Umoja Village CEO, Donna Moore Wesby

DONNA MOORE WESBY’S GOD CENTERED EXCELLENCE

As a resident of Aiken, South Carolina, over 42 years, Ms. Wesby’s passion for helping children and families is a daily mission as she is often called upon to provide godly guidance and advice. Ms. Wesby has actively served others through several capacities to include her 501-(c)3 nonprofit Education Matters Nonprofit Corporation, where she operated an after school reading center for several years, and produced and hosted radio and television broadcasts entitled “Education Matters” to include local ASTV and CBS affiliate WRDW News Channel 12.

As founder and owner of The Greatest Gift, an all-occasion gift business, Wesby and her staff were honored as the 2006 Greater Aiken Chamber of Commerce Small Business of the Year, becoming the first African American business to receive this recognition. The Greatest Gift operated for over 10 years, where she hired and mentored nearly 20 young adults.

Ms. Wesby also served on numerous boards and advisory councils within the local community and state, to include the Aiken County Board of Education, the John de la Howe School, Aiken Regional Medical Centers, the USC Aiken Inclusion Advisory Council, the USC Aiken Partnership Board, and the Aiken County Accommodations Tax Advisory Committee, which she currently chairs.

Ms. Wesby and her husband, Donald, of nearly 25 years, were given a vision from God to start a huge unification effort for Blacks entitled Umoja Village, which has been actively mobilizing since June 2020 after the tragic murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and others. The Umoja Village Resource Center opened in December 2021 while the organization implemented major initiatives to improve lives for the underrepresented, underserved, and marginalized people within Aiken County.

Ms. Wesby was employed by Westinghouse Savannah River Company (WSRC) for 15 years where she served in several public relations and communications assignments. While there, she served as coordinator of the Mini Grants Program, and the internship and School-to-Work programs. She also worked as executive assistant to two WSRC presidents from 1999-2003, becoming the first African American in the site’s 50-year history to work in the president’s office in a professional capacity. From 2008-2022, she served as a subcontractor at SRS where she has managed the SRS Employee Association Store.

Ms. Wesby graduated with honors from the University of South Carolina Columbia with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Broadcast Journalism, 1992. Her husband, Donald Wesby is the creator of Don’s Seasoning Delight, all-purpose seasoning/marinade sold in major grocery stores and via Internet.

UPW: You have accomplished so much in your life. Say a word about your parents and the support community that you experienced as a child and reflect on the importance of those factors for today’s families.

DONNA WESBY: Thank you for the kind words. However, I give all glory to God for saving my soul and for allowing me to be born into a family who introduced me to God before I even knew myself. Just about every day, I thank God for my mother, Betty Rucker, and my extended family who have loved, supported, and encouraged me throughout my life. Much of the characteristics I possess are carbon copies of my mother who is a class act to this day. For a period of time, my mother was a single parent. She raised my sister, Tfifany, and I to respect her and ourselves. Our grandparents, Booker T. and Rebecca Cathcart, kept us in church where the entire family sang Gospel music. My mom, aunts, and uncles always encouraged me to do well in school and to always be considerate of others, which is where my desire to serve others was nurtured. My work with and compassion for children and families stems from the understanding that not everyone grew up in a Godfearing and loving home as I did. So, if I can give them what has been given to me, maybe they will grasp that their lives have meaning and purpose.

UPW: You graduated from USC Columbia with a degree in broadcast journalism in 1992 and your most recent stint with broadcasting was with WAAW where you were general manager and program director up until a few days ago when the station changed ownership. Your career spans disciplines and careerpaths far different from broadcast journalism. Comment on the timing and nature and importance of your broadcast career thus far.

WESBY: The steps of a righteous man (woman) are ordered by the Lord. So, all of my adult life has been seeking God’s direction to ensure that I remain in His will. Consequently, I believe that my college pursuits and all of my career moves were ordained by God to prepare me for exactly what I do in each season of my life. My college experience at USC-Columbia was phenomenal in that it gave me a broad understanding of many topics, and I learned so much about myself and the kind of person I wanted to become. I have no regrets, because every career decision allowed me to grow and to help others grow to realize the greatness within. The Word of God says to everything there is a season. Therefore, when a new chapter begins and then it ends, I am thankful for the journey and all that I’ve learned along the way. I don’t question God and His timing, because I truly believe that all things have worked for my God and for His glory.

UPW: Your stint with the Westinghouse Savannah River Company, where you were elevated to the top administrative team, had to have been an eye-opening experience -- one rarely experienced by African-American women. Comment on how your experience at WSRC impacted your decision to become a force for healing in the community. What skills, capacities or resources did you gain from the experience?

DONNA: Serving as the first Black professional to work in the WSRC President’s Office was nothing short of incredible. When the president informed me that he wanted to offer me the position as his executive assistant, I’ll never forget the reason he shared. He said that everyone else who interviewed felt that attaining that position would mean they would have reached the pinnacle. He told me he felt they would become complacent and not have the drive he saw in me. He said of all the ladies who interviewed, I was the only candidate who saw the position as a stepping stone to go higher in the company, which is exactly what I did after serving under his leadership and the next president to follow. He said he was not looking for a secretary; he was looking for a leader ... and that’s what he saw in me.

