the spotlight Series
The Fashion Blogger
Talented, high fashion, future mogul, this woman’s talents knows no bounds. A New York Native, born in Queens raised in Long Island in a traditional West Indian household where she was taught the value of family and hardwork. As a child, after her parent’s divorced, she and her mother moved into their family’s home in Long Island that housed relatives stemming from her Great-Grandmother to her younger cousins. As overcrowded as this may seem that’s where her entrepreneurial seed was planted.
Her grandmother would take her to NAACP meetings where she was surrounded by Black Excellence: Doctors, Lawyers, Morehouse graduates and Black Panthers. Her experiences gave her a sense of belonging, identity and a solid foundation in her blackness. Although her parents were separated, she had a close knit bond with her father. She recalled attending Piano Lessons, Met games, and weekend shopping trips in the city.
She was daddy’s little girl! Her mother post divorce focused more on her career where she spent many weekends in LA, which meant more time with her relatives and father. Life was great, and the possibilities for her future were endless. However during her early teenage years, life took an unexpected turn when her mother sent her to the Carolinas to attend summer camp. The south was a culture shock, the life she’d cultivated and became accustomed to was no more. Her only satisfaction came from her relentless countdown to Fall.
But with only a few weeks left of summer, she received a life changing call from her mother...
…”You’re not coming back, this is going to be your new home now.” This was the most depressing time of her life. A lot transpired during her time in the Carolinas, death of family members, becoming an outcast, and battling cultural differences. Going through the motions, she thought college would help with some of these emotions but all she could think about was moving back to New York. Back to when her life made sense and her world was at ease. Now nearly 20 years later, she’s made the best of her life down south. As a Creative, Fashion Blogger, and Financier the urge to move back to New York still looms. Her story has yet to end, it’s only beginning and one day she’ll be at peace again in the city she calls home.
LOVE,
- JD
The Loved Child
Free-spirited, warm-hearted, and an all around great human-being. This guy is joy in the flesh. Born and mostly raised in Sebring, Florida, he recalls having a memorable upbringing. He was surrounded by love and a community who embraced him. At the age of 4, his family expanded when his nanny, Anne fell head over heels in love with him. His family couldn’t deny their bond and agreed to share joint custody with her. Life was good in the eyes of a kid, but that all changed when his mother told him they were moving to Germany.
He had to say goodbye to his adopted mother Anne. He wrestled with his emotions but in the end had to obey his mother, and said a tearful goodbye to Anne. He hated the distance but the endless calls back to Sebring help ease some of his pain. But if life wasn’t already confusing, he recalls the moment he received unsettling news. It was a Saturday and freezing in his not so cozy house in the German countryside, his mother prepared family breakfast then told him “I need you speak with your father… alone. Okay?” Excited and anxious, he thought he would be moving back to the states with Anne, but instead his father said.. “Son, I don’t know how to tell you this but, we aren’t your biological parents. We adopted you as a baby...
He felt his world was coming to an end, he didn’t understand how to process this new information about new identity. With the weight of the world barreling down, and his pubsent rebellion, his parents decided to let him live with Anne. They wanted his suffering to end. Back in Sebring, he felt safe and reaffirmed in Anne’s arms. She consoled him and explained that family isn’t defined by your bloodline but by love.
She consoled him and explained that family isn’t defined by your bloodline but by love. He had two families that loved him, and now a third that he’d never met. Anne’s words stayed with him throughout his youth, whenever he’d feel lost or afraid he remembered how much both his families loved him. Soon he would need to mimic Anne’s strength because she fell ill during his sophomore year of High School…. Her death was difficult to say the least, this was the first time he truly felt like an orphan. His parents returned from Germany but unforeseen circumstances kept them from attending the funeral… But his dark days wouldn’t last long, because he received a call from his mom that she had located his biological parents, a moment he thought would never happen. Life can be interesting that way, because he lost a mother the love of his world, and within a year gained another. Life is good, and he’ll never forget his mother Anne but deep down he knows her parting gift to him was his reunion with his biological mother...
Love,
- JD
