridgedsolutions.com To purchase your copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please visit www.revodellcleveland.com.  You may also contact Odell Cleveland directly at 336-895-8995 To learn more about Huami Magazine, please follow us on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may also follow this podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.  

For author Jonathan Harris, he has proven that anything is possible. In just one year, he transformed his appearance and embraced the responsibility of living a healthier life, and dropped 100 pounds. For many, that can be an impossible feat, but for Jonathan it all coincides with who he is, an achiever, overcomer, and conqueror. Born and raised in Fort Washington, Maryland, he is no stranger to leadership, hard work, or success. At the young age of ten years old, he was featured as a guest weatherman for a day on a local news station, Fox 5 DC News. He was the high school Valedictorian of his graduating class and has earned many awards such as the Forty Under 40 for Prince George's County, MD. He is also a TEDx Talk speaker, and TEDxFortWashington Founder. He has been recognized by the American College Personnel Association (ACPA) Outstanding Men's Program and is the recipient of the Kiwanis Club Citizenship Award. After high school, he attended the University of Delaware where he ironically fell in love with his Resident Assistant (RA) job and working with students. After college, he had a major career switch and decided to pursue a career in higher education. That led to his first degree granting HBCU, Lincoln University. With some much already accomplished, Jonathan found time to do even more. In 2016, he authored his first book, Master of Ceremonies: A Male's Guide for a Successful Life. In 2020, he did the unimaginable and wrote two books, on the same day: Growing Gents and Girls With Pearls. He then started his own publishing company, Harris Publishing, LLC, so that he could help more aspiring authors. Jonathan says he is inspired by those who will follow after him.  He also shares that being an author has afforded him a lot of opportunities. “I have spoken with schools, churches, mentoring programs, and on many other platforms. I have been blessed to have some pretty impactful conversations with the youth about self-esteem, friendship choices, healthy relationships, finances, spirituality/religion, education, and much more. Due to my transparency with them, many students have opened up about some challenging situations in their lives." In the future, Jonathan plans to publish his fourth book, and organize a book tour. He is also considering running for public office. On top of that, he is looking forward to becoming a husband and father one day. To learn more about Jonathan C. Harris, please visit his website at www.authorjon.com You may also follow him on Facebook and Instagram by putting Author Jon in your search box. To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To purchase a copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please call Odell Cleveland at 336-895-8995 or visit his website at www.revodellcleveland.com    

Pride Month is so much more than a festival or parade. Pride lives in our history, our homes, our communities and our hearts every day. Whether you're headed to your local Pride festival, gathering in your backyard with friends or spending some quiet time at home, we hope you enjoy your celebrations. To help you celebrate Pride Month, we've compiled a plethora of conversations to celebrate the beauty of our community, engage in the fight for equality and stories that will bring you joy. Episode 37:  The Joy Of Sobriety ~ A Trans Day Of Visibility Special With Jaylene Tyme ~ https://www.tiffanyrossdale.com/podcast/episode/4af2f0d3/the-joy-of-sobriety-~-a-trans-day-of-visibility-special-with-jaylene-tyme Episode 39: This Is Who I Am! Conversations Of Transitions From A Trans Lesbian Perspective ~ https://www.tiffanyrossdale.com/podcast/episode/4c5638aa/this-is-who-i-am-conversations-of-transitions-from-a-trans-lesbian-perspective Episode 40: Providing Psychological Support To LGBTQ + With Dr. Hansel Arroyo  ~ https://www.tiffanyrossdale.com/podcast/episode/4dce0fc1/providing-psychological-support-to-lgbtq-with-dr-hansel-arroyo Episode 45: Creative Scientist & Trans Super Woman Dr. Kate Stone ~ https://www.tiffanyrossdale.com/podcast/episode/4af8dd15/creative-scientist-and-trans-super-woman-dr-kate-stone Review Of The Day ~ @studioscratch Leave our podcast a review, comment and ratings; Podchaser ~ https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/breakfast-with-tiffany-show-1346455 Apple Podcast ~ https://podcasts.apple.com/jp/podcast/breakfast-with-tiffany-show/id1524300778 If you scroll down there's a rating section below. For questions and comments, please reach us via our e-mail ~ breakfastwithtiffanyshow@outlook.com Breakfast With Tiffany Show Official Facebook Page ~ https://www.facebook.com/breakfastwithtiffanyshow If you find this episode valuable to you, consider a minute to support the podcast by buying us a tea ;) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/tiffanyrossdale Follow Tiffany Rossdale Instagram ~ https://www.instagram.com/TokyoHottie Official Facebook Page ~ https://www.facebook.com/OfficialTiffanyRossdale Speaking on Clubhouse ~ https://www.joinclubhouse.com/@tokyohottie Check out the following sponsors; Cryosauna located in Roppongi, Tokyo Japan ~ https://cryosauna.jp/eng/home Pure Shop - https://pureshop.jp Support the show (https://paypal.me/breakfastwithtiff)

Are you looking for stylish eyewear that is sure to enhance your look?  Well, you should look no further. Lady E Specs is the newest signature brand of eyewear to emerge out of Greensboro, NC.  Dr. Erika Hendrix, a Greensboro native, and minister developed this eyewear line to provide her community with colorful and daring frames to fit any occasion.   After surviving three strokes that impaired her ability to wear contacts, Dr. Hendrix grew interest in wearing unique glasses that fit her personality eventually leading to the birth of Lady E Specs. During her 20's, Dr. Hendrix enjoyed wearing simple reading glasses but as the years passed her eyes became weaker and she eventually needed prescription glasses. She opted to wear contacts instead, and thoroughly enjoyed wearing them but after suffering a stroke she began to experience chronic dryness in her eyes. This made it impossible for her to continue wearing contacts. However, now it allowed her the opportunity to truly invest in the eyewear that she now wears. She utilized this opportunity to be more expressive in the eyewear that she chose and began purchasing her frames from a local eyewear entrepreneur, J. Franklin. She fell in love with his designs, even more, she liked that she was able to customize all her glasses.  She would have him engrave “Lady E” into every pair of frames that she purchased so that they would be personalized specifically to her. After frequently purchasing frames and becoming more acquainted with J. Franklin and his company, she learned that he also worked as an eyewear manufacturer. One day he suggested that she should start her own eyewear line because of her distinct taste and connections through her work and ministry. Dr. Hendrix's eyewear features customization for each of the Divine 9 fraternities and sororities as well as a featured “Aggie Blue” frame to celebrate her HBCU alma mater, North Carolina A&T State University.   All but two of Lady E Specs designs are unisex, so there are selections for any and everyone. The average cost for a pair of acetate frames from Lady E Specs will range from $95-$110 and the custom wooden frames begin at $250. Lady E Specs also accepts FSA and HSA flex spending funds from your employer as a form of payment.  Dr. Hendrix plans to further her brand to new heights and share her vision around the world. Some of her future plans include launching a line dedicated to senior citizens and expanding into jewelry and apparel. She is currently working with local vendors to have Lady E Specs sold wholesale as well as online through her website. To learn more about Lady E Specs, please contact Dr. Erika Hendrix directly at 336-303-9184. You may also visit their website at www.ladyespecs.com   You may also follow them on Facebook by putting Lady E_Specs in your search box.  You may follow them on Instagram by putting lady_especs in your search box. To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To purchase a copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please call Odell Cleveland at 336-895-8995 or visit his website at www.revodellcleveland.com  

It all begins with having a genuine love and concern for others. By doing so, the purest form of God's love is expressed and perpetuated. This accurately describes the life of Kocysha LaShaun. Born and raised in West Helena, AR, Kocysha is the founder of Be Accelerated into Purpose, LLC. In this role, she serves as a Writing Coach, Editor, and Self-Publishing Consultant. She is also the overseer of Humbled by His Grace Ministries, a teaching and coaching ministry. She serves as a Teacher of Spiritual Growth and Development and a Spiritual Mindset Coach to help men overcome mental blocks that lead to feelings of frustration and defeat. Once these obstacles are conquered, Kocysha believes men are able to walk in their purpose with confidence, power, and humility. Naturally, Kocysha is a writer. Like most writers, it began in the imaginative mind of a young girl, who possessed the ability to see beyond the realms of her reality. She hares, “As a little girl, I began writing in the form of poetry, more so as an outlet for frustration. I never expected to be an author. That happened as a result of a job loss when God began downloading messages to me for a book." To date, Kocysha has authored three books.  Yet, innately she is an encourager, giver, and teacher. She is passionate about helping others rise out of their pits of darkness, while also addressing faulty belief systems and addictive behaviors. This helps them become unstuck so they can move forward in their purpose. This passion has extended into her writings, and as an author, she uses her platform to teach the importance of self-reflection and the love and grace of God. Although it was God that saw her through different trials, she wouldn't be the person she is today were it not for the testimonies of others.  When not writing, Kocysha can be found enjoying a simple life. Her hobbies are reading, listening to praise and worship music, and painting. To learn more about Kocysha LaShaun, please follow her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Linkedin, and Pinterest by putting her name in your search box.  You may also visit her website at www. kocyshalashaun.com   To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com   You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.     To purchase a copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please call Odell Cleveland at 336-895-8995 or visit his website at www.revodellcleveland.com  

Flight (noun) – the action or process of flying through the air. For Ramone Hemphill, flying is a dream come true. A 9-year licensed pilot and Charlotte, North Carolina native, Ramone now resides in Melbourne, Florida working as a Systems Engineer in Avionics. “The first interest I had in aviation was in high school. I was in this group called The Explorers Club, and I was looking into Air Traffic Control. I got to go to an air traffic control tower for the first time. That's what got me geared up thinking about aviation in general. Fast forward, I ended up with a career spanning from aviation electronics (avionics) and flight controls, to flight test engineering. From that point, it was about getting a deeper understanding of aviation. The idea early on for me was that if I could obtain my pilot's license, I could have a deeper operational understanding of it,” he says. Ramone recognized the lack of African American representation in the aeronautics field. While African Americans are present at airports as baggage handlers, flight attendants, or security guards, they are vastly under-represented in the overall aviation community. Aeronautical engineering, air traffic control, aviation maintenance, all have low representation of African Americans, but none more than aircraft pilots. According to a 2018 report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, less than 3% of all commercial pilots in the US are African American. Ramone wants to change that. Along with his wife, and Board of Directors, Brinkley Wright, and Richard Winchester, Ramone formed The 99th Squadron in Brevard County, Florida. The 99th Squadron, so named after the first African American fighter squadron, the 99th Pursuit Squadron, is a non-profit organization dedicated to bridging the gap between the aviation field and our community. According to their website, The99th.org, Ramone and his team “expose our youth to the vast opportunities of the aviation industry, starting with the most basic fundamentals of flight for middle school and high school students.” The 99th offers a “free to students” 5-week curriculum, or “Flight Plan” as his website states, that involves 1-hour courses on Saturdays, with a 30-minute homework review every Wednesday to gauge student comprehension and potential topics of discussion. The 99th teaches students a wide range of fundamentals: Aerodynamic Principles, Instruments & Engines, Air Traffic Control, Decision Making, Charts, Navigation Systems, Aviation Weather, and Weather Services. At the end of the course, each student (along with a chaperone) gets to take to the air for a hands-on flight, allowing students to co-pilot and apply what they have been learning. Once the course is over, Ramone and his team encourage the students to stay involved in the aeronautical field. “Once they complete the program, my idea of the best way to keep them engaged is to keep them in the air. We may not be able to get them in the air every week or every month, but we encourage them to continue in the program through our Continuing Education initiative, where we take them on site visits. We'll also collaborate with other local STEM initiatives, namely the General Chappie James, Jr. Chapter of Tuskegee Airmen Inc., the South Brevard County Task Force, and the Rising Star Leadership Development.”   The 99th Squadron looks for the best in every child, regardless of past academic performance.   The 2021 fundraising goal for the upcoming September class is $5,000 which would cover the five-week course and flights for ten students. If you would like to donate to The 99th Squadron, please visit their website.   To learn more about The 99th Squadron, you may visit their website at www.the99th.org.  You may also follow them on Instagram by putting The 99th in your search box.   To learn more about Huami Magazine, you may follow us on Facebook and Instagram. You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com   You may also follow this podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.     To purchase a copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please contact Odell Cleveland at 336-895-8995 or visit www.revodellcleveland.com  

