the audacity to dream of an empowering
journey your journey begins today that
is what I want you who are sitting here
who’ve ever been through anything to
understand that from what I share today
we know that so many people go through
violence we know that so many people are
impacted by violence but what is great
is that you don’t have to stay in that
place you have the power to move past
your past your journey begins today and
I hope that you will be able to
understand that you have the power
within this is me at 4 months old and my
eyes seemed to say that first of all I
don’t know who’s sitting in the room but
I’m not really feeling it but I show
this picture because it’s the age of
innocence untouched unbothered pure and
it also says that no one is experience
pain at that age and it also says that
we need to recognize that this is a
stage in life what we also need to be
turning our smiles and our laughs on the
on our on our kids and on our children
but unfortunately nowadays pain comes
and it’s how we deal with that pain that
makes us stronger at 4 years old I had a
bunny and I really appreciated that
bunny because it just made my life so
complete and I also had my grandmother
and they were my best friends my goat
cheese but within a year of me and bunny
being the best of friends I would
experience something so traumatic I
would eventually be molested by a man
now many of you know back in the day
that so many people my parents were late
then teachers would take you home and
they would wait with you but
unfortunately while I was at my teachers
house she introduced me to a man and he
would be the one that we molest and
touched me when she came back into the
room after being gone for a minute he
abruptly stopped what I do remember from
that experience is that I just did not
feel right
and I didn’t know what to do and I don’t
remember much after that at 14 years old
I had another experience that was my
third experience what happened was that
my cousin raped me and at 14 years old
you don’t know where to put all this but
what you do you begin to lash out you
begin to act out and you don’t know what
to do with yourself during that time
period I had dreams of being a dancer
I thought dancing was so freeing I
thought dancing would just change my
world but long after that I stopped
dreaming about dancing at 16 years old I
was a junior in high school and I began
cheerleading and I loved cheerleading
but the main thing I loved about
children was was that I thought it gave
me acceptance so during my junior year I
started to think about what I wanted to
do for my career whether I wanted to
dream about then I started dreaming
about being a journalist because I
wanted to share good news I’d had so
much bad news going on in my life that I
really wanted to share good news so
that’s what I did I dreamed of becoming
a journalist but during that time period
also what happened was I started to feel
even more pain because I was tired and I
felt alone that no one understood what I
was going through during my junior year
that was also my third experience I was
raped by my boyfriend and it would
impact me so much that no one I knew
that no one understand that no one cared
and so I had to move on shortly after
that I went to heart went to college
while I was in college I met a young man
who would impact my life forever now I
must say that when I got there he was a
football player and no offense to any
football players in the room I just did
not like football player well what I got
from him was that he was sweet gentle
and loving he wasn’t like most football
players so we became fast friends we
enjoyed talking to each other and
spending time with each other but after
months of us dating we came together and
I talked told him about what happened to
me
and he was the first person to not judge
me for anything and I really appreciated
that so it gave me some hope to know
that I could do something with my
we met in 92 and we married in 1994 and
that was a wonderful experience shortly
after that when we did marry it came to
a point where it got a little more
challenging because I started to
remember all the things that had
happened to me and those insecurities
all those things that felt became to
rush back to me and it caused problems
in our marriage it even caused problems
within me parenting because we had a
child within our first year of marriage
well I’d start to get tired of how I was
feeling I started being tired of feeling
very tired of looking down on myself so
I did an assessment I looked deep into
my heart I looked deep into my mind I
said well where do you want to be where
do you have desires to be I said well
one I need to finish school the other
thing I needed to do was figure out my
career and the other was to figure out
what I wanted to do with my family so
most of us want great and awesome
families and that’s what I set my sights
on I wanted an awesome family so I said
I need to get some help I went into
therapy and I sat down with my therapist
and we had great conversations and he
was able to help me to cope with what
I’ve been through also during that time
period I lost my best friend my
grandmother she was the one who just
loved me unconditionally so he helped me
to cope with that as well but what I did
next was when I went back to school at
29 years old I made the decision that I
needed to go return to school and get my
education but while I was there I also
made a decision that this not is not
just for me this is for me to help the
next person this wasn’t about my pain it
was about helping all those other people
in the world who were experiencing
something similar that what I was going
through so I went back and got my degree
from Spelman College in Atlanta with a
degree in sociology and then I thought
about Human Services and how much how
many more people I could help and my I
got my degree and master’s degree in
Human Services then I said well we have
a community full of hurting people
and I took the time to really think
about what I needed to do next
and that was to start my own
organization called empower to heal and
our tagline is healing is a journey that
begins with you and so for the past
three years we’ve been working to make
sure that no one feels that they don’t
have any support I wanted to be that
support that I didn’t feel like I had
and now I have a great and wonderful
family three happy children three
healthy happy children and we ever even
had two wonderful dogs so I’m excited
about all that has happened I persevered
I stayed the course I did not give up
and I challenged you don’t ever give up
on your dreams
don’t let anything that you’ve ever been
through stop you from what you are want
to do is an exciting journey don’t ever
quit and just remember today your
journey begins with you thank you
