We recently connected with Renita Walker and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Renita , thanks for joining us today. Let’s jump back to the first dollar you earned as a creative? What can you share with us about how it happened?

In 2015 I was a second year Chaplain Resident trying to find my voice as a Black woman in a male dominated vocation. Male clergy vastly outnumber female clergy in every mainline denomination and there are still some pretty strong patriarchal ideas about women in ministry. I was also still working through the damage of my evangelical purity culture upbringing on my feelings about my body. I decided to begin making wide leg pants and full skirts out of Ankara fabric to try to hide my body, but also to spice up the traditional clergy collar I decided to wear that year. I started wearing my fashions to work and a coworker asked if I sold clothes. I hadn’t really considered it until she said it. Right after, another coworker asked if I would make her a skirt for her family reunion and she made sure to state she was willing to pay. I love that story because it was just such an organic exchange I didn’t even have to work for it. I was simply being my authentic self in that moment. There’s a scripture that says your gifts will make room for you; it’s true!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I’ve found three primary outlets for my mission to spread love and hope through faith, fashion, and the funk.

The Funky Chaplain: Building Bridges of Care and Support.
A chaplain is a trained spiritual care practitioner providing compassionate care to care seekers, usually in institutions including the military, hospitals and nursing homes, corrections facilities, and more recently corporations are adding chaplains to their staff. This year I will celebrate 13 years as a chaplain providing spiritual care to patients, families and staff including spiritual first aid, grief support, empathic listening, end of life care and support. I have also provided supportive spiritual care to care seekers in substance use and mental health recovery. During the pandemic I began to see a need for spiritual care outside of the hospital and see myself as a bridge, helping people access the care they need. I started offering individual and group sessions with a focus on practical education and applicable tools for spiritual care and support, especially grief care and support.

Redo x Renew: We have to wear clothes; might as well make em funky!
From the moment I started fashioning my work wardrobe in 2015 I knew fashion was going to be a major factor in how I presented myself as a Black woman chaplain. I finally rejected the need to hide and started making clothing that made me feel joyful. As it turns out joy is contagious! Patients and staff love to see me coming to see what funky designs I have on that day! It really brings me joy that others find my style joyful as well. I get most of my business through word of mouth from existing customers and I love the way this area of my business keeps organically growing right from the very first sale.

Ya-Ya: The Intergalactic Sojourner truth is my stage persona and her mission is, of course, to lead people to freedom and spread hope and love through the FUNK! I first started performing as Ya-Ya over 20 years ago and life pushed her to the side for a while, but working in health care through the pandemic changed me. Death was right in my face every day for three years and after a bout with covid left me with on-going debilitation I began some soul searching and took the advice of many patients at the end of their lives: Live a passionate life NOW. September 2022 I started frequenting open mic jam sessions in Atlanta, meeting and collaborating with musicians and vocalists, and honestly have the time of my life! I showed up authentically every where I went and this November I have my first headline show ever!

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

The best thing society can do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem is to support financially, especially locally. Often people will pay a bigger, sometimes foreign corporation for the same, sometimes inferior, products and services they could pay a local creative for. Instead of giving our dollars to the billionaires who are exploiting workers we can be supporting our local ecosystem and it will actually benefit everyone. Local creatives are living, shopping, spending within the community. Spending local is a having a community minded perspective about personal finances.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

In June 2022 I contracted my second case of COVID-19 and struggled to recover. I was diagnosed with several autoimmune diseases that I suspected were already lingering, but the virus threw them into overdrive. A year later I am technically a long-COVID sufferer and I’m learning to manage my career goals in light of a much lower baseline than my pre-COVID health. I work to honor my energy by communicating honestly and authentically with those around me about my limitations. I am very careful to honor my needs around rest by saying no to projects and engagements when necessary. Since my life has already shown me my gifts will make room for me I can confidently build a business model that honors both my gifts and my limitations. I may have to walk towards my goals slowly, but I refuse to stop. To be honest I very much like the view from this slower pace. Imagine that.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.renitawalker.com
• Instagram: @ya_ya_lives
• Youtube: @YaYaTheIntergalactic