Who is Pache Felton? She is a survivor, a student of life, a motivator, a high school dropout, and a resilient and powerful black woman. On the day she was born her father was murdered. As a young adult, she endured the impact of not having a dad, as it left her feeling alone and abandoned. Witnessing the bond little girls and women had with their fathers was bittersweet for Pache.  She shares, "I always wondered what my relationship would have been like if I had a dad. However, I did not allow unwarranted feelings to influence my life. I was loved beyond measure and nurtured by strong, single women. My grandmother was the foundation of my family. When she transitioned, my foundation was gone, and I was lost. I was only 13 years old. I dropped out of school once I reached the tenth grade and headed down a destructive path. Life would continue to happen for Pache. After becoming a single parent at the age of 19, her life shifted. She still did things that a typical 19-year-old would do; however, there was always a sense of her needing to get her life together. She shares, She pivoted at age 26 and took control of my educational realm. Today, she holds a M.S. in Organizational Leadership, M.A in Curriculum and Instruction, a B.A. in Psychology, and a M.S. pending in Educational Psychology. Pache is also a business owner. Her company, My Insight Coaching stands on the motto, “Be the Best You!” My Insight Coaching was created as a safe haven for Pache's clients, and its mission is to impact and inspire women, men, teens, and families who seek to improve themselves. Many of the areas that Pache focuses on are Building Self-Awareness, Building Self-Confidence, Improving Work Ethic, Becoming Self-Reliant, Gaining Perspective On Life, Maintaining A Positive Mindset, Discovering Passion and Purpose, Improving Personal Specific Skills, Gaining A Deeper Level Of Learning, Communicating More Effectively, Establishing And Taking Action Towards Achieving Goals, Learning How To Live With Pain And Sorrow, and Taking Responsibility and Accountability For Actions and Commitments. She's also the Co-founder of Harlem Girls Inc My Insight Coaching is designed to assist all who seek to look at life through a different lens.  Pache hopes to create and provide opportunities for the less fortunate.  She knows firsthand what the consequences of growing up in an impoverished district is like, and where the required educational means are not provided. The kind of places where students are not heard, and teachers are imprudent about the student's future. In the future, Pache says she is looking forward to working in the field of psychology and contributing to research and theories that influence how people residing in inner cities are educated.  Her goal is to provide educational means to individuals by creating an atmosphere that is conducive for creativity and innovation. Her vision as a psychology practitioner-scholar is to work as a Program Development Specialist and collaborate with other practitioners, educators, and administrators.  To learn more about Pache Felton and My Insight Coaching, you may follow her on Facebook and Instagram by putting My Insight Coaching in your search box.   You may also visit her website at www.myinsightcoaching.org To learn more about Huami Magazine, you may follow us on Facebook and Instagram. You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com   You may also follow this podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.     To purchase a copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please contact Odell Cleveland at 336-895-8995 or visit www.revodellcleveland.com  

Rhonda Crowder is no stranger to struggle. Throughout her life she has seen plenty of heartbreak, pain, and let down. But despite all the things she has gone through, Rhonda has managed to blossom and build herself up into a thriving entrepreneur and businesswoman. She has done this with the help of God, her family, and the encouragement of her children.   Rhonda is a 2004 graduate of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. She has a bachelor's degree in Journalism and Mass Communication, with a concentration in Public Relations.  Presently residing in Monroe, NC, the mother of two says her children are the biggest reason why she felt the need to push herself to be the woman that she is today.   She shares,  “My children are my why.  They've seen me broken, they've seen me in tears, and they've seen me in pain. There was once a moment in time where all I knew to do was cry, and my children were a witness to that. There was a time when I laid on my face and cried because I didn't know what to say because I was so broken. I only knew the Lord's Prayer, so I said that. My son was three and a half at the time, and he would lay beside me and kiss me."   As challenging as it was for Rhonda, she knew she had to preserve and endure. Though there were moments when she didn't have the words to say, more less answers, she shares it was her faith that pulled her along and provided her with the strength to stand.   It was from her brokenness that Rhonda found a new outlook and meaning to her life. That's where Broken To Life Ministries began.  Through brokenness God has allowed her to see herself, see connections, and what needed to be connected and what didn't.   Broken To Life Ministries has produced some great things for Rhonda. She has authored and published a book, Broken To Life, which she details her trials and triumphs through 14 chapters beginning with the onset of brokenness, and concluding with her being set free. She also serves as a motivational speaker, evangelist, and is a trusted ear to many.   More than anything, Rhonda hopes that through her life and experiences, others will find hope and push through their own set of challenges. She also encourages aspiring entrepreneurs to follow their calling if they genuinely want to be successful in life.   Currently Rhonda has started an educational consulting business, as well as a performing arts center called Power Moves Performing Arts Academy. Though currently not housed in a brick-and-mortar location, there are plans to do so. Through Power Moves Performing Arts Academy, Rhonda would like for kids to be able to come and learn about theater, and learn how to get to the next level, including college all while reaching for the stars.   Moving forward, Rhonda plans to share her ministry and programs with anyone who would like to be a part. In addition to many obligations and duties she already has, Rhonda is also a singer. She has been featured in major publications and on platforms such as iHeartRadio.   To learn more about Rhonda Crowder and Broken To Life Ministries, you may follow her on Facebook and Instagram, simply by putting Broken To Life in your search box.  You may also send her a email directly to brokentolifeministries@gmail.com   To learn more about Huami Magazine, you may follow us on Facebook and Instagram. You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com   You may also follow this podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.     To purchase a copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101, please contact Odell Cleveland at 336-895-8995 or visit www.revodellcleveland.com

One of the first steps to a new start, is to start from a clean plate. Tasha Renee Ratcliffe of Indianapolis, IN is the owner of Heaven Scent Cleaning company. Launched in 2019, she offers various services that include Basic Cleaning, Covid-19 Cleaning, Deep Cleaning, and Eco-Friendly Cleaning (using all-Natural Products). She also offers specials and discounts to her clients who are senior citizens. Tasha is a daughter, sister, and friend to many.  She describes herself as an overcomer.  She is also a strong, and motivated woman who is a devout lover of God and willingly opens her heart to others. Professionally, Tasha is the CEO of her company, as well as a Life Coach, Mentor, Community Leader, and Minister. “From Trauma To Triumph. I say this often because it gives me so much motivation. No matter what I've gone through in life, I know I can make it because God has a plan for me,” she says.  “I strive to be my very best every day, even when obstacles hit home,” she says. One of those such obstacles happened nearly two years ago with the passing of her late husband, Robert Lee Ratcliffe Jr.  Tasha's circumstances changed the moment when she decided to go to grief therapy. Getting in a positive headspace blessed her and from that point, she knew it was time to start over. Though that period of her life was difficult, Tasha found a new joy in life as a brand ambassador and CEO of several companies she launched. These are Heaven Scent Cleaning Company, the Be You Movement, Pressed Youth Center, and Legacy Boutique that is scheduled to launch in Spring of 2021. The foundation of Heaven Scent Cleaning Company began from a Vision Book that Tasha and her late husband created.  Her business grew from small residential clients to large commercial and Small Business, and even religious arenas. Being a business owner provides Tasha with many benefits including flexibility and the freedom to create new ideas. One of the most important ones is her ability to supply jobs for others. While her journey has been tough at times, and she has endured, she shares that has been worth it, "This is the is the blessing that God has given me, and I will not complain," she says. To learn more about Heaven Scent Cleaning Company, please visit their website at www.heavenscentcleaning.com   You may also follow them on Facebook and Instagram.  On Facebook, put Heaven Scent Cleaning Company in your search box.  On Instagram, put Heaven Scent Cleaning Company 2 LLC in your search box.  You may also contact them directly at 317-939-3032   To purchase a copy of It's My Turn Now: Caregiving 101 please visit www.revodellcleveland.com or call 336-895-8995   You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com To follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram, just put This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To advertise your product business or service on this podcast, please send a detailed to huamimagazine@gmail.com

Willie Addison Jr. This Is Who I Am. Exodus 34:1-10. 03/14/2021.

NaQuetta Mitchell of Hopewell, VA is truly a “Woman Of Endurance”. She is the mother of two amazing young ladies who are the driving force behind her desire to accomplish each assignment God puts before her. She is also the face and founder of Higher Than This Transformational Coaching, and a nonprofit organization, Women of Endurance. Higher Than This is a coaching firm that specializes in transforming relationships that include self, romantic, platonic, familial, and community. “At Higher Than This, we specialize in bringing hope and clarity to your relationships. We will help you understand what options are open to you. We will help you feel confident in making your decision,” she says. With Women of Endurance, its focus is geared towards assisting women with turning devastation into determination. NaQuetta's journey began in 2014. During that season of her life she was a mother of one and expecting another child, all while going through a divorce. It was during this season that she had decided to move back to her hometown of Hopewell, Va. While going through this transition, it was not a lot of assistance for women in her situation. Even though she was married to the military, they couldn't help her. Even though she was going through a divorce, social services couldn't help her either. NaQuetta knew at that moment there was a void that needed to be filled. Though the journey has been interesting for NaQuetta, she has endured. There are a few things that she would change about it if she could. “I would have attended Virginia State University as soon as I graduated high school and graduated with my degree. Even though I have worked diligently to show and prove how qualified I am, most organizations don't give me the opportunities that they give those with a degree.” In the future, she plans on releasing her long awaited book of devotions and encouragement for women who are in transition into their next season.  To learn more about NaQuetta Mitchell, please follow her on Instagram and Facebook by putting Women of Endurance VA in your search box. You may also visit her website at www.naquettaspeaks.com To follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram, please put Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also visit www.huamimagazine.com   To follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram, simply put This Is Who I Am in your search box

A unicorn. That is how she describes herself. Her body is adorned with unique tattoos and eclectic piercings. And while she is used to being prejudged for her appearance, Germany Inke is beginning to write her own story; giving people a view of the woman behind the ink.   Originally from Ohio, Germany Inke grew up in a single mother household. With a background in psychology, she is also a masters degree student. The 41-year-old has a passion for many things that involve the mentoring of other people. “I am a mentor. I specialize in what I like to call entrepreneur guru,” she says. Germany considers herself a mentor and not a coach she shares, because sometimes, individuals don't respond properly. She has had the opportunity to work with many coaches, and appalled their talent but considers herself as a sister or family thus her slogan she says on her podcast “I am Germany Inke; your sister, Baby Mama, cousin, best friend, boo thang) and closes the statement with a kiss, just so everyone can feel the love.” Germany wants to help business owners with low self-esteem have more confidence when it comes to their business. “My mission is to bring a message of positivity, health, and wealth to the forefront. I want to help people improve their self-esteem towards business because a lot of people are afraid of themselves. So I not only help them build their confidence but I teach them how to get their business going,” she says. Some of the women she works with in her community are Venah Wilson, also known as Jemini June, who is a Coach and Executive Director with Total Life Changes, Independent Group Fitness Instructor, and Singer/Songwriter. There is also Evelyn Hill who is known to many as Eve. She is an advocate for those who were formerly incarcerated and seeking to find a new way of life by restoring the relationships that were broken due to their incarceration. She also works with Pinkylee Simone-Potts, an aspiring actress, comedian, and writer who is the owner and actress on the television series, Karen in The QC. In addition to being a mentor for entrepreneurs, Germany is also a baker, crafting tasty and unique CBD infused treats with her signature brand, Dirty Desserts. Germany is also a painter and author. She is currently working on releasing her first book in the near future. To learn more about Germany Inke, you may follow her by visiting her website at www.germanyinke.biz.  You may also follow her on Facebook and Instagram   You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com To follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram, just put This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To advertise your product business or service on this podcast, please send a detailed to huamimagazine@gmail.com

Tyneka Howard started her military career at 19, and last fall, retired after 20 years of service in the U.S. Air Force. During her tenure, she spent most of her time guiding, mentoring, directing, and leading airmen, both men and women. In the last few years of her military career, she would meet young female soldiers who looked at her as a mentor and someone they aspired to be – confident, assertive, and successful. The majority of women felt misplaced and unsure if they had made the right decision in joining the armed forces. Navigating within a male-dominated organization was oftentimes quite challenging so Howard would adopt' several ladies and mentor them on how to effectively adapt to military life.   The veteran grew up a preacher's kid, a lifestyle that presented her with a strong foundation and an environment that others may not always experience.   Howard proved to be the latter. And her peers apparently saw that leadership quality in her. As she approached the last five years of her military tenure she began mentoring high school students, mainly girls, who were facing real challenges that she was unaware of.   “I would just go in with a servant heart and want to work with people. It didn't matter who it was, it was just where I was supposed to be,” she shares.  A lightbulb went off in Howard's head with the realization that there was a huge void in the community and help was needed to guide the younger generation. Howard looks youthful and she feels that contributed to young women seeking her out for advice. She attests that her youthful look is achieved by living a stress free life.   Last year, the Martinsville, VA native sought to start her organization, Lead(H)er under her parent company H2G Leadership Group, which stands for Howard 2nd Generation. Lead(H)er focuses on Faith, Fitness, Relationships, and Career. This summer she plans to host more workshops and social media live events for her clients and those she hopes to attract. She's also planning to increase her website and blog posts to grow her following and reach more people.   This year Howard plans to also incorporate families into her organization's structure. Focusing on communication within the family unit can aid in building the foundation that the younger members need. Within her own family unit, her 13 year old son has taught her how much different boys and girls tend to communicate. “My son is quiet and calm. I can tell him something and he's okay. He's easy with lots of patience.” Studies show that girls tend to have more words in their vocabulary by a certain age and tend to react to news differently.   She simultaneously started the corporate side of her business that handles communications and marketing for companies and how they can better communicate with their employees and clients. Continuing her quest to bridge the gap and network with other ladies to bring the second generation along and add value to their lives is at the forefront of Howards mind. At the rate she's moving, it seems that she'll accomplish that goal in no time.   To learn more about Tyneka Howard, please contact her directly at 202-709-6447. You may also visit her website at www.h2gleadher.net   You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com To follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram, just put This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To advertise your product business or service on this podcast, please send a detailed to huamimagazine@gmail.com

