top of page

Journey

Family History:

My family history traces back to my great grandfather who was a slave as a child. While he was about 13 years old (we were unsure of his actual age and birthday) he escaped slavery while he was be transported, he jumped into the river. He later met my great grandmother and had seven children, they raised the family in a farm in Jackson Mississippi. Following my uncle my grandmother moved to Chicago where she has lived for over 30 years. I’m not aware of many adversities that my family faced, aside from being in poverty, lacking education, racism, and the normal list of issues that Black families have historically faced in the United States. However, I know that my family, through all of it, remained linked and reliant on one another to find their respective success and happiness. My grandmother has always been very optimistic, a trait I believe I have received from her. I would have to say that my great grandfather escaping slavery is something that resonates with me heavily now. My freedom is so important to me in this period of time so one can only imagine the pain and the trauma associated with him pursuing his true freedom.

My History:

When I was young, probably from about eight years old, I was developing into an artist. I observed a lot of students in my early classes who were good at drawing. When I began drawing, I started off doodling, but quickly learned that wasn’t something I was good at, or proud of. I purchased tracing paper, and figured that I would learn drawing by tracing the drawings of other people, it worked. When I developed the courage to stop tracing, my drawings got better and better.

 

After moving to a different school and displaying my drawings talents there, I developed a following comprised of students. My drawing specialty became graffiti art; drawing names with designs.  I would get requests throughout the day to draw people’s names, and while I didn’t charge them for it, I received recognition as a payment. This later turned into me drawing tattoos on students for about $0.25 with a Pilot Precise V5 Pen. Soon, I created a plan to become a lifelong artist, I wanted to attend Stanford University and start my own anime show. I was dedicated to this dream, as I already started making sketches of the characters and writing their bios. After some time, I began to fall off on my drawings, mostly because I saw how I was not applying myself to school as I should.

 

When I went to high school, my plans for my future had changed, everything became realistic and meaningful. I held on to my wanting to pursue art and decided that I would become a mechanical engineer. In addition to wanting to become a mechanical engineer, I wanted to control my life; I felt that being an employee was too constraining. So, I decided that as a mechanical engineer, I would start a drafting and design firm for engineering, architecture, and design.

 

Once I arrived to Cornell University, I felt as though I still had not found my path. I was not majoring in Mechanical Engineering, rather I was majoring in Applied Economics and Management. I was miserable. In AEM, I was not able to control my path, and this was the most important thing for me. In AEM, I concentrated in Entrepreneurship but could not take entrepreneurship classes because of prerequisites for classes I did not want to take, but was required to take. Also during this time, I began to cut hair. After not wanting to visit barbershops, wait in line, and pay another person to cut my hair, I learned to do it myself. During my sophomore year, my clientele grew and it is now what I recognize as my first business.  Simultaneously, I transferred to Interdisciplinary studies, where I could control my educational path and prepare myself to service my community.

Future self:

In my 51 years, I have seen a lot. Out of all my experiences, I am most grateful for the difficult times. In the difficult times, I developed the skin necessary to keep me intact today. I experienced depression, and have always been proud to speak about it. Depression has given me more than anything else in the world has given me, perspective. I have learned to endure and keep on. I have learned to cry and buckle down. I have learned how to rebuild myself from being broken. This is life. Life is not easy, but neither is my ideal life. Because with trials and tribulations comes growth and understanding of self, then the world around you.

 

I hope that I left the impression on the world that I always dreamt of. I seek to be a King to my community and I trust that I will be such. Not only have I built systems to help my brothers and sisters understand the financial world, but I have helped to build schools so that they can manipulate it. My dream of creating financially sustainable systems has gone far beyond what I dreamed. Not long after college was I able to secure the first opportunity to implement my plans. The plan was first introduced to Detroit, they flourished. I’m proud of all the lives that I have been able to touch, the futures that have been built.

 

My work however is not done, I will continue to educate my communities, build schools, and help raise us to the level we are meant to be.

bottom of page