Angela D. Wharton

Angela D. Wharton

Please introduce and tell us a little about yourself.

I am Angela Denise Wharton, best-selling author, award winning speaker, Founder/ Executive Director of Phynyx Ministries Inc. and Survivor of sexual violence. I am a mother of 2 amazing daughters and a wife to my incredible husband for over 14 years. I love spending time with my family making memories thatwe will forever cherish.

I grew up in East Baltimore with my mother and younger brother. My Mom was a single mother and did her very best to provide for my brother and me. I experienced so many adversities growing up, including sexual assault at 14 and rape at 24. These devastating experiences along with God and my willingness to do the work to heal, helped to shape me into the woman I am today; a warrior woman, a women’s advocate, policy maker, law changer and a voice to those who are still existing in silence from the invisible scars of sexual violence.

You are Founder & Executive Director of Phynyx Ministries. Tell the readers about your ministry.

Phynyx Ministries provides a pathway to healing for women sexual assault survivors through love, support, advocacy, education and empowerment. We empower survivors to break their silence and begin their healing journey so that they may transition, from pain to power to purpose. We began in 2012 at the Empowerment Temple A.M.E. Church in Baltimore, Maryland with our S.A.H.M. (Sexual Assault Healing Ministry) Program. The S.A.H.M program is a 12/14 week program that consists of a combination of in-person meetings and prayer calls geared toward empowering the survivor to heal and strengthening her relationship with God who is the ultimate Healer.

What inspired you to start your Phynyx Ministries?

Phynyx Ministries was birthed out of the pain of surviving sexual assault at the age of 14 by my mom’s boyfriend (at that time) who was attempting to groom me for what we now refer to as Sex Trafficking along with surviving rape at the age of 24 by a masked gunman in the woods behind the apartment I lived in at that time. During my recovery process after the rape, God gave me the entire vision for Phynyx Ministries one evening during prayer. After 15 years of running from the call on my life to start the ministry, I gave God my yes and we have been changing the lives of women sexual assault survivors since 2012. Phynyx Ministries provides a pathway to healing for women sexual assault survivors through love, support, advocacy, education and empowerment. We empower survivors to break their silence and begin their healing journey so that they may transition, from pain to power to purpose.

If someone is interested in supporting your ministry, where can they find out more information?

The Phynyx Ministries website is under construction; however folks can visit us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram under The Phynyx Ministries. They can also email us directly at phynyxministries@gmail.com. Another option is to visit the angeladwharton.com website as well.

You are the Author of “Life After The Silence: From Pain to Power to Purpose.” Please tell us about your book and the reason you wrote it.

Life After The Silence: From Pain to Power to purpose because survivors need to know that they are not alone and that God can move them from a place of darkness and depression into a place of light and loved. I believe survivors must understand that there is value in their voices and their stories. Speaking their truths not only allows them to break free from existing in silence, but it also allows them to take back their power from those who have hurt them. Reading this book will empower survivors to conquer their fears, take hold of the hope and healing that is available and turn their pain into purpose. I also created the Life After Journal: Transformational Healing for Survivors of Sexual Abuse to accompany the book. Quite a few readers of the book expressed to me that while reading the book, thoughts and feelings from their past arose which prompted me to create the journal as a safe space to write out those thoughts and feelings.

Where can your book be purchased?

Life After The Silence: From Pain to Power to Purpose and The Life After Journal can be purchased on amazon.com, goodreads.com, walmart.com and angeladwharton.com.

I read that you was recently was nominated for IALA 2019 Indie Author Legacy Awards as a 2019 Maya Angelou Lifetime Achievement Award Honoree. What was that experience like to be honored with such a prestigious award?

I was completely blown away when I read the nomination letter. I actually read it 3 times to be sure I was actually reading the words correctly, that I am the 2019 Indie Author Legacy Awards Maya Angelou Lifetime Achievement Award Honoree! Then I thought, me??? I don’t do the work that I do for accolades, it’s so that lives may be changed and God gets the glory. However, it does feel good to be recognized and celebrated. There are Survivors lives that I’ve touched through Phynyx, social media, email, my books, my podcast (the Angela D. Wharton Show) and even with a word of encouragement that I may never know; but at least they were touched and a seed was planted to grow them on the path of healing. So yes, it was truly a remarkable honor to receive such a prestigious award in the name of our Icon Dr. Maya Angelou and my prayer is that I consistently live up to this honor.

Angela, 2019 has been a year of great achievements. You was also one of The Daily Record Maryland’s Top 100 Women tell us about this particular achievement in your State.

Yes, 2019 has been a year of great achievements for me both personally and professionally and I am truly grateful. The DailyRecord Maryland’s Top 100 Women recognizes high-achieving Maryland women who are making an impact through their leadership, community service and mentoring in the state of Maryland. Winners are selected by past Top 100 Women and business leaders. I was completely blown away that I was even nominated, but to actually win and be named among so many incredible women in business was an enormous blessing. The committee sifted through over 500 nominations and 100 of the best rose to the top. And your girl Angela D. Wharton was one of them for service through Phynyx Ministries, Inc. In March I also shared my testimony in Annapolis to support House Bill 1096, the mandatory rape kit testing bill. It passed and Gov. Hogan signed it into law in April 2019. This makes the second bill that I supported with my personal testimony. In 2018 the Repeat Sexual Predator Prevention Act was passed after 5 years of testifying in Annapolis, Maryland before the House Judiciary Committee then signed into law by Gov. Hogan in April of 218. This means so much to me as a Survivor of rape and I give God the glory for allowing my story to create such a powerful sound in the earth.

Please share with our readers your upcoming speaking engagements, conferences, or events.

Sure, The Phynyx Ministries Bags of Blessings Holiday Donation Drive will take place Dec. 1 st through Dec. 21st where we will collect coats, hats, gloves, scarves, warm socks, toiletries, cleaning supplies and non-perishable food items. All donations will benefit a local housing facility that supports young adults ages 18-25 who were street homeless, in shelters or have aged out of Foster Care. Also, I will be a panelist on March 7, 2020 at a violence against women awareness and prevention event and will be sharing my story at the Her Story Symposium May 22-23. More information on these and other events is forthcoming, so please visit us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for details as they become available.