Gamal C. Williams Becoming an author can be a massive undertaking but it is certainly worth the effort if you want to achieve creative fulfillment while touching the emotions, hearts, and minds of others through writing. Some people feel the unction more readily than others to express their emotions and thoughts openly while others may be more introverted with their emotions and thoughts and could quite possibly replaying scenes over in their mind. How creative is that? If you believe there's a story inside of you then you should let it out. Meet Gamal C. Williams, a native of Brooklyn, New York, a father of four, and a retired 20-year Naval Senior Chief Officer hailing from Hampton Rhodes, Virginia. On November 29, 2020 Gamal released his first novel entitled, Fin: A Story of Love and Hope.    “First, let me explain how I came up with the name, Fin. Fin is actually short for Finely. One thing we do in the military is shorten last names. For example, my last name is Williams, but everybody calls me, Will. So, this whole thing started because of a dream I kept having. I had this same dream four or five times a week for about three or four weeks. In this dream I am working in a convenience store and as I'm taking the trash out in the back somebody comes in and tries to rob the store. The cops intervene and somehow, I accidently get shot. Each time I had this dream I would wake up in a panic. After a while I realized I was dreaming. Then finally one night I woke up at two o'clock in the morning and I grabbed my laptop and just started writing. I wrote the first ten or twelve pages of the book and sent it to my publisher, Sasha Ridley. After she read it, she encouraged me to finish this story. So, I started thinking if I'm going to finish this story then I am going to have to figure out how did this person get here, and how do I write this scene, so it was the dream that actually got me into writing. I never grew up saying I wanted to be an author, it was never anything like that. I didn't know I wanted to be a writer until I started writing Fin. I loved it immediately. I enjoyed seeing the characters come to life. Every waking moment I had I would be thinking about this story.”   Fin: A Story of Love and Hope is a book that transcends nationalities and genders; it is relatable enough to spark the interest of everyone who reads it.     Though the book is fiction there are some elements of truth embedded in the fabric of the story line.   As a black male, Gamal understands the social anxieties and depressions that both pre-adolescent and post-teens experience. Some of his experiences can be found in Fin.   The book also shows the complexities of love on multiple levels. For instance, there is a romantic love between Fin and his girlfriend Cory; there is the love between his grandparents; and there is the love that father and son show one another.   Gamal shares, "When I was growing up on my way home from school me and my friends would stop at the library every day to do our homework then we would read for hours. To know that some young man will be able to go into the library and see a book that looks like him on the shelf and be able to resonate with the emotions going on in the book is so rewarding for me. If a young kid can see themselves in one of those characters, then I am happy. That's a blessing right there. I just hope people would give it a chance and pick it up and enjoy it.”   To learn more about Gamal Williams you may visit his website at www.authorgamalwilliams.com   You may also follow him on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok, by putting his name in your search box.   You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com To follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram, just put This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To advertise your product business or service on this podcast, please send a detailed to huamimagazine@gmail.com

A lover of God, people, and history, Mary McLean Dowdell has dedicated her life to making sure that the untold stories of her family are now being made available for the world to read. Mary is a resident of Greensboro, NC.  She is also the author of Brick to Brick: Building a Black Family in America. The inspiration behind the book came from her own family history and experiences. Mary says she wrote the book to give the history of her family After her parents, Neil and Iva McLean, were married, they returned to a small town in Eastern North Carolina called Brick. The American Missionary Association had already established life centers where black people or freed slaves could learn how to achieve and maintain self-sufficiency. Her parents were sent to gather people and assume leadership of the center that was in Brick.   Once her parents took over the center, they worked to teach black people basic skills to improve their everyday lives. Mary shares that one of the things they taught them was farming. Although they knew how to take care of a farm, they didn't know about the decisions when it came to selling produce. Her parents taught them about leadership and the economics of the farm. They also taught them about owning property, home management, and home economics.   Mary believes black people should tell their history. There are all kinds of books about what other people do but not a lot about what we do or have done.   The second part of the book tells the story of Mary herself as well as her siblings, as a product of her parents. She wanted to include what happened to her parent's children. So, she had her oldest brother write something and she also gave all of her siblings the opportunity to write.  She even has something in the book about her siblings who have died.    Mary is also an Evangelist Missionary and serves at Evangel Fellowship Church of God in Christ. She is a recent PhD graduate at the age of 73, and the mother of three adult children and the grandmother of five children.   Mary believes that despite who you are or what you look like, the possibilities are endless. She also does not believe in limitations of age. She says, “Look at who you are. Look at what your world view is and what your self-view is. You see testimonies every day of people doing great things. We are all born empty slates and have the same potential to achieve something amazing."   To learn more about Mary Dowdell, please visit her website at www.lifesuccessbydowdell.com   You may also follow her Facebook by putting her name, or Life Success by Dowdell in your search box.   To learn more about Huami Magazine, you may follow us on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.  You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com   You may also follow this podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To learn more about Genesys Fitness, please visit website at www.beverlykjohnson.com   To learn more about It's My Turn Now, Care Giving 101, and to purchase a copy of the book, please visit their website at www.revodellcleveland.com.  You may also contact Odell Cleveland directly at 336-895-8995  

April Alford is a passionate and driven leader who teaches, informs and empowers others to build generational wealth through homeownership. Every day, her goal is to help people take control of their destiny by setting them on a path towards financial security.   April serves her community as a Mortgage Loan Officer with Movement Mortgage in Raleigh, NC. There her focus is to assist consumers with obtaining a mortgage loan to purchase a home. She also educates consumers about the importance of budgeting and establishing credit worthiness. Her services offer programs with 100% financing, and down payment assistance or low down payment programs. She also regularly hosts Home Buyer seminars to help people prepare to purchase a home. Additionally, she uses the power of social media to give advice and weekly tips.   April started her finance career in 2000 as a teller for a large retail bank. In 2004, she moved to the United Kingdom and worked for a Consumer Finance company that provided personal loans to consumers. Upon her return to the United States in 2008, she resumed her career at the same retail bank, working her way up through the ranks in various positions until becoming a Mortgage Loan Officer in 2012. She hasn't looked back since.   The driving force behind April is her love for empowering families with the ability to build generational wealth through homeownership. She shares that it excites her to help someone achieve the dream of purchasing a home. It also brings her great joy to show someone, who thought they couldn't purchase a home, how it can in fact be done.  Seeing the smile on a client's face when they receive the keys to their new home is a gratifying feeling that never gets old, April says.  It's during these moments that reminds her what her purpose is.   Now in 2021, April is ready to help even more people become homeowners and more.  She plans to continue to share her knowledge and educate as many consumers as possible about the home buying process. She continues to offer her wealth building series that focuses on home ownership and other areas such as the importance of life insurance, wills, budgeting, credit, and real estate investments. This information is beneficial to everyone, but April has her eyes set on the minority communities specifically.  Her goal is to be a vessel that helps bridge the gap in minority homeownership.   To learn more about April Alford, please visit her website at www.aprilalford.com   You may also follow her on Facebook and Instagram by putting April Alford in your search box.   To learn more about Huami Magazine please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com   You may also follow us Instagram and Facebook by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.   You may also follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.  

Rhonda Aaron of North Little Rock, AR has devoted her life to helping and serving others. She is the Founder of Sister Friends United Inc., a non-profit organization of minority women with a mission to support, uplift and empower its members to better serve the community. Sister Friends United Inc. was founded and incorporated in the State of Arkansas in October 2007. With well over a decade of service to the Pulaski County community, they have provided $30,000 in scholarships to assist young minority women in pursuing their dreams of attaining a college degree. They've hosted an array of workshops, conferences and luncheons for women with topics ranging from finance management to health and fitness. Rhonda says she's learned through the years while working for Sister Friends United Inc. on how important it is to have a solid and consistent brand that people can trust. There are so many nonprofits that don't survive but their formula has worked for over a decade. Rhonda states, “We are a group of black women who are impacting our community. Our motto says, “United We Stand, United We Make a Difference”. Sister Friends United initially started as a means to connect women and resources within the African American community to gain financial education, healthy living information sessions and empowerment conferences and workshops that would empower attendees to be stronger citizens of the community. A few of the inaugural year initiatives were to form a community partnership to focus on health and wealth. They connected with Baptist Health and Trainer Phyllis Hodges to teach healthy lifestyle habits. They also hosted a financial education workshop on budgeting, investing and retirement plans. Each year, Sister Friends United Inc has provided a holiday meal and breakfast for a family in need as well as fulfilled the request of a child from the Salvation Army's Angel tree. They have received names from and partnered with Second Baptist (John Barrow-Pastor Ivan Lambert) and volunteer annually with Power 92 to support the Watershed with a monetary donation and preparing food boxes to distribute to families in need.   Rhonda shares that she is inspired by women winning, and others who achieve success and live their dreams. “I understand that journey and it is inspirational to see the victory,” she says.   To learn more about Sister Friends United Inc., please visit their website at www.sisterfriendsunited.com You may also follow them on Facebook by putting Sister Friends United Inc. in your search box.  You may also follow them on Instagram by putting Sister Friends United LR in your search box.   To learn more about Odell Cleveland and to purchase your copy of It's My Turn Now - Caregiving 101, please visit www.revodellcleveland.com or contact him directly at 336-895-8995   To learn more about Beverly Johnson and Genesys Fitness, you may visit her website at www.beverlykjohnson.com   To learn more about Huami Magazine please follow us on Facebook and Instagram.  You may also follow this podcast, This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Istagram.   Also, please visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com

Simone Coleman of Nashville, TN is a pet sitter and a natural lover of animals. She is also someone who is best described as “the not so average girl next door”. Her vivacious personality and appeal compliment her personality, skills that assist her with operating her business, Petrospect Pet Sitting Services.   After a career with the NBA and working for the Philadelphia 76ers and Miami Heat franchise's by providing season ticket sales, Simone relocated back to Middle Tennessee. Soon her love for animals and pets in particular would play a huge role in her life.   With her business Petrospect, Simone specializes in caring for larger breed dogs and those that may have a sense of separation anxiety. Some of the services she offers are In Home – Boarding (at the pet sitter's home), In Home – Daycare, Housesitting, Drop-in Visits, Dog Park Visits, Dog Walks, Pet Photography, and Urgent/ On Call Pet sitting.   Simone shares, "My clients pets provide me with a second dose of mental health therapy outside of my regular therapy sessions. I'm able to not only provide a service to my clients with exceptional pet care, but I provide myself with the service of unconditional love from pets, every single day. Pets who are dealing with separation anxiety are another reason I love what I do, because I've learned through my own mental health therapy that separation anxiety in pets is the exact same as loneliness in humans. I do this full time, which means I'm at home enough during the day to provide less loneliness for myself and my clients pets. Even more, as a mental health advocate, I understand and appreciate the value of the services I offer. I am a three time suicide attempt survivor, and most of my clients don't even know that a day with their pet, is a day that I am less depressed, and is a day that I have less to zero suicidal ideation. It's a win, win situation all the way around."   In the future, Simone hopes to continue providing a more boutique style of in-home pet care for years to come. Furthermore, she's looking to implement a future endeavor that would incorporate pets in more lives of those with mental health issues. Contact Petrospect Pet Sitting Services today for all your pet sitting needs.   To learn more about Petrospect Pet Sitting Services, please follow them on Facebook and Instagram.  You may also contact them directly at 615-601-1751   If you are or know of anyone who may be contemplating suicide, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.  You may visit their website at www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org   If you are or know of someone who is dealing with mental illness, please visit www.betterhelp.com to learn more about available services that may help.   To learn more about Huami Magazine you may follow us on Facebook and Instagram.  You may also follow this podcast on Facebook and Instagram by putting This Is Who I Am in the search box.  You may also visit our website at www.huamimagazine.com to learn more.    

