20 minute read
Jamey Jenkins
By Dorjae McClammey Photos by Jamey Jenkins
Advertisement
He wants everyone to have an ear for this. Hello Black Man.
Jamey Jenkins, husband, father, and entrepreneur. Born and raised in Mississippi, he grew up in the small town of Hazelhurst. As a student at Hazlehurst High School, he was involved with the debate team, basketball team, and eventually graduated at the top of his class with honors in 1997. Next, he enrolled at the well-known HBCU, Alcorn State University, majoring in Political Science Pre-Law. He was also inducted into the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity. After graduating in 2002, Jamey received a job at the automotive giant Nissan North America and much like everything else in his life, was able to work himself to the top. Starting as a Technician, he then moved up to Lead Tech, then to Supervisor, and currently serves as Lead Manager.
Growing up, Jamey had a real simple life. He was raised by a hard-working single mother, and shares he didn’t ask for much, but his mother always made him feel like he had the world. He met his father while he was in high school, and the connection they made he shares, was so amazing it was like they never missed a beat. “If someone were to tell you that we didn’t grow up together, you wouldn’t believe it,” he says. “I didn’t feel any resentment towards my father and decided that instead of focusing on the past I was going to keep moving forward with our relationship.”
Growing into manhood Jamey acquired a family of his own. He was married and got divorced, producing a son in his union. His son came to live with him for a while, and he figured out quickly that their communication style was quite different. “I wanted to find the best way to adapt to him and his needs instead of my son trying to adapt to me as the parent,” he says. Jenkins used this knowledge to create a list of things he wanted his son to know about him, which involved creating questions for them to ask each other. While writing down things he wanted his son to know about him, Jamey realized that he didn’t know a lot about his dad. He knew the basic things but not who he was as a person. So, as he continued to write down all these questions and something came to his mind. “I realized that if I put all these questions together in journal form, then I would have an almost perfect autobiography,” he says. Starting with 250 questions he thought if the question did not make you pause, it wouldn’t be added to the journal. So that removed all of the basic questions and narrowed it down to 52 questions, equaling one question a week for an entire year. All the questions were thought-provoking and intriguing, focusing on finances, future endeavors, and love. The kind of questions and answers that don’t come up in everyday conversations. He knew he was onto something and In November 2019, the Hello Black Man Journal was created.
He didn’t stop there, as he has created a series of interactive journals that are designed to help members of the African American community dig deep within and learn things about themselves that they would have never thought of. The Hello Black Man Journal has been well designed and is easily comprehensible. One side allows space for a quote and/or question, and the other side has a space for the reader to journal and reflect.
Jamey didn’t stop with Hello Black Man. He has created a journal for just about everyone. After Hello Black Man, he wrote Hello Black Woman, which is inspired by his daughter, wife, and mother. There is also Hello Black Child. With this addition, Jamey wanted to open up the mind of the young person and jumpstart their communication abilities and provide a safe and trusting place to get everything in their mind out and show someone what they are going through. With Hello Black Teenager Jamey, wanted something that can help teens and adults connect better. “I feel as though teenagers today have it way harder than I did. With social media being a big factor in a teenager’s life I wanted a place for young adults to get their emotions and thoughts out somewhere other than online,” he says. There is also Hello Black Couple which is meant for two people to write and connect. Jamey has had couples who’ve been married 40 plus years tell him that they didn’t know half of the things about their partner they thought they did. This journal strives to reopen deep communication between new and current partners. Hello Black First Responder is for the people who are so unique and mentally trained and are sadly constantly fighting between career and community. A space for those people, paramedics, firefighters, and law enforcement who see a lot, finally have a place to release what they’ve been holding in.
Then there’s the Journey Journal. Jamey wanted to create an avenue for everyone in the world to be able to start their transition to be more open and connected with themselves. Finally, there is the Hello Black Entrepreneur. As someone who has multiple businesses, he is no stranger to the hustle. “In our community, we grind, we are hustlers, and hard workers. Yet I feel as though the community does not do a great job at writing the details down of what we are doing and so this journal is for those who need an outline for when they need to go back for a reference, or when they start a new business, they know how they did it the first time and will be able to do it again with less hassle. I’ve had more phone calls about that journal in the last three months than Hello Black Man in the last year.”
Jamey has what others may call an “unreal” motivator, which is time. Time pushes him to be more connected with his business, family, and surroundings. It pushes him to have a business that will be impactful forever. He wants his products to be so impactful, that in the next 100 to 200 years, someone will be able to pick them up and still be inspired. He wants to use his journals to make history in the black community also. “If my grandson’s, grandson’s grandson needs help or motivation, he can see what I wrote, and hopefully it will drive him to a better place,” he says.
Hello Black Man www.helloblackman.com
Even though he’s not huge on accolades, Jamey feels most accomplished when he sees his work in action. He says a client’s appreciation, feedback, and recognition is all the reward he needs. Most of all, being able to find a way to connect with his kids better is his biggest accomplishment. Moving forward, Jamey currently has two more journals in the work, Hello Black Student and Hello Black Educator. He feels like this group of people don’t get the respect nor pay they deserve. “Because they give to the youth in the community, I want to give them an avenue to talk about their careers, express their emotions, and be able to unwind. My goal is to put my journals into millions of hands who need a safe space to unwind,” he says.
The Covid 19 pandemic has put a hold on The Hello Black Man Conference, though Jamey and his team have been working hard to bring it back for the Spring of 2022. That will also be the celebration of their third-year mark.
Jamey is a down to earth kind of guy. His favorite dish to prepare is frozen pizza. His top three movies are Heat with Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, Tombstone, and Shawshank Redemption. He is also a world-renowned spade player, “spadesologist” and has received the City-Wide Spades trophy in Mississippi. h
To learn more about Jamey Jenkins and Hello Black Man, please visit his website.
Nations of Women Change Makers 2021 Global Leadership Award Recipient
By Ayana Bryant Photos by Dr. Michele Wright
Who is Dr. Michele Wright. The best way to describe her is to say that she is loving and has a special place in her heart to serve others. She is also an engineer, best-selling author, former CEO of the American Red Cross, entrepreneur, and Executive Director for National Cystic Fibrosis for African Americans. This is a businesswoman who has continuously strived for success and pushes herself to new heights. A native of Tuskegee, Alabama now based in Little Rock, Arkansas, Dr. Wright is continuing to build her legacy and uplift younger generations while doing so. A graduate of Tuskegee University with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering Dr. Wright decided to continue her education post-graduation. Receiving her master’s in engineering management and industrial engineering from the University of Tennessee Space Institute becoming the first African American full-time student to earn this degree. She then went on to earn her doctorate from the University of Arkansas in public policy with a double specialization in health and leadership policy.
Raised by two loving parents Dr. Wright was always taught to work hard and push herself to be successful. Her father, being the provider of the household is the one who encouraged her to become an engineer and inspired her to always strive for greatness. Today he still works at Tuskegee University helping students in the biology department get into medical school. Her mother also played an integral role in her upbringing, nurturing her and her siblings and making sure that they all did what they needed to do to reach their full potential. Both working in synergy to raise her is what she says has made her into the successful person she is today.
Dr. Wright values the impact of service within her community, her engineering background is what inspires her to support underrepresented students in the STEM field. She serves as the President and board chair of the Milton Pitts Crenshaw Aviation Training Academy which aids young people in looking for opportunities to pursue careers in the aviation and aerospace industry. She is also a board member of the Arkansas Mentoring and Networking Association which is another nonprofit organization that helps to promote opportunities for underrepresented STEM students in the state of Arkansas.
Dr. Wright has started a very important business, My Water Buddy Inc. and foundation. The mission of My Water Buddy is to promote the benefits of drinking water to children and their families for a more fulfilling quality of life through a healthy body. The vision of this company is what inspired her to author and create her very own children’s book The Water Tales: Life Lessons from My Water Buddy and Family. Along with this book Dr. Wright launched a podcast which won the 2021 Accolade Global Film competition award. Alongside her husband she has also started the National Organization of African Americans with Cystic Fibrosis which was established in 2019.
Along with success comes challenges and downfalls and Dr. Wright has had her fair share. “The biggest challenge that I have faced in my career is being taken seriously and valued as an African American female and moreover as an African American female leader,” she says. Overall, she still believes in embracing what comes because the struggles that we endure will always present bigger and better opportunities. “You know the saying take lemons and make lemonade? I took my lemons and grew a lemon farm.” When asked who or what has impacted her life the most, her immediate response was her relationship with God. She also feels that everyone around her has collectively impacted her life like pieces to a puzzle. Her parents instilled her with training, values, and beliefs that she feels has transformed her into the woman she is today. She also recognizes the influence and support of her husband. The last 20 plus years of their marriage has provided her with balance and a partner to “pick up the baton”. “Without the support of my husband I wouldn’t be the wife and mature woman of God that I am today,” she shares.
In the future she is looking forward to continuing her growth and becoming overall wiser, better, and stronger. Ultimately, she says that she looks forward to making an impact in the lives of others. Her mission in life is to make a difference in the world that will not simply last for today but for generations to come. Dr. Wright believes in the significance of paying it forward and says that is what she was put here to do. h
Sheka Johnson
High Status Consulting
By Terry L. Watson and Teyah Glenn Photos by Collier Photograpy
For some, life can often get off to a fast start. There may be plans in place, and dreams are just beginning to be acted upon when things suddenly change and what was once important, is moved further down our list of priorities. This is just the kind of narrative that Sheka Johnson has experienced.
As a teenager, the Charlotte, N.C. native looked up to her grandfather for encouragement and direction. She says he taught her how to look for certain summer jobs and to not settle for the ones that teenagers typically get. By doing so, at the age of fourteen she served as an assistant at City Hall, helping people in Uptown Charlotte with different city projects. Within this position, Sheka learned how to manage a business and the basic functions of running one. The information she obtained in this role would eventually pay dividends for her later in life,
Sheka finished high school and set her sights on obtaining a degree from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. As life would happen, within three years into pursuing her degree in Business Management, she became pregnant and decided to step away from school so that she could prepare to be a new mom.
After having her first child at the age of 20, Sheka entered the world of entrepreneurship. “Being a single, young mother is what pushed me. I didn’t have a backup plan. I wanted to spend as much time with my child as possible, but I needed to be able to afford that experience. Being a business owner seemed like the best avenue for me to take,” she says.
Her first stint was with bail bonding, and next she opened a childcare center. “I enjoyed working with children, and opening the childcare center allowed me to make money and take care of my child while doing so,” she says. Her next move was to attend nursing school, where she acquired her degree and became a Licensed Practical Nurse. With that accomplishment under her belt, she opened a home health care business which has been in operation for nine years.
With her home healthcare business, Sheka says it all about helping her clients, many of whom are senior citizens and disabled individuals. “Because I am the owner of a home healthcare business, I am able to hire qualified professionals, ensuring that the needs of my clients are met,” she says.
With all the things Sheka has ongoing, she still finds the time to do even more. Her newest venture is High Status Consulting LLC. With this, her goal is offer and provide consulting and coaching services to existing and aspiring entrepreneurs. Her services are designed to help them either get their business off the ground or assist them with making their business operate more efficient by identifying bottlenecks and waste, and areas where opportunities to grow exist. She also offers talent management services.
There are many perks with being an entrepreneur and Sheka’s favorites are financial freedom and having free time to spend with her family. She also enjoys meeting people. “My intention is to impact every life that I am privileged to meet,” she says. “I genuinely love helping others achieve their dreams. Many people I meet are often at a place where they are thinking about giving up on their business. I help to redirect that type of thinking into something positive and show them how to make their business work. With entrepreneurship you can’t give up, you have to stay with it,” Sheka says.
Just as there are many perks that come with entrepreneurship, there are some challenges that come with it as well. For Sheka, she says the Covid 19 pandemic forced her to find ways to stay in operation. “I had to find adequate staffing, which was difficult because many people were not interested in working because of the pandemic,” she says. Still, she pushed on and was able to keep going. Her drive and determination has been passed down to her daughters, both who are entrepreneurs owning the beauty company, Chosen 1 Studio, and Drilled by K. Sheka serves as mom and business coach to her daughters and navigates them through the world of business, using the experience and knowledge she has already obtained.
Sheka’s goals for the future is to mentor and coach young black entrepreneurs. “Even if they don’t want to own a business, I want them to know that they should still have some type of entrepreneurship. I want to let the youth know that there’s a difference between being a business owner and being an entrepreneur. I want to expand my online presence as well,” she says. “Normalizing black wealth is my ultimate goal.” A piece of advice that Sheka would offer to others who follow in her footsteps would be to stay passionate about your business, and never give up. “You should only take advice from those who have traveled in the same path that you are seeking to go in,” she says. If you are an entrepreneur and in need of business coaching services, contact Sheka with High Status Consulting. She might just have the answers to help you get your business to the next level.
www.highstatusconsulting.com
Dionne Ellison
By Dillan Teabout Photos by Dionne Ellison
Creative, self-disciplined, and passionate are only a few ways to describe Dionne Ellison.
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Dionne embodies the toughness and intuitiveness to survive. The skills come into play as she is the proud owner of Vuliwear, an intriguing sunglass line that is produced exclusively by her. Dionne shares she was inspired by some bug eyes she saw while surfing the internet. Each of her sunglasses remarkably capture different insects’ eyes, ranging from Striped Horseflies to African Twig Mantises. “I was surfing the web and came across some photographs of insects. They were magnified so large that you could see their compound eyes and beautiful colors. I instantly thought of sunglasses.” Remarkably, Dionne discovered hidden beauty in something many people would simply swat away. Once the idea struck her, she took action and found two manufacturers to help bring it to life. Once things were in order, she launched her business on June 27, 2017, which is also National Sunglasses Day. Vuliwear sunglasses are a functional fashion piece. They are fully polarized, UVA, and UVB protected. Not only do Vuliwear sunglasses look great, they also promote good eye health. Dionne was diagnosed with a small cataract in her right eye and learned that cataracts can be caused by UV damage. “My mission is not just from a fashion standpoint, but from a health standpoint as well,” Dionne said. One example of her efforts is the partnership Vuliwear has with nothingbutnets. net, a grassroots organization that provides treated nets for families threatened by malaria. “I thought it would be cool to partner with an organization that is helping families,” Dionne said. Due to the Covid 19 pandemic, her three-year-old business slowed down a little. “I had to weather the storm and not spend money on advertisements, mainly because no one was thinking of buying sunglasses. However, now that summer is getting closer, and things are opening up slowly, I am in position to launch some new marketing campaigns to help drive my business,” she says.
Even with the pandemic, she remains hopeful, and in the next five years, she has enormous plans for Vuliwear. She wants Vuliwear to partner with optical stores and fashion bouquets in an effort to expand her brand. Additionally, there are plans to start a fashion line for Vuliwear.
Currently, Vuliwear can be found in two stores located in Philadelphia. One is a blackowned optical store called “Omega Optical,” and the other is a fashion boutique called “Shop Sixty Five.” While retail can be profitable, her focus is moving to wholesale. She shares, “Wholesale, from a financial standpoint is a definite way to go, because the business gets exposure to our customers. I have been a one-woman show since we launched but my plan is to add a few more designs and increase the Vuliwear team internally.”
Entrepreneurship is in the genetic makeup of Dionne’s family. Her late parents were also entrepreneurs, and she shares how she loves the benefits it provides. “I love thinking of new things and solving problems. Entrepreneurship is hard, but if it was easy, I probably wouldn’t do it,” she says. “I am driven by wanting to create generational wealth, and I plan to give my business to my son eventually. When things get hard, I think of my son.” For young black entrepreneurs, Dionne’s most significant piece of advice for them is something she has personally done and believes in. “Believe in yourself, be authentic, and keep moving forward. Every day you are going to wake up and question yourself. You don’t need to conquer the entire world. All you need to do is find your market and go from there,” she says.
When asked how she wants to be remembered, Dionne shares she hopes for her drive to win. “I want people to know I believe in myself and a higher power. I tried to live my life to never say ‘I wish I would have’, because living with regret to me is one of the worst things to do. I want to be remembered as a person who tried everything that I had a passion for,” she says. h
To learn more about Dionne and Vuliwear, please visit her website.