[Applause]
journey your journey begins today that
is what I want you who are sitting here
who’ve ever been through anything to
understand that from what I share today
we know that so many people go through
violence we know that so many people are
impacted by violence but what is great
is that you don’t have to stay in that
place you have the power to move past
your past your journey begins today and
I hope that you will be able to
understand that you have the power
within this is me at 4 months old and my
eyes seemed to say that first of all I
don’t know who’s sitting in the room but
I’m not really feeling it but I show
this picture because it’s the age of
innocence untouched unbothered pure and
it also says that no one is experience
pain at that age and it also says that
we need to recognize that this is a
stage in life what we also need to be
turning our smiles and our laughs on the
on our on our kids and on our children
but unfortunately nowadays pain comes
and it’s how we deal with that pain that
makes us stronger at 4 years old I had a
bunny and I really appreciated that
bunny because it just made my life so
complete and I also had my grandmother
and they were my best friends my goat
cheese but within a year of me and bunny
being the best of friends I would
experience something so traumatic I
would eventually be molested by a man
now many of you know back in the day
that so many people my parents were late
then teachers would take you home and
they would wait with you but
unfortunately while I was at my teachers
house she introduced me to a man and he
would be the one that we molest and
touched me when she came back into the
room after being gone for a minute he
abruptly stopped what I do remember from
that experience is that I just did not
feel right
and I didn’t know what to do and I don’t
remember much after that at 14 years old
I had another experience that was my
third experience what happened was that
my cousin raped me and at 14 years old
you don’t know where to put all this but
what you do you begin to lash out you
begin to act out and you don’t know what
to do with yourself during that time
period I had dreams of being a dancer
I thought dancing was so freeing I
thought dancing would just change my
world but long after that I stopped
dreaming about dancing at 16 years old I
was a junior in high school and I began
cheerleading and I loved cheerleading
but the main thing I loved about
children was was that I thought it gave
me acceptance so during my junior year I
started to think about what I wanted to
do for my career whether I wanted to
dream about then I started dreaming
about being a journalist because I
wanted to share good news I’d had so
much bad news going on in my life that I
really wanted to share good news so
that’s what I did I dreamed of becoming
a journalist but during that time period
also what happened was I started to feel
even more pain because I was tired and I
felt alone that no one understood what I
was going through during my junior year
that was also my third experience I was
raped by my boyfriend and it would
impact me so much that no one I knew
that no one understand that no one cared
and so I had to move on shortly after
that I went to heart went to college
while I was in college I met a young man
who would impact my life forever now I
must say that when I got there he was a
football player and no offense to any
football players in the room I just did
not like football player well what I got
from him was that he was sweet gentle
and loving he wasn’t like most football
players so we became fast friends we
enjoyed talking to each other and
spending time with each other but after
months of us dating we came together and
I talked told him about what happened to
me
and he was the first person to not judge
me for anything and I really appreciated
that so it gave me some hope to know
that I could do something with my
we met in 92 and we married in 1994 and
that was a wonderful experience shortly
after that when we did marry it came to
a point where it got a little more
challenging because I started to
remember all the things that had
happened to me and those insecurities
all those things that felt became to
rush back to me and it caused problems
in our marriage it even caused problems
within me parenting because we had a
child within our first year of marriage
well I’d start to get tired of how I was
feeling I started being tired of feeling
very tired of looking down on myself so
I did an assessment I looked deep into
my heart I looked deep into my mind I
said well where do you want to be where
do you have desires to be I said well
one I need to finish school the other
thing I needed to do was figure out my
career and the other was to figure out
what I wanted to do with my family so
most of us want great and awesome
families and that’s what I set my sights
on I wanted an awesome family so I said
I need to get some help I went into
therapy and I sat down with my therapist
and we had great conversations and he
was able to help me to cope with what
I’ve been through also during that time
period I lost my best friend my
grandmother she was the one who just
loved me unconditionally so he helped me
to cope with that as well but what I did
next was when I went back to school at
29 years old I made the decision that I
needed to go return to school and get my
education but while I was there I also
made a decision that this not is not
just for me this is for me to help the
next person this wasn’t about my pain it
was about helping all those other people
in the world who were experiencing
something similar that what I was going
through so I went back and got my degree
from Spelman College in Atlanta with a
degree in sociology and then I thought
about Human Services and how much how
many more people I could help and my I
got my degree and master’s degree in
Human Services then I said well we have
a community full of hurting people
and I took the time to really think
about what I needed to do next
and that was to start my own
organization called empower to heal and
our tagline is healing is a journey that
begins with you and so for the past
three years we’ve been working to make
sure that no one feels that they don’t
have any support I wanted to be that
support that I didn’t feel like I had
and now I have a great and wonderful
family three happy children three
healthy happy children and we ever even
had two wonderful dogs so I’m excited
about all that has happened I persevered
I stayed the course I did not give up
and I challenged you don’t ever give up
on your dreams
don’t let anything that you’ve ever been
through stop you from what you are want
to do is an exciting journey don’t ever
quit and just remember today your
journey begins with you thank you
[Applause]
Please follow and like us: