- 11 months ago
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00:00What is up? It's Leisha B. from the All New Morning Rollout, and we're back with another Detroit Culture Shifters.
00:06And this one is very iconic for me because I low-key have been kind of sort of maybe like low-key stalking this girl.
00:12But it's okay. So let me give you the rundown just in case you don't know who we're talking to.
00:16She's a University Prep Academy alumna. Come on now.
00:20She's also got her bachelor's from GDSU in health comms and public health,
00:24while getting her master's in public health as well from WMU. Come on now.
00:30She also was a huge part of the hashtag lunchback that happened in 2019,
00:35while also giving back throughout the entire pandemic, including up until 2022.
00:39Apparently, she's not done yet because 2025, she's already killing it so far.
00:44I want to say hi to Kajija Johnson.
00:46Hello. How are you?
00:48I'm good. I'm so excited to talk to you because we have a mutual friend.
00:51And I feel like one thing about our girl, Miss Asia, Miss Venus,
00:56she's going to love on people in the correct way.
01:00And if she says that they're legit, I know they're legit.
01:03Hey, thank you. That is my best friend, too.
01:05So, you know.
01:07Exactly. Okay.
01:07So I kind of want to just get started about you.
01:10So tell us who Kajija is beyond the titles and the organizations.
01:14Like, who are you?
01:16Who am I?
01:17I'm a really, really give back person.
01:20That's like who I'm rooted in and you'll see it everywhere.
01:23Of course, I'm a native Detroiter, Westside to be specific.
01:27And I also like to rep being a Michigander.
01:29Like, I went to Grand Valley.
01:31I went to Western.
01:31I have a lot of roots in a lot of different areas in our state.
01:35But, you know, I'm a Detroiter at heart, always and forever.
01:38So I think that encompasses who I am.
01:41I am by my community.
01:42I am by my family, my friends.
01:45So I'm really rooted in just always being authentic to me, but always being a giver.
01:51That's who I am.
01:52And that's the vibe that I've always gotten from not only afar, but through your social media as well.
01:56And as someone who came from Grand Rapids before here, I understand that different cultures and different vibes.
02:03You can go 20 minutes away from the city and it's a different vibe.
02:07It's just a little bit differently, differently, different.
02:10But my family is from up north.
02:11So my family was migrant workers.
02:13My mom is Mexican, so my whole big old family is 17 of my mom and her siblings.
02:19So I have a huge family and they're migrant workers.
02:22So they worked in farming forever, but they were up north.
02:26So being a Mexican-American family in that area where it get cold all the time.
02:31So I have a different vibe than other Detroiters because I spent a lot of time up north.
02:36I spent a lot of time doing things that aren't typical for a city girl.
02:40So I think that that has also influenced who I am.
02:42And I think because you are able to not only be ingrained in multiple different cultures and around different people,
02:51that allows you to, I think, have a little bit more empathy and a lot more realization about what is needed.
02:58And one of the platforms and brands that you have is Black Girls Who've Lost.
03:03Yes, my baby.
03:04And I think, one, that's incredible.
03:06Just the idea and what you are doing about it.
03:10As a woman who has dealt with grief and is currently still dealing with grief, especially in this holiday season, being away from family,
03:18I feel like a lot of people think that they're alone and we don't realize how we're actually not alone in any sense of the term.
03:25So why was it so important for you to start Black Girls Who've Lost?
03:30I have experienced so much loss.
03:32But I think that when it really gutted me is my grandmother died in May of 2021.
03:36And then my father unexpectedly died in October of 2021.
03:40So on top of losing aunts and uncles and grandparents, like losing a parent is something that really does shake your core.
03:47And when I would talk about it, I'm going to be honest, I would feel weird.
03:51I would feel weird.
03:52And there will be times where it was like, I'm with my friends.
03:55I specifically remember getting ready to go to a Wale concert and somebody said something.
03:59And then I ended up telling a really long story about G and who's my dad.
04:03And it made me feel weird.
04:04My friends looked at me like, because they couldn't experience it.
04:07They couldn't connect to it.
04:08And I think that being Black women, we often struggle with sharing how we feel, especially if it's rooted in vulnerability, rooted in sadness, rooted in us not being strong and dominant and just always on point.
04:23So that's why I started Black Girls Who've Lost, because I needed community.
04:26I needed people who understood how I would feel.
04:29And selfishly, that's why I started it.
04:32But overall, it started to be something that I didn't even realize some of my friends, distant friends, homegirls of homegirls, who I say like, hey, that's my girl.
04:41I didn't know that when we got in an intimate setting that they would share things, feel things, cry, do these things.
04:48So I was like, oh, we all really need this.
04:50And it's at the blessing of someone like Phil Lewis, who I'm sure we all see on social media.
04:55I have a wonderful personal connection with Phil, just both of us being Greek, both of us crossing at the same time, around the same time, that he just haphazardly shared it.
05:05This is my home, girl.
05:06I just want to share something that blew up.
05:08And it created a larger community where people were so willing to help me, so willing to communicate.
05:14Now, at first, I got a little overwhelmed.
05:16Right, obviously.
05:17I'm talking about my daddy.
05:18I'm talking about my grandparents.