In this episode the Unflopped crew discuss Fidel Castro, the Olympics, and Doop. Stuart and Sean each pitch a flop single that they think deserved to be a pop music hit and Judge Joe gives his verdict. This week’s songs are ‘Hotel Nacional’ by Gloria Estefan and ‘This Is Who I Am’ by Vanessa Amorosi. This episode was edited by Ben Goodstein.

Bookwaves/Artwaves is produced and hosted by Richard Wolinsky. Links to on-line and streaming local theater & book events   Artwaves Theatre In the Time of Covid Pam MacKinnon, Artistic Director of A.C.T., American Conservatory Theatre, in conversation with host Richard Wolinsky. Now in her third season as Artistic Director, Pam MacKinnon has had to rearrange her life (which was already in flux, still learning about her new home town of San Francisco) and the work of her organization in order to survive the complete shutdown of live theatre in America. A noted theatre director before joining A.C.T., Pam MacKinnon won an Obie and then was nominated for a Tony on Broadway for Clybourne Park. A leading director of the works of Edward Albee, she won a Tony Award in 2013 for a revival of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf. In the Bay Area, most notably, she directed Albee's Seascape for ACT during the 2018-2019 season, and before that, directed the musical Amelie at Berkeley Rep. In this interview, she discusses the changes A.C.T. was forced to make to deal with the shutdown, the rise of streaming, working with other companies, and coming up with new ways to survive the pandemic, including a host of streaming options at act-sf.org. Complete 48-minute interview.   Bookwaves David Grann,  in conversation with Richard Wolinsky about “The Lost City of Z,” recorded in the KPFA studios in 2009. David Grann has become one of America's leading writers of non-fiction. Having written pieces for The New Yorker and New Republic as a staff writer, his first book was titled The Lost City of Z, which was adapted into a film in 2017 and now streams on Amazon Prime. Since that time, he has published three books, The Devil and Sherlock Holmes, Flowers of the Killer Moon – which will become a film when shooting starts next year, directed by Martin Scorcese and starring Leonardo di Caprio and Robert DeNiro, and most recently, The White Darkness, about the British explorer Henry Worsley. :The complete interview can be heard as a 51-minute Radio Wolinsky podcast.     Announcement Links Book Passage. Conversations with authors, all at 4 pm Pacific:  Naomi Wolf, Saturday November 14. Thomas Keller and David Breeden with Ruth Reichl, Monday November 16. Deborah Tannen with Amy Tan, Wednesday November 18. Deborah Madison with Jane Hirschfield, Saturday November 21. James Ritchie, Sunday November 22. The Booksmith  Ron Nyren, “The Book of Lost Light,” with Ann Packer and others, Monday November 16, 5:30 pm. Reza Farazmand, Wednesday November 19, 6 pm. Books Inc ; AJ Sass, Thursday November 12, 6 pm. Bay Area Book Festival Power of Protest: Letters from Hong Kong, Sunday November 15,  5 pm. Unbound events continue. Podcasts of October 3-4 Unbound: All 22 interviews and discussions are now available on demand. Kepler's Books presents Refresh the Page, on line interviews and talks. Registration required. This is Now, with Adam Grant and Ben Cohen, Monday Nov. 16, 5 pm. Shannon Messenger with Roshani Chokshi, Tuesday Nov. 17, 6 pm. Irish Repertory Theatre: Bill Irwin “On Beckett.” Streaming November 17-22, 2020. Free. Reserve tickets up to two hours before selected performance. San Francisco Playhouse. 2020-21 Virtual Season: Art by Yasmina Reza, now streaming, extended through November 21; The Jewelry Box, written and performed by Brian Copeland, streaming November 28 – December 25, 2020; From Blues to Broadway Revue, streaming December 12 – 31, 2020. Custom Made Theatre Upcoming events TBA. Theatre Rhino Live Thursday performance conceived and performed by John Fisher on Facebook Live and Zoom at 8 pm Thursdays is Gordon of Khartoum. Blood at the Root by Dominique Morriseau, directed by Darryl V. Jones, streaming through November 15; Overlooked Latinas, written and performed by Tina D'Elia, streaming Nov. 13-22, 2020. At The Wake of a Dead Drag Queen by Terry Guest, November 10, 7 pm free. American Conservatory Theatre (ACT) Blood Wedding by Federico Garcia Lorca, on demand through Nov.13. Pam McKinnon talks with Annette Bening, Nov. 20 live; Dec. 4 – June 30, on demand. A Christmas Carol, radio adaptation of Carey Perloff's adaptation, streams Dec. 5-31, 2020. 42nd Street Moon. Moonbeams Streaming Series: A Distant Dinner Party with Jess and Jaron, Nov. 12-22 8 pm; Home (literally) for the Holidays, Nov. 26- Dec. 6. Tuesdays: Tuesday Talks Over the Moon, 8 pm: Nov. 17: An Inside Look into playwright Terrence McNally. Every other Friday at 8 pm: Full Moon Fridays Cabaret. Sundays at 8 pm: Quiz Me Kate: Musical Theatre Trivia. Magic Theatre. Escaped Alone by Caryl Churchill, directed by Loretta Greco. A radio play, through Nov. 15. Shotgun Players. The Light by Loy A. Webb, directed by Nailah Harper-Malveaux, Dec 4-12, 7 pm. Preview Dec 4, 7 pm. Opening Night: Dec 5, 5 pm. Berkeley Rep Hershey Felder as Debussy, A Paris Love Story, Nov 22, 5 pm. TheatreWorks Silicon Valley. Two live shows with Hershey Felder from Florence for the Holidays: Claude Debussy, Nov. 22; Tchaikovsky, December 20, both at 5 pm Pacific. California Shakespeare Theatre (Cal Shakes) The Direct Address series continues with Resisting Shakespeare: Or, How to Fall In and Out and In and Out of Love. Shakespeare in Depth, class with Philippa Kelly, registration required. Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts new on-line programming series featuring classes, concerts, poetry sessions and more. Day of the Dead virtual ritual, Nov.2, live event. SFBATCO Live with Rod and Marce on Twitch TV, every Thursday at 6 pm. Aurora Theatre's A new ticketed audio drama, The Flats, written by Lauren Gunderson, Cleaven Smith and Jonathan Spector, with Lauren English, Anthony Fusco and Khary L. Moye, directed by Josh Costello, streaming now. Aurora Connects conversations every Friday, 4 pm. Tell Tale Hearts: An Evening of Hip Hop Theatre featuring Carlos Aguirre and the Bay Area Theatre Cypher, November 28, livestream, 7 pm Pacific. Marin Theatre Company Lauren Gunderson's play Natural Shocks streams through Soundcloud on the Marin Theatre website. American Dreams, created and developed by Leila Buck and Tamilla Woodard, streaming through Nov. 15. Central Works Bystanders by Patricia Milton, an audio play, currently streaming. The Human Ounce by Nicole Parizeau, audio play, streams beginning Nov. 26, 2020 New Conservatory Theatre Center The Law of Attraction by Patricia Milton, a world premiere radio play, streams through November 18, 2020. The Marsh: International Solo Fest, archived streaming. Josh Kornbluth hosts bingo every Friday at 7:30 pm Brava Theatre Center: Who's Your Mami Comedy, November 19, 7 pm. So Soul, November 21. Pear Theater. Lysistrata, streamed through November 15, filmed live outdoors. Contra Costa Civic Theatre It's a Wonderful Life, a radio play by Joe Landry, streams Nov. 27-Dec. 20. Remote Theater. The Art of Sacrifice by Anthony Clarvoe, with Lauren English and Susi Damilano, original music by Paul Dresher. Saturday Dec. 12, noon Pacific. The Breath Project. Complete collection streaming on demand. Oregon Shakespeare Festival: On-demand audio recordings of early plays; videos of Indigenous Peoples Day 2020, etc. This Is Who I Am by Amir Nizar Zuabi, directed by Evren Odcikin, a co-production with Woolly Mammoth, Nov. 29 – Dec. 27. Atlantic Theatre Company. Reading series TBA. Playbill List of Streaming Theatre: Updated weekly, this is probably the best list you'll find of national and international streaming plays and musicals. Each week has its own webpage, so scroll down. If you'd like to add your bookstore or theater venue to this list, please write Richard@kpfa.org The post Bookwaves/Artwaves – November 12, 2020: Pam MacKinnon – David Grann appeared first on KPFA.

Bookwaves/Artwaves is produced and hosted by Richard Wolinsky. Links to on-line and streaming local theater & book events   Bookwaves Joshua Furst, author of the novel “Revolutionaries,” which fictionalizes the story of Abbie Hoffman and his family in the 1960s and 1970s, is interviewed by host Richard Wolinsky. Joshua Furst, in his second novel, focuses on the radicals of the '60s by looking at the life of a prankster activist based on Hoffman, and on the lives of his wife and son, and on the noted folk singer Phil Ochs.  Originally a playwright, Joshua Furst turned to fiction with a collection, “Short People,” followed by a novel about the punk scene in the Midwest, “The Sabotage Cafe.” An extended 36-minute version of this interview can be found as a Radio Wolinsky podcast.   Artwaves Richard Wolinsky & Bill Irwin Bill Irwin, creator and performer of “On Beckett,” which was performed at A.C.T.'s Strand Theatre through January 22, 2017, is interviewed by Richard Wolinsky. Bill Irwin won the Tony Award for his portrayal of George opposite Kathleen Turner's Martha in “Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf.” on Broadway. He performed as both Lucky and Vladimir in productions on Broadway of Samuel Beckett's “Waiting for Godot,” and performed in A.C.T.'s recent production of Beckett's “Endgame.” A veteran of several TV shows and films,  currently he appears regularly on the TV show “Law & Order: SVU” and appeared previously on “Sleepy Hollow,” and “Legion,” and will appear in the upcoming film “Lust Life Love.” A founder of the legendary Pickle Family Circus, he has also appeared in San Francisco and New York in the shows “Fool Moon” and “Old Hats.” Bill Irwin's interest in Nobel laureate Samuel Beckett (1906-1989) goes back to college and his performances of Beckett not only include the mentioned plays but other works as well. :The interview was recorded January 9, 2017 in a dressing room at the Strand Theatre in San Francisco. Special thanks to Carey Perloff and Kevin Kopjak for making this possible.     Announcement Links Book Passage. Conversations with authors, all at 4 pm Pacific: Anthony Lee Head and Peter Coyote, Sat. Nov. 7, Elizabeth Strout Sun. November 8. Andrea Bemis, Wed. November 11. Naomi Wolf, Saturday November 14. Thomas Keller, Monday November 16. The Booksmith Reza Farazmand, Wednesday November 19 6 pm. Books Inc J.M. Hirsch, Friday November 6, 6 pm; Beverly Tatum, Tuesday November 10, 6 pm; AJ Sass, Thursday November 12, 6 pm. Bay Area Book Festival Unbound events continue. Podcasts of October 3-4 Unbound: All 22 interviews and discussions are now available on demand. Kepler's Books presents Refresh the Page, on line interviews and talks. Registration required. San Francisco Playhouse. 2020-21 Virtual Season: Art by Yasmina Reza, now streaming through November 7; The Jewelry Box, written and performed by Brian Copeland, streaming November 28 – December 25, 2020; From Blues to Broadway Revue, streaming December 12 – 31, 2020. Custom Made Theatre Upcoming events TBA. Theatre Rhino Live Thursday performance conceived and performed by John Fisher on Facebook Live and Zoom at 8 pm Thursdays is Insane Director. Blood at the Root by Dominique Morriseau, directed by Darryl V. Jones, live Nov. 6 at 7:30 pm and streaming through November 15; Overlooked Latinas, written and performed by Tina D'Elia, streaming Nov. 13-22, 2020. At The Wake of a Dead Drag Queen by Terry Guest, November 10, 7 pm free. American Conservatory Theatre (ACT) Blood Wedding by Federico Garcia Lorca, on demand Nov. 6 -13. Pam McKinnon talks with Annette Bening, Nov. 20 live; Dec. 4 – June 30, on demand. A Christmas Carol, radio adaptation of Carey Perloff's adaptation, streams Dec. 5-31, 2020. 42nd Street Moon. Moonbeams Streaming Series: Broadway Flipped, now through  Nov. 8; A Distant Dinner Party with Jess and Jaron, Nov. 12-22 8 pm; Home (literally) for the Holidays, Nov. 26- Dec. 6. Tuesdays: Tuesday Talks Over the Moon. Every other Friday at 8 pm: Full Moon Fridays Cabaret. Sundays at 8 pm: Quiz Me Kate: Musical Theatre Trivia. Magic Theatre. Escaped Alone by Caryl Churchill, directed by Loretta Greco. A radio play, through Nov. 15. Shotgun Players.  Josh Kornbluth's Citizen Brain, live streamed through November 8. Berkeley Rep It Can't Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis, adapted by Tony Taccone, a radio play, On demand through November 8. Free with no registration. Here is the link. TheatreWorks Silicon Valley. Two live shows with Hershey Felder  from Florence for the Holidays: Claude Debussy, Nov. 22; Tchaikovsky, December 20, both at 5 pm Pacific. California Shakespeare Theatre (Cal Shakes) The Direct Address series continues with Resisting Shakespeare: Or, How to Fall In and Out and In and Out of Love. Shakespeare in Depth, class with Philippa Kelly, registration required. Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts new on-line programming series featuring classes, concerts, poetry sessions and more. Day of the Dead virtual ritual, Nov.2, live event. SFBATCO Live with Rod and Marce on Twitch TV, every Thursday at 6 pm. Aurora Theatre's A new ticketed audio drama, The Flats, written by Lauren Gunderson, Cleaven Smith and Jonathan Spector, with Lauren English, Anthony Fusco and Khary L. Moye, directed by Josh Costello, streaming now. Aurora Connects conversations every Friday, 4 pm. Tell Tale Hearts: An Evening of Hip Hop Theatre featuring Carlos Aguirre and the Bay Area Theatre Cypher, November 28, livestream, 7 pm Pacific. Marin Theatre Company Lauren Gunderson's play Natural Shocks streams through Soundcloud on the Marin Theatre website. American Dreams, created and developed by Leila Buck and Tamilla Woodard, streaming Nov. 10-15. Central Works Bystanders by Patricia Milton, an audio play, currently streaming. The Human Ounce by Nicole Parizeau, audio play, streams beginning Nov. 26, 2020 New Conservatory Theatre Center The Law of Attraction by Patricia Milton, a world premiere radio play, streams through November 18, 2020. The Marsh: International Solo Fest, archived streaming. Josh Kornbluth hosts bingo every Friday at 7:30 pm Brava Theatre Center: Special Dia de los Muertos events November 1-2. Pear Theater. Lysistrata, streamed through November 9, filmed live outdoors. Contra Costa Civic Theatre It's a Wonderful Life, a radio play by Joe Landry, streams Nov. 27-Dec. 20. The Breath Project. Complete collection streaming on demand. Oregon Shakespeare Festival: On-demand audio recordings of early plays; videos of Indigenous Peoples Day 2020, etc. This Is Who I Am by Amir Nizar Zuabi, directed by Evren Odcikin, a co-production with Woolly Mammoth, Nov. 29 – Dec. 27. Atlantic Theatre Company. Guards at the Taj by Rajiv Josph, live streamed Nov. 5-7, 4 pm, and Nov 7, 11 am. Free with registration. Playbill List of Streaming Theatre: Updated weekly, this is probably the best list you'll find of national and international streaming plays and musicals. Each week has its own webpage, so scroll down. If you'd like to add your bookstore or theater venue to this list, please write Richard@kpfa.org The post Bookwaves/Artwaves – November 5, 2020: Joshua Furst – Bill Irwin appeared first on KPFA.

