Community (Why)
For as long as I could remember I’ve wanted to help others, give back to my community, and attempt to make the world a better place. Even if that meant I only touched one life in all of my years. Outside of normal day to day “good deeds” I had taken a break from helping others. It had gotten to the point where I no longer felt fulfilled, and no matter what I was doing I just knew something was missing. I believe this is because I was not walking in my purpose. I’m not sure when or how my life took this turn, but once I came to this realization I knew that I had to make a change.
I started with writing. It was the only way things seemed to make sense to me. I was able to clear my head and my thoughts flowed freely. It was easier for me to revitalize my purpose, and not allow the negativity to cloud my thoughts. I touched on this in my first Lifestyle post here. I knew that I needed to get back to helping my community, and work towards my long term goals and simply start. I will go into more detail as we grow together, but for now let’s start with the outreach that I’ve decided to tackle first, helping the homeless.
Why did you start your own non-profit?
The goal of Devote[D] Foundation is to devote time and love to individuals who may not have someone in their corner to call on. To create a sense of family or community. Growing up, I was always confused when I’d see someone on the street who wasn’t just waiting on the bus or walking to their next destination. It was something that I truly didn’t understand, and when I asked my mom why were they out there she told me that they were homeless. That was so weird to me. I was raised in a single parent household, but my dad was in my life and believe me I had my struggles, but I couldn’t understand how someone could allow their family member to go without. How could someone end up homeless? My mom told me that they may have just lost their job, or had an addiction to drugs, or a number of things could have led to them being homeless I heard her, but it still didn’t add up. That information was something that I literally took personal, especially at such a young age. I was determined from that moment on to make sure that I did my part in coming up with a plan to make sure lives were changed and that individuals who were homeless had the opportunity to turn their lives around. I didn’t want to just offer them food, clothing, and shelter but I wanted to walk them through the process of re-entering society and no longer living life on the streets.
As years progressed I dealt with more trials more tribulations and decided that if I was going to have a non-profit I wanted to offer services for single moms and students who come from low income communities as well. It only made sense to help those who I believe need help as well as those who grew up facing some of the same challenges that I faced growing up. My heart is with the homeless absolutely, but the sky is definitely the limit.
Why did you name your non-profit Devote[D] Foundation?
I’m not the most creative person around, that’s for sure, lol! I just wanted to come up with a name that meant something and could carry value with or without being explained. It’s written the way that it is for three reasons: 1) I couldn’t pick between Devoted or Devote
2) I didn’t want to make it too long
3) The D is personal 😊
According to google dictionary devote means give all or a large part of one's time or resources to (a person, activity, or cause) and devoted means very loving or loyal. So, when I put the two together I came up with Devote[D] which means give all of your time backed by love and loyalty. Simple right.
What is the hardest part of having a non-profit Foundation?
Listen, having a non-profit is HARD!!! Having the vision and the heart for something DOES NOT mean that you have the tools to move forward. By no means am I saying that it means you shouldn’t move forward it just means that it will not be a walk in the park but what is? Before starting I thought that I had a group of people who would serve as great members of my board because we’d worked together before. I was wrong! Just because you’ve worked with someone and it went well doesn’t mean that you can transfer that experience into a new venture. If everyone isn’t passionate about the cause the way that you are it can go south very fast. Of course, some will commit because they think it’s a good cause or because they support you but those two things aren’t strong enough for anyone to stick around, and devote the tireless hours required to fight the battles that come with starting and maintaining a new non-profit. Make sure you know where to find help! You can’t do it on your own AT ALL! It’s possible to maintain it but to make sure things move forward will be hard especially if you are trying to run other things, work your day job, explore other business ventures, and live any kind of social life. Listen, get help and be willing to do a ton of research.
Why do you annually host FALL FOR THE HOMELESS?
FALL FOR THE HOMELESS is a time to show our friends that they are loved especially during the holidays while also providing them with items that will make the fall and winter months a little more bearable. Holidays are a major time of giving and I wanted to make sure that everyone was remembered during this time.