05:20I'm, okay, wait, this is too much.
05:22And then, so that's kind of where I feel like it kind of stutter steps.
05:25But I'm so thankful that people just still love the idea, still want to help.
05:30And now, in 2026, I'm so excited to announce I have a board now.
05:34So we're going to be applying for a 501c3 in the start of the year.
05:38I know.
05:38I'm so excited.
05:39I have women who have supported black girls who've lost, who have also experienced grief in many ways.
05:46Because I just don't want it to feel like it's only because you've lost a loved one.
05:50Grief is so big and large.
05:52A lot of us lost our jobs this year.
05:54A lot of us lost friends.
05:56A lot of us lost opportunities.
05:58Or just the grief you feel when you move to another place.
06:02My best friend lives in Memphis.
06:03She's been there for 10 years.
06:04And she still is like, I feel weird sometimes.
06:06And it's hard to connect because I don't want to be in Detroit.
06:09But I also love being here.
06:11But I also feel grief of leaving my family behind or exploring new opportunities.
06:15So grief can have good and bad.
06:16It's like levels of the universe and how we all feel.
06:21So I'm excited about black girls who've lost.
06:23I'm excited that I was able to put on so much programming, whether it was through experiencing.
06:28Like, I love Dia de los Muertos.
06:30I am Mexican-American, but I'm still a black girl.
06:32Nobody's black.
06:33So just combining all of those together and bringing people into my own culture and having a shadow box day and doing programming with Detroit Riverfront Conservatory.
06:42We'll be outside in the winter.
06:44I know we get the winter blues and we don't want to be outside.
06:47But it's something about getting those endorphins and getting around people who can understand how you're feeling.
06:52I might bust out and cry because I'm walking.
06:54But I miss it.
06:55And I want to be outside.
06:56So I'm just so excited for, again, like I said, we're starting at 501c3.
07:00501c3, so I can get some grants, you know, we can do some real programming.
07:03And that we just can continue to be really strong in a new year.
07:06It's something that I feel like is needed and just beyond just a little post.
07:10Even those little posts make people feel so passionate.
07:14I threw up something for Thanksgiving because I was feeling it.
07:17I'm like, maybe I'm going to.
07:18And it's people like, I needed this.
07:20I'm by myself this Thanksgiving.
07:21And I forget that it's so many people who, even though it might not be fresh for me, it's fresh for other people or it's triggering for other people.
07:30So I'm excited to see where she grows.
07:32She's my baby.
07:33And I'm very passionate about Black Girls Who Lost because, like I said, it's hard to take off your superwoman cape.
07:41But it feels good to be around and do it around women who also are like, I'm going to show you a little vulnerability.
07:47So it makes it feel less scary.
07:48And I loved how you were able, first of all, thank you.
07:52Yes, absolutely.
07:52But I loved how you were able to explain that grief isn't linear.
07:57And I think that's a lot of the things that, personally, I've been learning in 2025 myself.
08:03Not only have I obviously lost people just in my life through passing, but also moving here.
08:09I'm originally from D.C.
08:10So moving away from family while trying to be a part of your dream is such a weird juxtaposition because you know that you're supposed to be here.
08:18But at the same time, you're missing the pillars and the foundation that you had.
08:23And you don't realize how altering it can be until something triggers that moment.
08:30And you never know.
08:31And I love having friends and community that even in those times, I won't say weakness, but in those times of vulnerability, they aren't taking it in a different light.
08:42Because I know sometimes grief can be in an aggressive form if it comes out in a different way.
08:47So I'm glad that you've created a space where people can just be authentically real and not feel weird, as you say, explaining it.
08:57Because it's a common thing.
08:59We all go through it.
09:00So why do we make it such a...
09:02Because we don't want to burden people, especially being black women.
09:05We don't want to burden people with our problems.
09:07We're supposed to be the people who fix and solve our problems.
09:10And why would I feel...
09:12You know, we're trying to hide and mask how we feel because, unfortunately, vulnerability is not a strength of ours that should be powered.
09:21It's sometimes used, again, as a weakness.
09:23And even using the word weakness.
09:25Weakness is so great.
09:26Yeah.
09:26Because you can grow.
09:27It's like you start somewhere and you go somewhere else.
09:30So I am weak in this area, but I won't always be.
09:34Or even if I am, I should have that idea that I can be a multifaceted person where I'm not great at everything.
09:41Some things I am weak in.
09:43So maybe I'm weak in how I feel in sharing with others.
09:47But that's okay because I can grow to be a better sharer.
09:49I can grow to feel more comfortable.
09:51And the biggest thing is just trying.
09:53So for me, I always felt like, okay, I feel really strange.
09:57I don't feel like the same person.
09:58But grief makes you feel like that.
10:00That's life position.
10:01And I feel like sometimes we don't share the things that aren't soft and warm and bubbly and exciting because it's not exciting to watch people not feel good.
10:10But it's a part of life and it's a human experience that I think that we all share, regardless of color or regardless of gender expression.
10:19But isn't it so great to be around black women when you are a black girl?
10:22Because we just get it in a different sense.
10:24It's like ingrained in our DNA to just understand.
10:27And I feel like you've kind of already talked on this, but I wanted to ask, what has impacted you as you have watched women participate in this?
10:36What has changed for you as a leader of this, but also as Khadijah?
10:41Like what has changed for you as you've grown?
10:44I don't want to say the acronym wrong.
10:46B-G-W-L.
10:47There we go.
10:47There we go.
10:48I don't use it a lot either, but it's cool to shorten it.
10:51But I think for me, what made me feel is like initially, to be honest, you have to be honest.
10:59You started selfishly, right?
11:00You started because you don't want to feel uncomfortable or I just feel like there has to be someone who feels like me.
11:05And I think that it's a reward to know that there are people who are just like me, women who I can connect to.
11:12And I think the greatest thing is connecting to people who I didn't expect to.
11:16You're a new connection that I'm really excited about.
11:19Just meeting people who we share this same shared experience.
11:23And isn't it so great to have someone side by side to you to kind of understand or kind of get it out there?
11:29I meet with my friend T.
11:30She's a wonderful DJ.
11:31And she just sees me and says, keep going.
11:33Because she lost her mom.
11:34Love T.
11:34And with T losing her mom and I motivate her, like, girl, get that podcast back going.
11:39So it's like we connect on one thing, but then we're able to share and grow our connection in other ways.
11:43Because it's like, I've heard you at your most vulnerable spot.
11:47Let me support you in your shining spots, too.
11:49So that's the biggest thing is I'm a big community person.
11:53I think you can get that vibe from me.
11:55And I'm not to absorb it.
11:57But it's, you know, being an extrovert, you tend to love to meet people.
12:00I do.
12:01I love to hear people's experiences.
12:03So that's the greatest thing is building community and not just for myself.
12:06I've seen other girls hang out.
12:08I've seen other people go new places.
12:10There are sometimes people I'm there.
12:12I had an event at Hatch Art Studios.
12:14There are people who have never been to Hamtraming in that area.
12:17I've never been to an art gallery.
12:19I've never been to this place.
12:20And they were able to not only enjoy our event, but enjoy art in another space.
12:25Oh, let me talk to this artist.
12:27Let me see what they have going on.
12:28So I love to build community, but see other people stretch that arm wide.
12:33So that's my biggest joy.
12:35And that always funds and fuels Khadijah as well.
12:39Like, I love being a person to connect other people.
12:41I think that the world is lonely enough.
12:44Right.
12:45So why not share?
12:46I'm also an only child.
12:47So I'm...
12:47Same girl.
12:48Okay, yes.
12:49We were in kin.
12:51You know, some only children are like, I want to be by myself.
12:53And I do have those moments, but I feel like because the way I was raised, unfortunately,
12:58my parents weren't able to step in in other ways.
13:01But there were other people who filled their spot when they couldn't.
13:04So when my grandmother passed, unfortunately, she was my primary caretaker, raiser.
13:10And there were other people randomly that filled the spot.
13:13I always give reverence to this woman.
13:15Her name is Miss Sabrina.
13:16She is my dad's best friend, little brother, ex-wife.
13:21And she raised me in a fundamental point in my life when my grandmother had passed,
13:26but I'm going into preteenhood and I needed a woman to step up.
13:30How great is that story?
13:31And that's what always what I want to share with others is like blood doesn't always make
13:35us the closest, but community, connection, those are things that I love to embrace.
13:39And I love that you shared that because it's little pockets that make a lot of sense of
13:44how you are made up.
13:45And I think how I've always brought you as a title in my head was a community facilitator.
13:51Oh, thank you.
13:52Because it feels like you just, you're able to bring multiple people together.
13:56Because not only do you do that with black girls who have lost, but you also do it with
14:01sports too.
14:01Because you also do girls in sports because what doesn't Khadisha do?
14:05Literally, you know, I like to say to myself, I've always been a busybody.
14:08As a kid, I was a busybody.
14:10Sit down, be quiet.
14:11You know how you get on the grade.
14:12She's a great student, but she distracts others.
14:14That was me.
14:15So now I like to embrace others.
14:17So girls in sports is something I am so passionate about.
14:20I'm a sports girl.
14:22I love all sports.
14:23Unfortunately, I'm not the biggest Detroit sports fan.
14:26You know?
14:27Oh my God.
14:27You're going to get everybody upset.
14:29Don't hate me, y'all.
14:30Like, I'm a big Celtics fan.
14:31Everybody knows that about me.
14:32Like, I believe the green, man.
14:34I know.
14:35I see the side eye.
14:36I know we're not doing that hot.
14:38We're coming off some injuries.
14:40But I'm a big sports fan.
14:41I love the St. Louis Cardinals.
14:44I like the Tigers, too.
14:45And I know we don't do good either.
14:47I'm aware.
14:48You know?
14:48I still am a Lions fan at heart.
14:50So I got that going.
14:51Please love me, y'all.
14:53But again, I'm a sport.
14:54I watch all sports.
14:55Like, there's not a sport that I don't like.
14:57I like F1.
14:58I like NASCAR.
14:59I'm just getting into F1.
15:00Listen, it's coming.
15:02And we have to show up.
15:03Because I want people to know, like, women, all women love sports.
15:06But especially women of color.
15:08Yeah.
15:08Like, it's good to see our faces in those arenas.
15:11And we can go as baddies.
15:13We can also go as, like, a baddies event.
15:16But we can also go as women who are truly, like, I know about the sport.
15:19Locked in.
15:19And that's how I am.
15:20And I was raised like that because I'm a daddy's girl.
15:23And my dad, I'm the youngest of his little flock.
15:27And because I spent the most time with him, he was like,
15:30you're going to have to watch basketball film.
15:32You're going to have to watch these old Muhammad Ali fights.
15:35I know that's right.
15:35You're going to have to watch whatever I'm watching if you want to be a part.
15:39So that's kind of where my love organically grew from.
15:42And I knew that there were other women who wanted to be a part of that.
15:45In addition to women are just dominating sports.
15:48Okay.
15:49Come on now.
15:49We got our Simone Biles.
15:50We, of course, have this Venus and Serena.
15:55Asia Wilson.
15:56Like, Coco.
15:57It's so many names that we can continue.
15:58And I said, we have to do something to bring us together.
16:01Maybe we can't play it.
16:03Maybe we can't do that.
16:04There are a lot of events that or sports groups that they like for you to play the sport.
16:09I want to watch the sport.
16:11I want to be the sport.
16:12I want to see it.
16:13I want to bet on it.
16:14I want to do all the things that boys can do.
16:16Because boys who watch sports are not always the best at playing sports.
16:19They can't dribble a ball.
16:21They can't run up and down the court without getting windy.
16:22And sometimes they don't even know the stats to back it up.
16:25Nothing outside of don't break my parlay.
16:27Okay.
16:28I want us girls to be able to do that, too.
16:30So that's where girls in sports came from.
16:32It started with, I work really, really closely with Connect With Low, Lauren McGreer.
16:38And we work together on other things.
16:41And I said, Lauren, we got to tap into sports.
16:43And we were so thankful to have a connection with Hollywood Detroit.
16:47We've had other connections with Parlay Detroit.
16:50We've had them at so many watch parties, so many events.
16:54We're going to get into actually going again because we've got to see the Clarissa Shields fight.
16:58We've got to go to the Red Wings games.
17:00We've got to do a lot of things.
17:01Let me walk in.
17:01Hold on now.
17:02Okay, you know, tap in.
17:02Because I haven't seen a Lions game yet, and it's sending me.
17:06Listen, well, you know, we working up there because, you know, Lions tickets are not cheap.
17:11I haven't seen any sports here.
17:13And as a sports girl...
17:14Wait, you haven't been to the Pistons game with the ice cam?
17:18Oh, yeah.
17:19I haven't done anything, Khadijah.
17:21Get me right.
17:21We have to lock in.
17:22We have to lock in because you have to go to the Pistons game.
17:25We're one of the only teams that has an ice cam because, you know, Detroiters are going to have their jewelry on.
17:30Got our glasses on, our furs on.
17:31It is a style event.
17:34But also, I love the Pistons.
17:36I love what Tiana is doing.
17:39She's...
17:40I believe she works in their marketing department.
17:41But regardless of what she does, she is amazing at it.
17:44Tiana's killing it.
17:44I mean, and she does a really good job of...
17:47She supports girls in sports as well.
17:49Unfortunately, we always off schedule, but we're going to get her in.
17:51But I just love seeing us in those positions.
17:54Look at her.
17:55She's a woman working in sports.
17:57And she also just started a series where, like, she's helping people learn how to get into the sports industry.
18:03And as young as she...
18:03I consider her young.
18:05As young as she is, you're able to say, look at how you can transition your major.
18:09Look at how you can transition your world experiences because there are women who need to be in these areas as well.
18:15So, I love girls in sports.
18:17Essentially, we're a group that connects women who want to watch all different types of sports, love sports, talk about sports.
18:23Because sometimes a man can make you feel like you don't know what you're talking about.
18:25Yeah.
18:26I get that a lot on social media.
18:27I'll talk about sports.
18:28I might be like, but this is always...
18:31The devil don't need no more advocates, okay?
18:33Okay.
18:34So, you can talk about sports.
18:36You can connect about sports.
18:37We have a fantasy league going right now.
18:39How you doing?
18:42All right.
18:42All right.
18:43That's fine.
18:43That's fine.
18:44I researched.
18:46I had my list when we connected.
18:49And I picked my players.
18:50Lauren said, Kanija, I really don't know, but I want to participate because, you know, we're a duo in this.
18:56She was in the top spot and she auto-picked me.
19:00I'm working so hard trying to pick these people.
19:02And I am at the bottom.
19:04The veryest of bottoms.
19:05I have been eliminated from the league.
19:07So, shout out to Che.
19:08Shout out to Jackie.
19:09They are our leading women in the fantasy league.
19:12They don't even know it yet, but I have a one-of-a-kind award that is going to be given to them at the end with a nice little gift basket of gear that they don't even know about.
19:22But they are going to get a championship trophy for the fantasy league.
19:26Kanija, you are really killing it.
19:27I tried.
19:28You know, I tried.
19:29The girls are ready.
19:30So, yes.
19:31I'm so excited for girls in sports.
19:32We're on a little bit of hiatus.
19:33Listen, Lauren is a woman who dominates in her industry.
19:37She's one of the only black women, women in general, that you'll see in events.
19:42And L Club is packed.
19:44They have an event every weekend.
19:45Every single day.
19:46Every other day.
19:47Yeah.
19:47So, between her being burnt out, I'm being burnt out, and it's cold, we said it's a little hiatus.
19:52Yeah, yeah.
19:52But you guys will see us again.
19:54We're going to start picking up with hockey.
19:57And then, of course, we're going to do something for Super Bowl.
20:00Obviously.
20:01Yeah.
20:01Because come on now.
20:02I mean, even if I'm just there for the baby shower, meatballs, a little spaghetti and chicken.
20:07As long as I hear a football whistle, we're good.
20:10But Nito on the stage, we're going to do something for Super Bowl.
20:15So, we're super excited to get back to it, but it's cold.
20:17Okay.
20:18And we did something for the Pistons home opener, and we were able to give, like, we told the girls,
20:23hey, get an appetizer on us, just follow us at Parlay.
20:26So, super exciting to just kind of, again, continue to carve out spaces where they think women don't belong.
20:31Right.
20:32And we belong there, and we're going to dominate it every time.
20:34I think one of the things also that I want you to hit on really quickly is your ability to formulate ideas
20:42and figure out how people can, like, integrate themselves into it.
20:46I want to discuss that.
20:48Like, how do you go about creating moments like this?
20:52Or do they just pop into your head?
20:54The neurosis, like, they just be firing off.
20:56I really do think that because I'm a person who I'm not driven by clicks, I'm not driven by, like, likes and all of that.
21:05My sole purpose is rooted in authenticity.
21:08Yeah.
21:09So, I think because I'm doing things that feel authentic to me, it just is a space that is like, oh, yeah, that makes sense.
21:15Because it's authentic to who I am.
21:16And I think that that's the easiest part of why I can create community is why I can see things very clearly.
21:22Again, I'm a program manager at heart.
21:24I'm a project manager in my day.
21:26Career field.
21:27So, my mind has always worked like that.
21:29So, I think that I'm able to take a concept.
21:31And that's what I used to do before I even started to do my own independent things.
21:35I used to be a project manager for a lot of different companies, brands here in the city of Detroit.
21:39So, I worked with the Tony Jones.
21:41I've worked with so many different nonprofits.
21:44I worked with the Bee Agency.
21:45So, shout out to Bee Brown.
21:46She just killed it on Mary's campaign.
21:48And she did.
21:50That's one of my closest friends.
21:51You're tapped into everybody.
21:53Listen, you got to.
21:55You know what I'm saying?
21:55But that is.
21:56She's one of my closest friends.
21:57She's coming with me on my Arizona trip.
21:59Her and Asia.
22:00So, but having people around that to push you.
22:05And when I say Bee has pushed me in so many rooms and forced me.
22:08She said, you have this gift.
22:09You have to use it.
22:10And then she said, now you have to use it independently.
22:12You're able to do it for all these other brands.
22:14And I still do it for some people.
22:15I used to be like, Boss Brandon was a thing.
22:18It used to be a whole project management consulting boutique.
22:21And I just kind of was like, I have to start pushing my own things, though.
22:25Because only you can see it with the foresight.
22:27You can give people the best ideas.
22:28But sometimes their want isn't there.
22:31Yeah.
22:31So, you just watching your ideas just float on the ground.
22:33Right, right.
22:34And it kind of can kill the spirit.
22:35So, that's where I've been able to motivate myself.
22:38And I'm a really good person of creating this idea.
22:42Systematically trying to break it down.
22:43And how does it make sense?
22:44But it's always authentic to me.
22:46I love sports.
22:46So, that's why it's easy for me to talk about it.
22:48I am a girl who've lost a lot, unfortunately.
22:50But I've gained it so many other ways.
22:52So, I'm able to talk about what that space feels like.
22:55And the dichotomy of both losing and winning at the same time.
22:58So, everything I do is really authentic to me.
23:01So, that's why it's easy to do.
23:02I love that.
23:03Okay.
23:04Obviously, we have to talk about your award that you just got, Miss Ma'am.
23:072025 Alumni Service Award from GVSU.
23:11I know that's right.
23:11I love my university.
23:12Yes.
23:13So, obviously, recognition is not the biggest thing that we're focused on.
23:16But how does it feel knowing that all of the work that you're doing is obviously being noticed?
23:22I love Grand Valley.
23:23I always say, what smart 18-year-old me chose to go to Grand Valley?
23:28I had a family health scare, so I wasn't actually going to go to college.
23:31And I initially had everything set up for me to go to Michigan State.
23:35I let it all fall down because my roommates, I had two backup roommates.
23:39They both got pregnant and decided not to go.
23:41Wow.
23:41Then I had a family emergency incident that took over my whole senior year.
23:45So, I was like, I don't really think, maybe I'm going to have to go to community.
23:47I don't know.
23:48My dad got better.
23:50He was actually sick for a long time before he passed a couple years later.
23:53But he was like, you got to go to Grand Valley.
23:55You love the program.
23:56Just go.
23:56Grand Valley worked out everything for me.
23:58They gave me back my Thompson Scholarship.
24:00They gave me full tuition.
24:02They found a family who was additionally able to support me and give me another scholarship.
24:07They worked with me to make sure that my family contribution was too high.
24:13They made sure that all my loans as a freshman would still be subsidized loans instead of unsub.
24:18Don't know how they did it.
24:19Wow.
24:19And then when I got there, I was a part of the Thompson Family Scholarship program.
24:24And I was also a part of a lot of other programs.
24:26I worked at Grand Valley Financial Aid.
24:28I worked at Admissions.
24:29I worked at the Student Center.
24:30I was a part of so many organizations.
24:32I got the opportunity to pledge Alpha Kappa Alpha.
24:35So, I did a lot of things there and made my mark there and made the most of it while I was there.
24:40So, when I came back, I said, I'll do anything for Grand Valley.
24:43So, anytime they call, I literally say it all the time.
24:45I come running, whatever you guys need, whether it's alumni support, whether it's being a student who represents the Thompson Family Scholarship or the U Prep Family alumni.
24:55I'm there because I want students to see people like myself.
24:59Being at a Division II school, you might see, oh, it's smaller.
25:01You're not going to get anything.
25:03It worked for me.
25:04It cultivated me.
25:05It made me the woman that I am today.
25:06So, that impactfulness of service started at Grand Valley.
25:10I was a part of a national service fraternity.
25:12I did everything for MLK Day.
25:14I did other service events.
25:16Anytime they said do service, I was like, yeah, of course, I'll do it.
25:19I'll be there.
25:21I was a service chair for our chapter.
25:22So, I was like, yeah, I'm going to service.
25:24I got it.
25:25So, that sprinkled in with anytime I needed help with here in the city of Detroit, Grand Valley with us having a hub downtown.
25:33They have encouraged me to promote that place and encouraged me to use it when I can.
25:39And they've also encouraged a lot of students to say Grand Valley has a home here in Detroit.
25:44And we're still building that as a university.
25:46And I'm still so excited to see how we'll take over the southeast region.
25:50We have, you know, we have Grand Rapids.
25:52We have our smaller, the Muskegans, Bend Harbors, the Kalamazoo.
25:57We have that, but I want us to see and grow a bigger community here in Detroit outside of the alumni who move here.
26:02So, that's been my biggest motivation.
26:04So, for them to see me and see the service that I do and everything that I've been able to accomplish so far and support me,
26:12I was like, thank you, Grand Valley, because I really do want to continue to highlight, even if it's not just my own service efforts,
26:18if you've watched the video that they did it so good.
26:20Yes, they did.
26:21They did a highlight on you, girl.
26:23Okay, but they highlighted the Detroit Phoenix Center, which is ran by Ms. Courtney.
26:28And happy birthday to Ms. Courtney.
26:29But she always lets me come in and serve with the students.
26:33She always lets me find community there with her organization and what she does,
26:38because when I did hashtag Lunchbag Detroit, what we served was the homeless community and those who are unhoused,
26:44but also those who have housing insecurity.
26:46So, maybe you are a person, you have a house today with an uncle, but by next week, your uncle don't have a house, so neither do you.
26:53So, those are the type of people that I wanted to branch out to, and Courtney was one of those people who supported me.
26:58So, I was so happy to highlight her and her organization and everything that she does and continue to build community there.
27:04So, I have a very big passion for Detroiters getting access.
27:08I think that that is one of the limitations, unfortunately, that we always see.
27:12And it's not just driven by economics, it's driven by design, with the initial redlining that we had in the state.
27:18Being a big black community, we're one of the largest black cities in America.
27:25I know we're fighting with Memphis for that number one spot, but by population, to be such a black city, we should do more for one another.
27:32And I think that that is how community was intended.
27:34We have so many civil rights leaders that were established here in the city of Detroit, and those who are from the city of Detroit.
27:41And we have so many religious organizations, and it's still so much that we can do.
27:46So, that's my biggest thing, and I was glad to get the service award, but I'm more excited to see how Grand Valley can continue to support me in those efforts,
27:54and how I can continue to support the city, because that's my biggest thing.
27:58I'm an altruist by heart, so I'm very excited to get awards, but I'm more excited to see, now that I have this award, does that mean you'll give me some more money?
28:06Does that mean you'll give me some more opportunities?
28:08And those types of things.
28:10So, I'm excited to say Grand Valley does show up.
28:13That's good to know, because a lot of schools don't.
28:15They don't.
28:15And it might just be, and I try to say it's what you make it, and how you share.
28:20Nobody knows you're struggling if you don't share.
28:22Nobody knows you need these types of things if you don't ask.
28:24The worst thing somebody can tell me is no.
28:27I'm not worried about a no.
28:28I'm worried about if I never open my mouth and say, I need help.
28:32Can y'all give me some money?
28:33Or, I need help.
28:33I need a space.
28:34Because my thing is, it's not always about dollars and cents.
28:37Yeah.
28:38There are so many of us who feel ashamed to give because we don't have much.
28:42We all are just working with what we have, so that's why I also started Grain, which I'm super excited about,
28:47because it's about what you have at home.
28:50Time.
28:51You have community.
28:52You have things that you're wasting.
28:54There are so many ways that I'm excited to grow Grain.
28:57We're going to start working with Detroit Rescue Mission, which I worked with them, with hashtag lunch bags.
29:02So, people always ask, why did hashtag stop?
29:05Girl, people wasn't eating the lunches.
29:07The lunches were going thrown away.
29:09The lunches were going in the trash.
29:11The people did not want it.
29:14The money I was getting, I also had to contribute to a larger foundation that ran hashtag in different cities.
29:20So, you're giving me $5.
29:22I might have to give them $1, because that's just how it works.
29:26And then, unfortunately, because it's an organization that has different city branches, with there not being a city initiative here, there is no 501c3.
29:36I could not get tax write-offs.
29:39I could not get donations from certain organizations.
29:42There are so many limitations with being a branch off and how the foundation decided to run their city chapters.
29:47And that's okay.
29:48That just means we have to service Detroiters in another way.
29:51Right.
29:51So, if the lunches are going in the trash, because there's no communication between our organization, our city chapter, and those other organizations that we're serving, and people don't want a lunch.
30:02Right.
30:03Just because you're homeless don't mean you don't have choices.
30:05Right.
30:05And that's one thing that a lot of people have shown me in other service opportunities.
30:09I don't want a cold lunch in December.
30:11So, I'm going to throw it away.
30:12I take the water, though.
30:13I take a heating, a heat thing.
30:16A little hand warmer.
30:17Yeah.
30:17Yeah, I take that, but I don't want a cold sandwich that you just threw it together.
30:21Okay, I respect that.
30:22You know what I'm saying?
30:22So, if it doesn't, it no longer serves Detroiters, how can we serve Detroiters?
30:27And then if you look at the grand scheme of things, what spaces are we going to use?
30:30Philadelphia Detroit has transitioned to doing other things in that avenue.
30:33Leadership change there.
30:35We have foundational issues, foundation issues that I was struggling with.
30:38Then I can't get no money, y'all.
30:40I can't apply for these grants y'all telling me about.
30:43I'm aware.
30:43So, now when you start to understand those different hurdles that I'm facing, why not
30:49stop doing something that someone else runs and start doing something that I run that services
30:54my people?
30:55Yeah.
30:55Because the needs in Chicago are not the needs in New York, are not the needs in Detroit,
31:00are not the needs in LA.
31:01Our homeless populations all look different.
31:04If you've seen anything since the draft, you'll start to say it's no more homeless people.
31:08Yeah, it is.
31:08It's absolutely.
31:09They have been moved from downtown and are very dangerous spaces.
31:13They're in our underpasses now.
31:15They're in other, they're in these homes that are abandoned.
31:19They're hurting themselves and hurting each other because we're not able to give them
31:23access to stay safe.
31:24So, while we're seeing advancements in those areas, I'm so excited to see what Miss Mary
31:27does.
31:28I'm so excited for her because she has a division, a transitional team that is working
31:34in housing and securities.
31:35So, if that opportunity presents itself wonderful, if it doesn't, they're still going to get served
31:40by me.
31:40Right.
31:40I know that's right, girl.
31:42At the end of the day, it's still going to be service done.
31:45Yeah, it's still going to happen.
31:46And I think that that's the most important.
31:47We can start with whole hearts.
31:49Yeah.
31:50And I love the holiday season, but I hate the holiday season.
31:53Because they only think that this is the time when it's constant.
31:57There's a constant need.
31:58So, now, that's why Detroit Rescue Mission said, can we start in January?
32:02Because there's an influx of people who want to serve.
32:04Because you feel it.
32:05You feel the warm and fuzzies of the holiday.
32:07You're with your family.
32:08You see all the things you're getting, I want to give back.
32:11People need clothes in January.
32:12Yep.
32:12People need clothes in July.
32:14People need clothes in August.
32:15People need food in December.
32:17People need food in February.
32:19Right.
32:19So, there's never the need doesn't lack.
32:21So, that's always what I want us to see.
32:23And that's what Grain is going to do is we're going to create access for Detroiters through
32:27sustainability efforts.
32:29You got clothes at home, don't you?
32:30You want to throw them away?
32:31No, we're going to create closets.
32:33You got food at home.
32:34You're not using, you're wasting your food.
32:37We all don't, but we don't buy canned goods anymore.
32:40Yeah.
32:40So, how can we figure out whether it's through restaurant tours, whether it's through, I had
32:44a really good relationship with Randazzo where they'll give me really good fruit for a discounted
32:49price because it's going bad.
32:51If I feed y'all today, it's good today.
32:53That's all that matters.
32:54So, we're not doing less than.
32:56We're doing all we can because I think that that's where we're shifting.
32:59We see how the government has let us down, us as people, us as tax citizens.
33:04Imagine those who need help, need support.
33:06We saw how it snapped.
33:08It snapped.
33:08Yeah.
33:09Immediately.
33:10And we were all ready to give dollars, but what if we were able to give the food that
33:13we already have?
33:14So, we're not creating more of this food waste, more plastic waste because we still have to
33:18live on this earth together.
33:19So, my mind is constantly turning as community.
33:23Yeah.
33:24Khadija, you just make me eat.
33:26Yay.