Bookwaves/Artwaves is produced and hosted by Richard Wolinsky. Links to on-line and streaming local theater & book events   Bookwaves Richard A. Lupoff, Dick Lupoff, former co-host of “Probabilities” and “Cover to Cover” died on October 22, 2020 at the age of 85. This half-hour is dedicated to his memory and features a live radio program recorded in July, 1992 in which he, Richard Wolinsky and mystery author Shelley Singer review various books they'd read in the previous month. Richard A. Lupoff began his career as a writer creating a science fiction fanzine, Xero, which won a Hugo Award in 1963. He began his official writing career with a biography of Edgar Rice Burroughs and a first novel, One Million Centuries, in the early 1960s. Over the course of a very long writing career, eventually, over sixty books carried his byline, many of them science fiction novels, short story collections, and mystery novels. He also edited a still unsurpassed history of early comic books, All in Color for a Dime. Other novels include Space War Blues, Into the Aether, Sword of the Demon and The Comic Book Killer. His short story, 12:01, became a Showtime short film and was later expanded into a full-length television movie (and was most likely the inspiration for the classic film, Groundhog Day). Starting in 1977 on KPFA, he helped create a large body of work that included most of the best-known science fiction and mystery writers of the last quarter of the twentieth century, and his work digging up interviews with old pulp writers and editors remains, to a large extent, the only body of work of its kind. Probabilities began with a one-off one-hour program called Probabilities Unlimited,  with Lawrence Davidson in the first show hosting Richard Lupoff and Michael Kurland, with Richard Wolinsky at the controls. After several months, and after Richard Wolinsky became co-host, it became a regular weekly, half-hour program called simply Probabilities, which aired until 1995. Richard A. Lupoff joined the show as co-host in 1979.  Lawrence Davidson left in the mid-1980s. In 1995, the show relaunched as part of the Cover to Cover series of strip programs. By that time, it was known informally as the Richard and Richard Show. Richard Lupoff departed in 2001 to focus on his writing career. Among the notable authors interviewed by the two Richards were such luminaries as Ray Bradbury, Octavia Butler, Gore Vidal, Ursula K. Le Guin, and Kurt Vonnegut.   Artwaves Walter Tevis, in conversation with Richard Wolinsky, Richard A. Lupoff and Lawrence Davidson, recorded for the Probabilities KPFA radio program. Walter Tevis, who died in 1984 at the age of 56, only wrote six novels. The first was The Hustler, which was adapted into a classic film with Paul Newman and Jackie Gleason. The second, The Man Who Fell to Earth, was adapted into another classic movie starring David Bowie. Later came two science fiction novels, Mockingbird in 1980 and Steps of the Sun in 1983. Also in 1983 was The Queens Gambit, which is now a Netflix miniseries, and his final novel, The Color of Money, a sequel to the Hustler with a different plot than the Scorcese film, came out the year of his death 1984. This interview was recorded in the stairwell of Codys Bookstore in Berkeley in October 1981 on the publication of his only short story collection, Far From Home. :Transcript of this interview. Complete 32 minute podcast.   Announcement Links Book Passage. Conversations with authors, all at 4 pm Pacific: Lee and Andrew Child, with Michael Connolly, Thursday Oct. 29; Matthew McConaughey with Reese Witherspoon, Friday October 30; Anthony Lee Head and Peter Coyote, Sat. Nov. 7, Elizabeth Strout Sun. Oct. 25. The Booksmith An evening with with Desirée Alvarez, Anthony Cody, Jennifer Hasegawa & Kimberly Reyes Thursday October 29, 2020 – 6:00pm. Books Inc Halloween Horror Panel, Thursday October 29, 5 pm. Bay Area Book Festival Unbound events continue. Podcasts of October 3-4 Unbound: All 22 interviews and discussions are now available on demand. Kepler's Books presents Refresh the Page, on line interviews and talks. Registration required. San Francisco Playhouse. 2020-21 Virtual Season: Art by Yasmina Reza, now streaming through November 7; The Jewelry Box, written and performed by Brian Copeland, streaming November 28 – December 25, 2020; From Blues to Broadway Revue, streaming December 12 – 31, 2020. Custom Made Theatre Upcoming events TBA. Theatre Rhino Live Thursday performance conceived and performed by John Fisher on Facebook Live and Zoom at 8 pm Thursdays is The Big Island. Blood at the Root by Dominique Morriseau, directed by Darryl V. Jones, live Nov. 6 at 7:30 pm and streaming through November 15; Overlooked Latinas, written and performed by Tina D'Elia, streaming Nov. 13-22, 2020. American Conservatory Theatre (ACT) Blood Wedding by Federico Garcia Lorca, live Oct 29  – 30, on demand Nov. 6 -13. Pam McKinnon talks with Annette Bening, Nov. 20 live; Dec. 4 – June 30, on demand. A Christmas Carol, radio adaptation of Carey Perloff's adaptation, streams Dec. 5-31, 2020. 42nd Street Moon. Moonbeams Streaming Series: Broadway Flipped, Oct. 29  – Nov. 8; A Distant Dinner Party with Jess and Jaron, Nov. 12-22 8 pm; Home (literally) for the Holidays, Nov. 26- Dec. 6. Tuesdays: Tuesday Talks Over the Moon. Every other Friday at 8 pm: Full Moon Fridays Cabaret. Sundays at 8 pm: Quiz Me Kate: Musical Theatre Trivia. Magic Theatre. Escaped Alone by Caryl Churchill, directed by Loretta Greco. A radio play, through Nov. 15. Shotgun Players.  Josh Kornbluth's Citizen Brain, live streamed through November 8. Berkeley Rep It Can't Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis, adapted by Tony Taccone, a radio play, On demand through November 8. Free with no registration. Here is the link. TheatreWorks Silicon Valley. Hold These Truths by Jeanne Sakata, video of 2018 TheatreWorks production, streaming through November 3, 2020. Two live shows with Hershey Felder  from Florence for the Holidays: Claude Debussy, Nov. 22; Tchaikovsky, December 20, both at 5 pm Pacific. California Shakespeare Theatre (Cal Shakes) The Direct Address series continues with Resisting Shakespeare: Or, How to Fall In and Out and In and Out of Love. Shakespeare in Depth, class with Philippa Kelly, registration required. Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts new on-line programming series featuring classes, concerts, poetry sessions and more. Day of the Dead virtual ritual, Nov.2, live event. SFBATCO Live with Rod and Marce on Twitch TV, every Thursday at 6 pm. Aurora Theatre's A new ticketed audio drama, The Flats, written by Lauren Gunderson, Cleaven Smith and Jonathan Spector, with Lauren English, Anthony Fusco and Khary L. Moye, directed by Josh Costello, streaming now. Aurora Connects conversations every Friday, 4 pm. Marin Theatre Company Lauren Gunderson's play Natural Shocks streams through Soundcloud on the Marin Theatre website. American Dreams, created and developed by Leila Buck and Tamilla Woodard, streaming Nov. 10-15, tickets go on sale October 27. Central Works Bystanders by Patricia Milton, an audio play, currently streaming. The Human Ounce by Nicole Parizeau, audio play, streams beginning Nov. 26, 2020 New Conservatory Theatre Center The Law of Attraction by Patricia Milton, a world premiere radio play, streams through November 18, 2020. The Marsh: International Solo Fest, archived streaming. Josh Kornbluth hosts bingo every Friday at 7:30 pm Brava Theatre Center: Special Dia de los Muertos events November 1-2. Pear Theater. Lysistrata, streamed through November 9, filmed live outdoors. Contra Costa Civic Theatre It's a Wonderful Life, a radio play by Joe Landry, streams Nov. 27-Dec. 20. The Breath Project. 24 curated works of 8 minutes 46 seconds streams Saturday October 24, 2 pm and 5 pm and Sunday October 25, 5 pm. Complete collection streaming on demand. Oregon Shakespeare Festival: On-demand audio recordings of early plays; videos of Indigenous Peoples Day 2020, etc. This Is Who I Am by Amir Nizar Zuabi, directed by Evren Odcikin, a co-production with Woolly Mammoth, Nov. 29 – Dec. 27. Playbill List of Streaming Theatre: Updated weekly, this is probably the best list you'll find of national and international streaming plays and musicals. Each week has its own webpage, so scroll down. If you'd like to add your bookstore or theater venue to this list, please write Richard@kpfa.org The post Bookwaves/Artwaves – October 29, 2020: Richard A. Lupoff – Walter Tevis appeared first on KPFA.

Soul food, entrepreneurship and community unity is a family endeavor for twin brothers, Anthony and Antwan Adams. Their desire to create something different and authentic was the catalyst that started 42 Fry. The restaurant boasts a robust soul food and seafood menu consisting of their signature fish, chicken and shrimp recipes, paired with southern favorites like baked beans, sweet potatoes, cole slaw, collard greens and, a crowd pleaser, fire roasted corn-on-the-cob. Everything is made to order, and other options are available for patrons who are not seafood fans. Antwan shares that a customer favorite on the menu is the dinner platter combo, because it offers the most amount of food at a reasonable price. Opened in February 2019 at 815 West Gate City Blvd, the owners of 42 Fry want to be known as the best seafood restaurant in the Triad. They note one of their greatest accomplishments includes opening day and seeing people continue to return.  Now, they have two locations, one in Greensboro, and a second one in Greenville, NC. The name 42 Fry came to them after a prayer session in the early morning hours. The name signifies creating a place where people can gather, unite and be able to talk about anything. With a combination of seeking God's help and having a concept that people will love not just now but also in the future, are what the twins say guides them in their business. “It's been a learning process. But through prayer and faith, we have made it through those difficult times,” says Antwan. The 42 Fry family is all about empowering people to build their own, by combining knowledge with work ethic. They both share they are appreciative of the people around them that could advise them on the ‘dos and don'ts' of the food service industry. They say having perseverance was crucial for them in learning how to deal with vendors, how to purchase employee uniforms, electronics, machines, and furniture. Born and raised in Greenville, NC, the brothers say their love of soul food and seafood is tied to fond memories of family and food. Both attended and graduated from East Carolina University and played for the college's football team. “Greensboro is home to me now. And my wish is for everyone to experience 42 Fry,” says Antwan. “It's like a family cookout every day at 42 Fry.” “We're trying to build a sustainable business. We're working to make a difference and a positive community impact, while providing excellent customer service. If we do those things, I think everything will take care of itself,” says Antwan.   To learn more about 42 Fry, please visit their website at www.42-Fry.com.  You may also visit either of their locations in Greensboro, NC or Greenville, NC.  You can also follow them on Facebook and Instragram.   To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.mykelmedia.com You can also follow Huami Magazine and This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram by putting either name in your search box.

The 100 Black Men of America, Inc. is recognized as the nation's top African American led mentoring organization.   They share that not all youth are born with privilege, opportunities, or a positive network. Some are raised throughout their lives thinking they'll never be able to live the life they'll want. This is because of the environment and the people who they surround themselves every single day. Every African-American person should have the ability to create the life they've always wanted and that's what The 100 Black Men of America, Inc. provides.   Committing ourselves to personify the type of people our children will look up to and emulate, we embrace the immense responsibility we have to our mentees and our communities. Providing these children another choice in life by being around like minded individuals who have similar aspirations and goals.    As they have grown, more companies and programs have been formed to assist in delivering the education and empowerment needed to change the course of these children's lives. This is done through the 100's Four For The Future focus areas; Mentoring, Education, Health & Wellness, and Economic Empowerment.   Through the expansion, they have created 100 Black Men Chapters that deliver unique programs that address specific needs in local communities. Through 57 years of testing, they've created the 100's successful model, which is a proven blueprint for mentoring and developing young people into future leaders by surrounding themselves with a positive network and giving them the opportunity that they may not have thought was possible.   Their ongoing commitment to continuously improve and implement our programmatic initiatives is what drives them.  They are able to help shape their mentees realize their potential by showing them how to be successful and significant, while stressing the importance of obtaining and applying education, and by providing them the tools that empower them for self-sufficiency, cultivated civic, and business leadership.   Now the time has arrived for The 100 Black Men of America to launch chapters in North Carolina, specifically in the Triad.  This effort is being led by Larry Burtnett Sr. and Nate Branscomb.   To learn more about the organization, please visit their website at www.100blackmen.org   You can also contact Larry Burnett directly at 336-340-9255   To learn more about Huami Magazine and This Is Who I Am, the podcast for Huami Magazine, please follow us on Facebook and Instragam by putting either title in your search box.   You may also follow Huami Magazine online at www.mykelmedia.com

Henry L. Caldwell III, of Dallas Texas is a businessman's businessman. He and his team knows what it takes to grow your business. He knows that first impressions make lasting impressions. With his dream team, CTO-Charles Gill and CMO-Michael Bailey, their combined knowledge of web design, telecommunication, marketing and customer service, they've created ProBizCa, an all-in-one Professional Business Card Digital Hub. Finally the business card has moved into the 21st century. Today's business card is tomorrow's trash. ProBizCa, short for Professional Business Card, is a digital business card that lists more than your name, address and phone number. Most importantly, it won't end up in tomorrow's trash. Delivered by your smartphone, the owner of a ProBizCa Digital Business Card, can deliver every facet of their business to a potential client's cell phone. Conveniently, it does not require an app to download. “A business card has a front and a back,” says Henry. “How can you communicate what you do on a two-by-three-and-one-half inch card? If your business card is your real estate, it's insufficient. ProBizCa allows the business owner to showcase all of his or her products and services by QR code, text message or email.” Henry, grew up in a family where owning your own business was second nature. He remembers helping his father when he was not quite a teenager, installing plastic slip covering on furniture. (Remember that? Yes, Henry is in his late fifties). It was ingrained in him that owning a business is not just selling something to someone, it's developing a relationship with your customer and creating business alliances. Caldwell hopes to inspire others to chase their passion. “You have to believe in yourself,” he states. “You have to have faith in yourself even when no one else will.” The mantra he lives by is, “Laziness pays off now, but hard work pays off in the future.”   To learn more about ProBizCa please visit their website at www.ProBizCa.com You may also contact ProBizCa directly at 1-888-506-0418   To learn more about Huami Magazine please visit www.mykelmedia.com  You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting "Huami Magazine" in your search box. You may also follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook and Instagram by putting "This Is Who I Am" in your search box.

Identity is the primary driver behind everything we do, but where does it come from? How is it formed? Is what we believe about ourselves true? Everything in your live right now is the result of the identity you hold for yourself. If you're body's not the way you want it or you're struggling financially, it's because you've made this part of your identity, perhaps unconsciously... If we want transform our lives we must first create a new identity, one that formed with conviction that THIS IS WHO I AM. Once we've made who we want to become as part of our identity, then we will follow up with the actions to make it so. With that I ask, who do you want to become?

Promises Huff of Memphis,, TN is a wife, mother, pet owner, and a whole lot more. She has positioned herself as a force to be reckoned within her community. She is also the owner of Speak Life Mentorship & Life Coaching.   The author and certified Life and Re-Entry Coach is originally from Raeford, N.C.  She is a proud HBCU Alumni of Fayetteville State University and has held many licenses and certifications, including that of Certified Daycare Management, Licensed Cosmetologist in three different states, Licensed Paraprofessional, and Certified Life Coach of ICU Coaching Academy.    She is a devoted Christian and volunteers in the communities representing Chi Sigma Delta Sorority Incorporated and Krimson Kourts Incorporated (Kappa Sweet since 1999). She is also a devoted member and servant of Beautiful Spirited Women (BSW – nonprofit organization).   Things haven't always happened the way she would have wanted them to.  Promises is a former Jailer/ Correctional Officer who lost her job in 2004 and ultimately her freedom. She was threatened by an inmate to bring him a cell phone or he would bring harm to her family.  She did what she thought was needed to do to protect them, so she gave the inmate the phone. As a result of her bad decision, Promises lost her job and went to jail, and was forced to carry a felony on her record for the rest of her life.  That was 16 years ago, but it has taken her that long to break her silence.   With experience from the law enforcement industry, Promises has developed and heightened her passion and vision to new levels.  Speak Life Mentorship & Life Coaching addresses a specific arena of mental health, and particularly in the black community. They identify the walls formed from past beliefs and experiences that have blocked the focal and motivation to pursue and obtain a desired level of accomplishment or success.   Her business began in 2012 while she along with her husband built an athletics program for a local charter school in Greensboro, NC. Their business became official in February 2020,   Today, Promises seeks to help at risk youth, females and women who have been incarcerated or on their way out of prison/juvenile detention. She has written two books, “Broken Silence” which is about her prison sentence, and the other is “You Were Built For This” a 30 day devotional full of inspirational messages, that is co-authored by her husband and coach, William Huff.   Moving forward, Promises plans to market the services of Speak Life Mentorship and Life Coaching. She plans to promote her books and conduct virtual book tours. She is also in the process of working with Rod Kirby and Kirby Media and Productions on turning “Broken Silence” into a mini-series or a movie.    To learn more about Promises Huff please follow her Facebook by putting "Promises Huff" in your search box. You can also follow her Instagram by putting "speaklife_inspiration24" in your search box.  You may also visit her website at www.speaklifemc.org   To learn more about Huami Magazine please follow us on Facebook and Instagram.  You may also follow this podcast on Facebook by putting "This Is Who I Am" in your search box.  You can follow this podcast on Instagram by putting "this is who I am podcast" in your search box.     You may also visit our website at www.mykelmedia.com        

There is no doubt the cosmetic and skincare industries are both booming. With brands like Rodan Fields, Proactive, and others targeting those with skin ailments, there are many options to choose from.   For years, Kim Cross of Charlotte, NC searched for mild products to help with her dry, itchy skin but consistently came up short when reading the list of ingredients. She realized how many irritating chemicals are used and set out to find comparable natural substitutes that would deliver the same or better results. As a former hairstylist, she was introduced to the hair product Carol's Daughter' years ago and loved that it used mainly natural ingredients that she could actually pronounce.   In 2006, Kim followed that example and began researching essential oils and other liquids that she thought could be beneficial. That led to experimenting, testing, and creating with goat's milk. She discovered that goat's milk has fatty acids which have healing properties and is less harsh than many other ingredients.   She started mixing various ingredients with different properties and fragrances and settled on a few things even the men in her house swear by. “I have some girly smelling men in my house and they love it!” Kim laughs. Since her start, she has incorporated men's products also.   The next year, she crafted body lotion, hand and body wash, and soap, each from goat's milk. Kim began selling her new skincare line, called Zhi (pronounced ‘Chee') Bath and Body, at a women's expo. Unfortunately, her sales were disappointingly low but her sample supply had diminished. She knew she was on to something but needed to continue working on it. Since then she has created other products made from organic mango butter, shea butter, cocoa butter and many other natural ingredients.   As the line grew, Kim continued to spend hours seeking out the best and most natural products to ensure she was delivering something she could be proud of. She knew that if it didn't work on her skin, it wouldn't work on anyone else's either. In 2011, the entrepreneur was formally diagnosed with psoriasis, a condition in which skin cells build up to form scales and itchy, dry patches. Sometimes the patches are accompanied by blisters. It's similar to eczema but much more intense, painful, and stubborn.   Her next step is to raise enough money to purchase barcodes that allow her products to be sold in larger stores. She is also customizing products for other companies to sell in their establishments. The majority of her current sales are through her website, word-of-mouth, and regular customers that buy in bulk to give it to friends and family on special occasions. Kim knows that expanding will take more time and it seems that she's up for the challenge. Her dedication is unwavering as she sets out to heal one person at a time.   To learn more about Kim Cross and Zhi Bath and Body, please follow them on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pintrest.  You may also visit their website at www.zhibathandbody.com   To learn more about Huami Magazine please follow us on Facebook and Instagram. You may also visit our website at www.mykelmedia.com   You may also follow this podcast on Facebook by putting "This Is Who I Am" in your search box.    

Tiffany Draper of Huntsville, AL is not allowing any grass to grow under her feet. This young and beautiful lady embodies the absolute meaning of what ambitious means. In business, and especially for those who are self-employed, it can be hard to get people to support you. Not having money or supporters can be tough for a business owner, however it's during those tough moments, character is developed, and survival is dependent upon determination. This is what Tiffany Draper is all about. She is an entrepreneur who is passionate about generational wealth and encouraging other black women. As a survivor of many things, she hopes to reach as many women in the world as possible and encourage them to love themselves and never give up on their life or dreams. One of the businesses she owns is a women's empowerment business, Tea With Tiffany. Tea With Tiffany is a platform she started to give women hope and to empower one another. Tiffany believes that you must bring your whole self to the table if you want to succeed in life.  This includes your personality, your sense of humor, and most importantly, your heart.  In 2016, God gave her a vision to launch Tea With Tiffany.  She started out writing posts on Facebook and trying to grow her audience through social media.  Writing became second nature to her and from there, the blog was birthed. Another business owned by Tiffany is the event center, Studio 53.  Opened in November 2019, it is available to meet the needs of anyone in the Huntsville and surrounding areas. Their spacious facility is capable of being the host location of parties, special events, and much more. While there could be several reasons as to why Tiffany pushes herself to do so much, it's obvious she genuinely loves people and enjoys seeing them happy. Furthermore, she shares how the impact that her mother and kids have on her life, and the influence they have in her business. Her mother was a single parent and Tiffany remembers promising herself that she would take care of her mother one day if she could.     As a businesswoman, Tiffany draws strength from other people who have made it and reached back into their community. Like others, she hopes that will be her story as well.   To learn more about Tiffany Draper, please follow her on Facebook and Instagram by putting "Tiffany Draper" in your search box.   You may also visit her website at www.teawithtiffany.org   To learn more about Huami Magazine, please follow us on Facebook and Instagram. You may also follow this podcast, by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box on Facebook.     Please visit our website to learn more about Huami Magazine at www.mykelmedia.com    

In 2018, Danny Rogers was elected as the first African American Sheriff for the Guilford County Sheriff's Department that serves Greensboro and High Point, North Carolina. Danny Rogers understands what it means to desire to live in a safe and healthy environment. Raised by a single mother he values the mentors who stepped up to the plate from his community to give him a better perspective of the African Proverb, ‘It takes a village to raise a child.'    He experienced quite a bit growing up. Even though his mom made sure he stayed away from the streets he still saw a lot.    That really gave him a reality check. He understood then that none of us are invincible. He was also afraid of what my grandparents or my mom would do to him if I got into trouble. That proverb is so true because it really did take the whole community to help those who wanted to be helped.    Danny's personal experiences as a law enforcement officer and life time resident of Guilford County provides firsthand knowledge of how to bridge the gap between the community and the law enforcement officers who are serving diligently in those communities. These lifelong experiences are what has helped shape him into who he is today.    Roger's ability to rise above his past and not allow it to define his future. He's a living testimony that people can learn from their mistakes and change for the better.  Learning from past mistakes is what Rogers believes is the key to changing the recidivism rate in Guilford County.    He is committed to Guilford County. I plan to implement a proactive, transparent, accountable, and properly accredited Sheriff's Office. It will be one that's stellar and one that restores the checks and balances, so the residents of Guilford County can be better served. He plans to reduce inmate recidivism with a renewed focus to generate a long-lasting impact on the former inmates, as they become productive citizens while also providing for more safety and tax dollar savings for the entire community.   As a proactive Sheriff, he wants to implement policies, programs, and practices before they become legal issues instead of being a reactive Sheriff. He wants to be proactive instead of reactionary by making changes before incidents occur that force change within the department. There are many qualified minority officers on the force. The officers should also reflect the communities they serve.”   Rogers has worked with the Guilford County Sheriff's Office as a Detention Officer and as a Deputy Sheriff in roles that include both vice and undercover operations. He has also worked as a Police Officer with the High Point Police Department.   A few of Danny's strategic plans consist of reducing crime, providing safer streets and neighborhoods, eliminating the flow of illegal drugs and guns entering our communities, and building trust and amicable relationships between citizens and law enforcement officers.  Rogers promises, “As the Sheriff of Guilford County, I will work every day, in every community, to serve and protect all residents from the known and unknown, and to create stronger, and safer neighborhoods.”   To learn more about Sheriff Danny Rogers and The Guilford County Sheriff's Department, please visit them online at www.guilfordcountync.gov   To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit the following link:  www.mykelmedia.com   You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.    You can follow this podcast on Facebook by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.

Andrea Pitts of Nashville, TN is a burn survivor, community advocate, and very kind hearted person. She believes in the power of a simple smile and laughter from the heart, and thrives off making others smile with positivity and helping those who are less fortunate. These are all qualities that assist her with managing Scars Uncovered, a nonprofit organization she has been cultivating since 2014. Scars Uncovered is an organization that encourages survivors to uncover their scars, and to be transparent and free. At the age of 18 months old, Andrea was involved in a traumatic incident that left her with severe burns on approximately 30% of her body.  While in the kitchen and watching her mom as she cooked one day, she turned her back to get something out of the refrigerator.  In that quick second, she instinctively reached for the ladle she had been using on the stovetop, trying to imitate her. This caused a pot of scalding hot water and beans to spill over her.  In pain, Andrea was rushed to the hospital and began a recovery process that would greatly shape the rest of her life.   That ordeal is the reason why Andrea pushes so hard today. Scars Uncovered was founded November 2014 with an understanding of the journey that encompasses coping with a burn injury. What started as an idea for a walk for burn survivors has evolved into the creation of an entire nonprofit organization.   Scars Uncovered has assisted over 1,000 burn survivors. Their focus is to give comfort and support to burn survivors and their families. They provide resources that ease the burdens that often come with the tragedy of a burn injury. They also partner with burn units to deliver “Boxes of Love” care packages to recovering patients and/or family members. These are specialized care packages filled with necessities hand-picked with the needs of survivors and their families in mind. Each care package costs approximately ten dollars to produce, however Andrea says the impact is priceless. Currently, they are able to provide care packages to Vanderbilt University Regional Burn Center in Nashville, Tennessee, Shriners Hospital for Children in Cincinnati, OH, and the Regional Burn Center in Memphis, TN.   Andrea says "the very thing we try to hide is sometimes the very thing God uses to bless us, and others as well."   To learn more about Scars Uncovered you can visit their website at www.scarsuncovered.org   You may also follow them on Facebook and Instagram by putting Scars Uncovered in your search box.   To view the edition of Huami Magazine that Andrea Pitts is featured in please click on the following link: https://issuu.com/terrywatson7/docs/huami_magazine_nashville_may_2020   To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit our website at www.mykelmedia.com   You may also follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your search box.   You may follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook by putting This Is Who I Am in your search box.   To learn more about advertising opportunities in Huami Magazine and on this podcast, please send a detailed email to huamimagazine@gmail.com  

Marquita Brown is a native of Petersburg, VA.  She holds a bachelor's degree in African American Studies and is a Licensed Practical Nurse. She is also an entrepreneur, mentor, philanthropist, and community advocate who believes in social justice.   She also believes in equality in healthcare and educating African Americans about their health and informing them about the importance of making healthy decisions. Marquita is the owner of Apple for The Day, a health education and health consultation business. It's focus is on the health of all people,  but is mostly concentrated on African American health.  The point of receiving these services is to make sure people have a basic knowledge on their condition. The name came about from the phrase “An apple a day, keeps the doctor away”. Marquita wanted to provide knowledge on health, and instead of having someone retrieve "an apple a day", she wanted to give them "an apple for the day".     She shares that God gave her this vision.  She began her business as a child.  She started by wanting to be a physician, and worked diligently from that time to attain her goal.  As a teenager she began as a hospital volunteer.  From there she volunteered at her pediatrician's office.  That opportunity allowed her to come into the examination room with the doctor and watch as he examined patients from time to time.  In high school she was a part of the Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) and studied her first Black History course.  After graduating high school, Marquita majored in Biology and concentrated in Pre-Medicine, and was eventually offered the chance to intern in a private practice. That experience changed her life.   Marquita has a genuine love for the African American community. She is aware of the need to bring about a change to a group of people without a voice.  She is on a mission to eradicate racism from the healthcare practice.  She shares that without racism, health disparities would not exist.  African Americans receive the least amount of healthcare and tend to only go to the hospital or doctor when it effects their work.  By that time, it may already be too late.     To learn more about Marquita Brown and Apple For The Day, please follow them on Facebook, Instagram, Linked In, and Twitter by putting "Apple For The Day" in your search box.   You may also visit their website for more information at www.applefortheday.org   To view the edition of Huami Magazine that Marquita Brown is featured in, please click on the following link: https://issuu.com/terrywatson7/docs/huami_magazine_richmond_jan_2020   To learn more about Huami Magazine please visit our website at www.mykelmedia.com   You may follow Huami Magazine on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in the search box.   You may follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook by putting "This Is Who  I Am" in the search box.   To order your Official Huami Magazine Apparel, please send a detailed email to huamimagazine@gmail.com    

Jasmine Lowery of Chesterfield, Virginia is the owner of Agape Love Events, LLC. Agape Love Events, LLC is a premier and award winning event planning business that specializes in Month-of/Day-of Coordination Services. They also offer Full Planning Services. Jasmine coordinated her first wedding, just three months after she married her best friend and the love of her life. She agreed to barter “wedding day-of” services with a close friend who was also getting married. Jasmine or “Jazz” provided day-of coordination services and her friend was the DJ at her wedding. Little did Jasmine know, her services would leave the other vendors she worked alongside in awe. In the spring of 2015 Agape Love Events began. Jasmine is a devout woman of God. She is also a wife, mother of two amazing little boys, educator, creative artist, public speaker, event planner, and coordinator. She recalls the first time she heard the term “Agape Love”. It was in a Sociology class at Virginia Commonwealth University while her professor explained how Agape [ah-GAH-pay] love is selfless, sacrificial, unconditional, and the highest of the four types of love. Agape Love perfectly described the love Jesus has for all people. Jasmine decided to name her business, Agape Love Events, to serve as a gentle reminder that the services she provides should reflect the unconditional love she has received through her relationship with Jesus. After her first successful event with well over 200 guests, Jasmine realized she had a gift and was anxious to share it with more couples. After much prayer and research she knew becoming a wedding planner would be the ideal business for her to start. Her inspirations are her husband and two boys. She also finds inspiration while working with her clients to produce the best experience possible. As a Christian, her desire is to always show the love of Christ in all she does. Her services include Month-of/Day-of Coordination Services, as well as Partial and Full Wedding Planning Services. Agape Love Events is geared towards the creative, artistic DIY bride and groom. Jasmine absolutely loves to support her clients' ideas.  Jasmine is also fascinated with learning about love languages, personality types, and ways to promote emotional health. She was nominated for the Black History in The Making Award while studying at Virginia Commonwealth University. She also has a heart for children and has taught within the Richmond Public School system for the previous five years. Moving forward, Jasmine hopes to make Agape Love Events the premier event planning service in Richmond and surrounding areas. If you are in the market to get married, please include Jasmine in your plans and enjoy the Agape Love experience.   To learn more about Agape Love Events, LLC and Jasmine Lowery, please visit their website at www.agapeloveevents.com. You may also follow them on Facebook and Instagram by putting agapeloveevntsrva in your search box.   To view the edition of Huami Magazine that Jasmine Lowery was featured in, please click on the link below: https://issuu.com/terrywatson7/docs/huami_magazine_richmond_september_o   To learn more about Huami Magazine you may follow us on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in your searchbox.  You may also follow this podcast on Facebook by putting This Is Who I Am in your searchbox.   You may also visit our website at www.mykelmedia.com   Please send all emails to huamimagazine@gmail.com    

Ashley Gladney of Memphis, TN is a mother, daughter, and loyal sister. She is also a college graduate, entrepreneur and the visionary of Mobile Mommy, a mobile child care agency that provides temporary and comprehensive childcare to exclusive clientele. While combining over 17 years of experience in providing quality childcare to families in need with her professional experience in the healthcare industry, Ashley is able to offer a high quality experience for families while supporting the progressive nurturing of children.   Mobile Mommy began on May 1, 2018 and now offers in-home babysitting and nanny services.   With clientele sprinkled throughout the Greater Memphis area, Ashley lists even former Memphis Grizzlies players as references.   While Ashley continues to grow her business, she is faced with the challenge of finding quality sitters that are fit to join the Mobile Mommy team. There is a certain type that she looks for such as retired grandmothers, mainly because they are experienced. However, Ashley is shaping her team with those who are passionate about being a Mobile Mommy.   To provide her clients with a added level of security and ease, all of Mobile Mommy team members must be pre-qualified. This includes a full background check, they must be legally authorized to work in the United States, possess a high school diploma, have valid CPR certifications and First-Aid certifications, have babysitting and childcare experience, certified professional references and/or letters of recommendations, successfully complete a thorough screening, and pass a drug test. Once those requirements are met, each applicant will be personally interviewed by Ashley.   The services offered by Mobile Mommy are for special events, special occasions, professional sporting events, teenager chaperoning, house sitting, homework assistance, and Parent Vision (which allows the parents to look in on the session via body cams and cameras). They also offer after-school, evening, groups, and last minute services.   In the near future, Ashley plans to open another location in Dallas, TX and share the Mobile Mommy experience with many others.   To learn more about Mobile Mommy, please visit their website at www.yourmobilemommy.com   You can also follow them on Facebook and Instagram.   To view the edition of Huami Magazine that Ashley Gladney is featured in please click on the following link:  https://issuu.com/terrywatson7/docs/huami_magazine_memphis_march_april_   To learn more about Huami Magazine, please visit www.mykelmedia.com   You can also follow them on Facebook and Instagram by putting Huami Magazine in the search box.  You can also follow This Is Who I Am on Facebook.