That position was one of the best assignments of my career, because of my exposure to corporate leadership and the mindset of leadership at that level. I was given autonomy to develop my creativity, professionalism, and resourcefulness to get things done, which is what he appreciated. I had the critical thinking and problem-solving skills to take initiative without him having to tell me every move to make.

Some would have used that experience to become arrogant and prideful. But, glory to God, I used the opportunity to lift up others, to break down barriers and stereotypes, and to develop a huge network of resources back then that benefits the community today.

UPW: What is Umoja Village? Was it the product of an extended campaign strategy or was it something that you were inspired to do “out of the blue?”

DONNA: Even during our dating phase, the conversations between my husband, Don, and I were talks of how we could help our community -- specifically what could we do to become more united, effective, and efficient with all of our resources. So, probably 15 or more years ago, those discussions resulted in my husband coming up with the village concept that would look at every facet of our lives to then bring about a solid infrastructure for implementation. At that time, God never showed us how to implement the concept -- that is until George Floyd was murdered. God spoke to me and said it would be my job to pull Blacks and African Americans together to work on a collective comprehensive plan for addressing bias, inequity, and systemic racism. Because I’ve built an extensive network of contacts, I was able to assemble about 85 Black CSRA elected officials and community leaders to develop this plan. The session was held on June 19, 2020, which happened to be Juneteenth. I named the group Umoja Village from the Swahili word “Umoja,” which means unity. That effort began the inception of Umoja Village.

UPW: Your husband, Don Wesby, is a force in his own right. How do the two of you divide the labor associated with such a wide-ranging network of activities sponsored by Umoja Village?

When Don and I got married, God showed me that He would use our union in mighty ways for His glory. With every major undertaking, Don and I work together and support each other. We believe our relationship is a testament that marriage is a beautiful institution and that it can work well. Whether it’s traveling to handle Don’s Seasoning Delight business, managing the radio station, running two nonprofits, or managing anything else God assigns us to do, we work it all together. As founders of Umoja Village, daily we have strategic conversations about the direction of the organization and its progress. Don is also on the board and is an exceptional visionary. I am the CEO and also a strong visionary. However, it is my responsibility to implement vision. So, we try to strike a balance to make sure that he doesn’t micromanage just because he has 24-hour access to me. LOL!

UPW: As a 501(c)3 organization, Umoja Village has been producing amazing results, but none is more impressive than obtaining and staffing a headquarters building. Tell us how that all came about.

DONNA: In order for the community to accept Umoja Village as a serious organization with a defined mission, having an office where the public could interface with Umoja Village leadership and for us to execute our mission as it relates to meeting with clients, I knew we needed to have dedicated facility space. We were compelled to lease space from a Black or African American entrepreneur in an effort to demonstrate how to support our own Black businesses. Staffing for the center was realized after we reached donations that could support hiring staff. We are open with regular hours 12 hours per week and also available by appointments. As our donations increase, we will increase regular business hours. Umoja Village’s desired annual budget is $1.2 million to fully fund our mission. We are currently operating at a little less than 10% of the desired budget.

UPW: There is an unmistakable entrepreneurial strain that is running throughout the Wesby household. Explain the role of business ownership in your family’s journey.

DONNA: Don and I believe in the concept of creating generational wealth opportunities -- not just for us but also for the Black and African American population. The attainment of blessings is not for us to horde but to share. We teach our children to own, operate, develop, and create, if at all possible, so that a financial head start can better posture our future generations for success. God has given us everything we need to succeed. Faith without works is dead. An idea without implementation is merely a dream.

UPW: What are some of the major events Umoja Village is working toward for the remainder of 2023?

DONNA: We will be the co-sponsor of the Greater Augusta Black Chamber of Commerce’s Networking Event, Thursday, July 27, 6 p.m., at the Center For African American History, Art & Culture. Our first “Umoja Village Unity Weekend” will feature:

1. SHOUTFEST: Saturday, Oct. 21st, 11AM-5PM, Beverly D. Clyburn Generations Park, 700 Mack Henry Holland Drive in Aiken, SC. It’s the largest, free outdoor Gospel festival in the CSRA to include all day Gospel performances; food, merchandise, service, and informational vendors; and a major Kidszone.

2. SHORT FILM VIEWING/ POST-SCREENING DISCUSSION: “Descended From The Promised Land: The Legacy of Black Wall Street,” Sunday, Oct. 22nd, 2:30 p.m., USC Aiken Etherredge Center, 340 Scholar Loop, Aiken, SC.

3. UMOJA VILLAGE UNITY GOLF TOURNAMENT: Monday, Oct. 23rd, 9:30 a.m. shotgun start, Houndslake Country Club, 901 Houndslake Drive, Aiken, SC.

UPW: Your website is fast becoming a regional bulletin board. What is the procedure for posting events on the site?

DONNA : Especially with the ending of WAAW Shout 94.7 FM and the empowerment broadcasts, I believe the Umoja Village Community Calendar will become a major resource in our community. Go to www.umojavillage.com/ community-calendar. At the top are instructions for adding any event or meeting, including the ability to upload flyers. We encourage the churches, businesses, sororities, fraternities, agencies, nonprofits, etc., to use the calendar as a pre-planning tool so that we are not planning events on top of one another. Because we reinforce unity, we encourage those groups to search for partnership or collaboration opportunities if they see an event already posted that they’ve also considered.