33:26Like, I know we just met today, but like, I'm genuinely so proud of you.
33:30Thank you so much.
33:32Like, what you have done and what you continue to cultivate is so beautiful.
33:36And your spirit and your heart, you can just tell that you are so passionate about this.
33:41Yes.
33:41And I am praying that whatever you want to happen continues to happen for you.
33:47I have received it.
33:47That manifestation of that 501.
33:49Yeah, we received it.
33:50It's already done it.
33:51Yeah.
33:51It's already done.
33:51It's already done.
33:51It's already there.
33:52You know, we signed still delivering on all of that.
33:54Exactly.
33:54It has to happen.
33:55Yeah.
33:55Exactly.
33:56So, my last question, typically with our Detroit culture shifters, I always love to
34:01pay it forward to give flowers while they can still smell them.
34:04Me too.
34:05So, who are some people or one special person that you believe is a Detroit culture shifter?
34:10So, I'm sorry.
34:11I got to break the rules.
34:12I got to do two.
34:13Go ahead.
34:13Go ahead.
34:13Of course, I've mentioned her already, but I have to give my flowers to Lauren McGreer.
34:18Connect with Lowe.
34:19If you know anything about nightlife in the city of Detroit and events in the city of Detroit,
34:24creating music events in the city of Detroit, you know that that is a boys club and my girl
34:29is holding it down independently.
34:31You don't see a lot of general managers, even in that space, but her holding down L Club
34:35and doing such a great job.
34:37And Lauren, I know a lot of people have asked us about TXT and what's happening.
34:41Where's the events?
34:42Where's the parties?
34:43Lauren is clicking something even greater.
34:45And I can't wait to see.
34:46And y'all know I'm going to be a part.
34:47That's my girl.
34:47And we work together.
34:49And of course, she's a great mommy.
34:51She's a wonderful mommy.
34:52And if you're into lifestyle content, Lauren has her connect with Lowe Pages.
34:56And I would just say to follow her.
34:59And then, of course, Toria Tucker.
35:00She's also in the sports place.
35:02She recently started Toria Tucker Family Sports Foundation.
35:07And she also does a lot of in the sports arena as a woman in that field.
35:12So she was in coaching.
35:13She coached a renaissance team, renaissance boys basketball team.
35:17She does a lot in post-secondary athleticism.
35:20So she was, like, an assistant athletic director at Wayne State.
35:23She worked at Grand Valley.
35:24She's done so much in that field.
35:26And now she's starting to get into her own events and putting on.
35:29She recently did a tournament of post-secondary school.
35:33So she had Grand Valley.
35:34She had Eastern.
35:34She had Wayne State.
35:35And it was a really big event.
35:38And she's so tiny like us.
35:39Just a four-foot-nothing woman.
35:41And, of course, she's a mommy and a superwoman.
35:43So her baby just celebrated one year old last weekend.
35:47So she's a woman dominating in that sports field.
35:50And not only supporting students, student athletes, but also supporting women who want to put on events,
35:56who want to do tournaments, who want to be coaches, athletic directors in that area of professionalism,
36:02that is Toria Tucker.
36:03So those are my two.
36:05Including all the other fabulous people that you mentioned.
36:07I mean, I could go on and on about my B.
36:09I could go on and on about Miss Mary.
36:11I could go on and on about Miss Courtney.
36:12I am a woman who I think that the more we connect with together, the greater we can do.
36:18I know some fabulous men as well.
36:20I see you already have Barry.
36:21Yes.
36:22So it's so many.
36:24Detroit is a...
36:25You'll get a million of us.
36:27You know what I'm saying?
36:28There are so many of us are just trying.
36:30And so I'm so excited to see that our city is shifting.
36:35I think that we used to be a very entrepreneurial-driven city where a lot of people were doing businesses
36:40and pop-ups and selling things.
36:43And now I see a lot of us moving into spaces where people don't think that we belong,
36:48especially being young, black, millennial people.
36:50But we're the new professionals, and I'm excited to see that we're taking over space.
36:54Look at you, doing the radio.
36:56You know.
36:56You know, doing these things.
36:58You know.
36:58So welcome.
37:01Welcome.
37:01And I'm so excited to see what you do next.
37:03And I'm excited to however I can be of service, however the show can be of service, you let
37:08us know.
37:09I will, yes.
37:10But you're going to be there.
37:11We're going to have, you know, serving it up.
37:13Let me know.
37:14Yes.
37:14Thank you so much.
37:15Let them know where they can follow you and all of your platforms.
37:18Oh, wow.
37:19So I am Be The Boss on all social media.
37:22You can find me everywhere.
37:23You know, I like to yap.
37:24And then, of course, Black Girls Who've Lost on Instagram, Facebook, Grant Giving, Instagram,
37:30Facebook.
37:31You know, it's so many of us.
37:32It's, of course, girls in sports.
37:35Y'all have to follow.
37:35We do some really good TikTok content, too.
37:38So if you love TikTok like we do, follow us there.
37:40And, of course, on Instagram.
37:41And I'm so excited to just see how the socials grow.
37:44And, you know, you'll see me partnering with a lot of people.
37:46So if you don't follow us, you'll see it.
37:48Thank you so much, Khadija.