Elliott C. Washington is a resident of Greenville, South Carolina.  He is also the owner of Patriot-Owners.com and Co-Owner of Pretty Credit Consultants.     As co-owner and Chief Operations Officer of Pretty Credit Consultants, Elliott aids his wife, Pretty, in growing their company and handling the commercial side of things. This often includes business credit education, business credit establishment, and consulting business owners.   Elliott also specializes in getting our footprint out there with banks, realtors, dealerships, and anyone that needs credit to make a sale.   His ultimate goal for the consumer side of the business is to heavily represent the middle class.   Established in 2016, Pretty Credit Consultants officially launched on April 25, 2017 as a credit restoration company located in the heart of Greenville, South Carolina.  Its primary mission is to help everyone achieve their finance and credit goals.  To service the business owners he counsels, Elliott has recently established First Merchants Financial Service.     Recently, Elliott added another branch to his business tree, Patriot-Owners.com.  He became licensed to complete mortgages in December 2018, but was so busy with his other two that he sat on this one for over a month. In February  2019, Patriot-Owners.com was born and it has been rapidly growing.  Patriot-Owners.com strives to help veterans become home owners by assisting them with utilizing their benefits and becoming credit worthy.   When he was studying the lending program, Elliott realized, that across the board, he could do every form of lending, like, conventional, FHA, USDA, VA, and even manufactured homes, with a minimum 500 credit score. Because he is a veteran, retired Navy and disabled, he thought, why not target his own and help them get into a home.  This is something close to Elliot's heart mainly because he's one of them.    It's evident that Elliott and his band of brothers are determined to make an impact on those who keep us free.  If you have a service to offer or are a real estate agent, don't hesitate to contact Elliott.  He'll welcome you with open arms.   For more information about Patriot-Owners.com please visit their website at www.patriot-owners.com   For more information about Pretty Credit Consultants LLC, please visit their website at www.prettycredit.com   To view the edition that features Elliott C. Washington please click on the following link: https://issuu.com/terrywatson7/docs/huami_magazine_greenville_march_201_2ca37f56092b8e   To learn more about Huami Magazine and to learn more about way to market your products and services in Huami Magazine, please visit www.mykelmedia.com   To advertise your products and services on This Is Who I Am podcast, please send a detailed email to huamimagazine@gmail.com   --

Finally, we are very excited to launch This Is Who I Am, the podcast for Huami Magazine.   Huami Magazine is a product of Mykel Media Company, LLC and was first introduced in 2007.  What began in Greensboro, NC has grown to serve others areas including SC, VA, GA, TN, AL, and TX.     This podcast is designed to give the followers of Huami Magazine a greater opportunity to learn more about the individuals who are featured in the publication.  After you have read about them, now you can hear their voice.  This podcast also gives our sponsors and advertisers an ever greater opportunity to reach their targeted audience.

Links to podcasts mentioned in this episode: 3 in 30 Podcast, episode 16: "How to Be the Mom You Are Instead of the Mom You Think You Should Be" The Women With Fire, episode 51: "Jamie Cook of Wander and Scout"   One Mother's Day, Lori Brescia's kids came home from church with questionnaires they had filled out about her. Under "Favorite Food," they had answered "hot dogs," "pizza," "macaroni and cheese." Under favorite color, they wrote, "orange," "blue," "red." The same pattern emerged for her favorite activities and even hair color: they had no clue.  Lori fed them lunch so they'd have some stamina, and sat her family down in a row on the couch, including her husband. "Today is Mother's Day," she said, "and I can't help noticing that these questionnaires you filled out today are really about you, and not me. I am not just an extension of you. I'm my own person."  She spent the next 45 minutes telling them stories about her life. She paced up and down the room, explaining what makes her laugh, what makes her happy, what makes her sad. She told stories from when she was a child and when she taught high school. She shared what she loves about being a mom, but also all the other things she loves to do. They laughed together at the funny stories, and Lori even cried a few times talking about some of her more emotional experiences. At one point, one son said, "This is all about you, mom." "Exactly," she replied, and kept going. That Mother's Day has itself become part of the Brescia family lore. They laugh about it every year. But you better believe those kids are really good at filling out those questionnaires now. Mahatma Ghandi said, "The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others." Many mothers are really good at the "lose yourself" part and the "service" part, but forget that the goal in the first half of the sentence is to "find yourself." Depending on how you approach it, motherhood can help you develop, discover, and refine who you really are, or it can usurp your identity until you define yourself only by that role. Then when the kids leave the house, they leave you with an identity crisis, no discernible hobbies or interests, and a lot of time on your hands.    Last summer, I hiked my first 14er (a mountain above 14,000 feet) with my husband. Wading through wildflowers and streams, burning my lungs and my legs, and looking out at endless peaks and valleys, I felt a sudden explosion of joy and thought, "This is who I am." I almost needed to reintroduce myself to this person. In high school, I defined myself by mountains. Not a week went by that I wasn't fishing in them, hiking in them, rock climbing in them, or at least gazing at them with wonder. Now here I was living in Colorado and maybe making it up to the mountains every other month.  That day on Mt. Harvard made me think about the other things that define who I am. Yes, I am a mother. And that is a huge part of my identity. But I am also a writer, reader, pianist, singer, chef, cyclist, dancer, hiker, climber, tennis player, teacher, public speaker, and a believer in God. I've gone through long periods of time where I haven't done some of these things, but they're still part of who I am.  I have also spent a lot of my life feeling like an imposter. When I discovered rock climbing in high school, I didn't call myself a climber, even though I went once a week. I wasn't an expert, so I didn't think I could claim the title. For years as a young mother, I didn't call myself a writer, even though I had worked as a professional writer for years, because I wasn't currently writing. I didn't claim to be a singer, even though that is a huge part of my everyday life, because I rarely performed and because it sounded like bragging.  But I've come to believe that you can and should claim anything you love and that defines who you are, no matter how skilled or professional you are. Even someone who can't carry a tune should be able to claim that they're a singer if they love it and do it a lot.  This especially applies to motherhood. Who doesn't feel like an imposter when they bring that first baby home? Suddenly you're in charge of this needy little creature and you're supposed to have all the answers. Little by little, we gain the required skills, but we get that title, Mom, right away. At every stage, with every new child, I feel imposter syndrome again. I don't know what the heck I'm doing. But I am Mom, and I claim that title wholeheartedly. It's also OK not to claim stuff. I am not a crafter, painter, stylist, shopper, interior designer, or aesthetician. I don't decorate my house for any holiday besides Christmas. My children's church doodles have far surpassed my own. I'm fine with that. There are infinite versions of both Woman and Mom. We all get to create our own version. In an interview on the podcast "The Women with Fire" Jamie Cook, said, "I can be whatever kind of mom I want to be. I can be really fit, I can be really clean and organized, I can be an amazing cook, I can be a really fun mom, but I can't be all those versions of a mom at one time." (Jamie's fabulous Instagram account is @wanderandscout.) As our version of motherhood evolves and changes to meet different phases of our lives, we pick up new interests and talents that enrich our lives.    One of my favorite podcast episodes is "How to Be the Mom You Are Instead of the Mom You Think You Should Be," an interview on "The 3 in 30 Podcast" with Julie Bastedo. She made a list of all the things she does not do as a mother, including organizing playdates, skiing, camping, blogging or podcasting, and doing anything (including exercise) excessively and gave herself permission not to do them. She does not feel bad about this list at all. She says, "I realized, well of course those are things I cannot do, or never do, or do not enjoy doing, because those things have nothing to do with who I am.... We are constantly reading on social media or reading in parenting books or following on television all of these things as mothers that we are supposed to be. And very infrequently do we recognize who we really are."  Julie then made a list of all the things she does do well as a mother to contribute to her family, including patience, reading good literature (and applying what she learns from it to motherhood), reading aloud, and teaching. We all have things to add to both lists, and we might as well embrace those lists.   I'll end with a list of some of the amazing mothers I know and the things that things that give them that "This Is Who I Am" feeling, to get you thinking about the unique attributes you bring to your version of motherhood:  Juliana is a painter. She paints when she can, and teaches her kids (and other people's kids) to paint. This spring, she left her five kids with her husband for a weekend and went on an art retreat with her sister. Molly is good at family finance. She likes to have her own finances in order and likes to help others do the same. Jennifer is a teacher and a swimmer. Even though she could easily argue that she doesn't have time for it with her six children, she teaches swim lessons every May and June to share both of these gifts with others and to feel like herself. Sarah feels most like herself when she is baking. This year, she opened up a cookie shop from her home. Ashley is a crafter and inventor. She has turned this talent into a hugely successful website and business called Make It and Love It, with brilliant ideas and tutorials. Susan, my mom, is a genealogist. She dabbled with this hobby while she was raising us, but now that we're grown, she treats it as a part-time job and is really good at it. My sisters, Hayley and Cassie, are singers, and now sing together professionally in a trio while raising their young families. Sandy is an accomplished dancer who now cultivates that talent by sharing it with students at the gym. (I am one of the lucky beneficiaries.) Whatever your brand of motherhood, embrace it, cultivate it, and spend time doing those things that make you feel like you!

This Is Who I Am by Springs Community Church

The June '17 edition of UP! has a nice mix of new & classic tracks on it blended into a smooth musical journey. Moto Blanco, StoneBridge, James Anthony, Perry Twins & Guy Scheiman mix tracks from JoAnna Michelle, URBANO, Lady Gaga, Kendra Erika & Clean Bandit. Tony Moran, Bimbo Jones & Wideboys give us mixes for some classic Nicki Richards & Inaya Day tracks. The extraordinary voice of Vanessa Amorosi is given the Wideboys treatment And the Jimmy Gomez remix of M People's "How Can I Love You More" is a pure anthem. This month's edition of UP! kicks off summer in the northern hemisphere & winter Down Under. Enjoy Anthony 1/ "TOO SOPHISTICATED" (Moto Blanco Club Mix) - JOANNA MICHELLE 2/ "ARE YOU" (StoneBridge Classic Club Mix) - URBANO 3/ "MY FIRE" (Phil B. & Leo Frappier Mass Anthem Remix) - NILE ROGERS & TONY MORAN ft. KIMBERLY DAVIS 4/ "THE CURE" (James Anthony's Mainstream Club Mix) - LADY GAGA 5/ "UNDER MY SKIN" (Perry Twins Remix) - KENDRA ERIKA 6/ "SYMPHONY" (Guy Scheiman Remix) - CLEAN BANDIT ft. ZARA LARSSON 7/ "IT AIN'T OVER" (Tony Moran Anthem Remix) - BELLO BOYS ft. SERI 8/ "LAY YOUR HANDS ON ME" (Tony Moran & Warren Rigg Club Mix) - NICKI RICHARDS 9/ "EVERY BREATH" (Bimbo Jones Club Mix) - MARC JB ft. INAYA DAY 10/ "GIVE ME LIFE" (The Alias Club Mix) - JLS 11/ "THIS IS WHO I AM" (Wideboys Remix) - VANESSA AMOROSI 12/ "HOW CAN I LOVE YOU MORE" (Jimmy Gomez Club Mix) - M PEOPLE

This Summer during New York's Pride celebration, violinist and opera singer Tona Brown will become the first trans woman of color ever to perform at Carnegie Hall - headlining the first LGBTQ-themed production ever to be staged there. We were lucky enough to speak with Tona this week about the music she will play there, and the importance of transgender people in LGTBTQ history. NYC Pride 2014 will focus on commemorating the Stonewall Riots, which were lead by trans women of color. Tona says she's been able to reach the level she has in her career because she took a non-traditional path. "Everything that I do is as an independent, freelance artist," she explains, which means she produces her own events and released her album, This Is Who I Am, independently. "Now if I had tried to do it the traditional way, of going to The Met competitions and doing all of that sort of thing, and meeting a conductor that can say yea or nay to me being hired," she says, "I would have had a different experience." She encourages other aspiring artists to hone their craft and be persistent, even if discrimination slows their progress. "If you have a talent and you have a drive to not let people tell you what you can and cannot do, you will succeed. It will just take you longer." With the help of GLAAD, she's raising funds to support the production. We'll be keeping up with her on Facebook and Twitter and will keep you posted on her progress (and let you know when tickets go on sale, for those who can make the trip!). We absolutely adore Tona and can't wait to see what she might accomplish next! Since we'reLove And Hip Hop Atlanta fans, we had to talk about Mimi and Nikko's sex tape this week in our Juicy Fruit segment. Whether you think so-called "leaked" sex tapes are publicity stunts or the real deal, they share a troubling common denominator: "The thing that kills me about all of these sex tapes that come out, like Kim Kardashian and now Mimi," Kaila says, "is that in all of these straight copulation videos, there's no condom! I mean, in 2014, it's really not time for you straight women to keep sleeping with men raw. Just an FYI, that's not a good look." And as Jaison adds, "Pregnancy's the least of your concerns." Indeed, women now account for 1 in 5 of new HIV infections - with African-American women particularly at risk - mostly from heterosexual sex. So why do we only see free condom distribution and mobile STD testing trucks outside gay bars? What would happen if straight people were encouraged to keep track of their status as conscientiously as gay folks are expected to? Would we see a celebrity safe-sex tape one day? Also in Juicy Fruit, we touched on the always-controversial subject of corporal punishment for children, inspired by a Louisville mom who is accused of punching her teenage son in the mouth, busting his lip and loosening one of his teeth. And we had to toot our own horn a bit, because Jaison Gardner recently appeared before a committee of the Louisville Metro Council to talk about the challenges faced by tipped workers who make a $2.13/hour minimum wage. Check out his remarks and let us know what you th

This is week 3 of the 2nd Quarter of our year-long memorization project "Who Am I? Truth for 2012." This week, Sharon Thomas speaks on 1 John 1:9 and how we have forgiveness in Christ. Music by Shane & Shane, "This Is Who I Am."