Today we’d like to take a moment to applaud the parents who despite many challenges, did they best they could and did right by their kids. We asked folks to share stories of what they feel their parents got right and have shared highlights below.

Jereme Schumacher

When asked about the most influential factors that have affected my life and career, the first thing I always say is my mom. For as long as I could remember, my mom instilled the importance of hard work and compassion in all that she did. But it wasn’t through her words, it was through her actions. Being a registered nurse, my mom would work long hours throughout the week and frequently be called into work on the weekends. As a kid, Read more>>

Wande Okunoren-Meadows

I am the eldest of three siblings born from two Nigerian parents. They were disciplined and no nonsense. They always taught us that they would be there for us, but not to expect that anything would be given to us. We were expected to do our chores and more, Monday- Sunday, they ignored the part in the Bible that said Sunday shall be a day of rest, lol. Read more>>

Amber Mikesell

I love everything about this question. I always say that my parents are my foundation. Growing up I had the honor of observing two amazing individuals doing their best to be examples to three young children, even though they were young parents themselves. My father taught me the value of a hard day’s work while my mother taught me the importance of family. And as important as those lessons have been in my life, the greater lesson I took from both of them was that deep, connected love isn’t perfect. Read more>>

Bri Gehrman

My parents from as early as I could remember always provided me with the space and the push to try something on my own first. They wanted me to try things, multiple ways before I would ask for someone to assist. They would also offer advice within those multiple ways of trying before they would step in to help. Read more>>

Jason Franklin

Showing me what a strong work ethic was- Growing up I watched the ups and downs of my dad’s career. He was a residential construction superintendent doing multimillion dollar high end homes. He would get laid off from time to time, usually just as he felt like things were going well with his company and then have to start looking for a new job. Read more>>

Beth Secrist

There are a lot of things I learned from my parents, but I’d say some of the most important things I learned that have impacted my life and career are that they instilled a very strong work ethic, to be a person of my word–that if I made a commitment to do something, that I followed through and did it to the best of my ability, to be honest in all my dealings and to give more than you get. These are all principles I try to live by to this day. Read more>>

Derek Floyd

The term parent is a very loose term for me. Upon my life path, I have met a lot of individuals that have impacted me and played their roles at certain times, coaches, my foster parents, and when I finally moved in with my mom. In the foster home, I can remember them always being passionate about what they do. My mom being a single parent raising four boys she would always hustle. Read more>>

Chrystal Barnes

I was raised in a single parent home with my mother and my two oldest siblings. My mother worked several odd jobs to try and make ends meet. I’ve never observed my mother complain nor did I observe her give up. Some times my mother would leave one job and go straight to the next. I can recall mom telling me baby girl to get what you want you have to put in the work. Read more>>

Alva McMillan

My mother was the oldest of six and my father was the youngest of seven. Their position in their families paved the way for them to bring two distinct vantage points to their own children. They instilled in me the traits needed to care for others and the ability to appreciate what came before me. I was immersed in music, art, dance, and academic enrichment programs. Read more>>

Tomeka Richard

What I admire about my mother and what she did right was raise myself and my siblings up in church and not only taught us, but showed us about God, Faith and living right. My mother was an extraordinary example of a strong, nurturing, faithful, God fearing and prayerful woman. My mother showed me what family is about and she was so peaceful and loving. I was raised by a phenomenal woman! Read more>>

Krystal Johnson

One of the biggest things that my mom did right was taught me to have faith in God. Having faith in God is what now leads my decisions and helped me to make this leap into pursuing content creation full-time. My mom also taught me to have confidence in myself and to believe in myself. When I was younger, my mom used to let me go after whatever it was I wanted and she helped me. When I tried and failed at playing guitar, she bought me the guitars and encouraged me. Read more>>

Eric Kleiner

My parents always made sure to have me involved in many events as a child. Some of the events were sport some were art. As time passes our bodies don’t allow us to preform at the level they once did but with art you can keep making excellent stuff your whole life. My love for art instilled in me by my parents is why I do what I do today. Read more>>

BEATRICE ATENCAH

My parents surprisingly supported my initial decision of being an artist right from the age of 6 years when I began to draw an paint whatever I see. I remember the first drawing I made of my class 1 (Grade 1) teacher, Madam Angela in her grey office wear and red moke (heels). She usually wear red heels when she is in the strict mood; usually days she used to beat us unnecessarily. Read more>>

Adam Shuty

my parents taught me self-reliance and independence. They were always there for me and gave me tons of support however, it all started with my own ability to be independent and take responsibility for the decisions that I made for myself. Read more>>

Marianne Terrell

I am one of five children, I grew up in small town, rural Texas. Hard work and dedication on a farm is just a way of life…there is no other way. There are no shortcuts. There are no cheat codes. I was raised with such a strong work ethic that it has carried me through all of my successes in life, personally and professionally. Read more>>

Andrea Gomez

In all honesty I feel like the main thing my mom has done right is raise us a single mother. She took the initiative to create a life for her and us five kids no matter the obstacles or struggles she faced. Her strength is like no other and it’s something I carry through life with me. I was raised by a strong determined woman, How could I be anything less? Read more>>

Jehan Muhammad

Both of my parents were very woke, cultured and diverse. They did a great job of exposing me to a lot of diverse culture, music, art and literature and teaching me about Black history. I really love and appreciate them for that. Even though we lived in low-income public housing in the ghetto we didn’t subscribe to and participate in many of the things that people around us did. We lived in our own world inside of our home. Read more>>

Micah (BlackBuddhaBear) Shelton

So it is very common that you hear people talk about all the mistakes that they think their parents made raising them, and they may be right, so I’m glad you’re taking this a different way because we tend to be very sensitive to the things that we don’t like. Instead of me complaining about the things that I wish my mother had taught me (that she probably didn’t even know herself) I always remembered the things that gave me a “What would Jesus do?” sort of feeling that I took from my mother. Read more>>

Justyn Fox

I feel one of the major things that my parents did right was giving me a lot of freedom as I was growing up. My mom ironically describes me as having gone through “phases of obsessions”. What she was saying is that I had periods of intense dedication to several different things as I was growing up. I was a National and State champion in Sporting clays, fell in love with archery, played multiple sports, spent as many hours a day as possible playing guitar(one day 14 hours), Read more>>

Rachel Johnson

They raised me to be disciplined and realize the truth, “you’re going to have to do what you don’t like to do”. This has carried me through many challenges and obstacles in my life. I’m grateful, during college, they encouraged me to really think about the money I was spending on education and perhaps to even go a different route. Read more>>

Elisheba Mrozik

My mother is not a person of risks or going in unprepared. She likes things that have as little risk and can guarantee the best outcomes possible- for everything. If she did not understand it, she did not like it. However, when she was told by my teachers I had artistic talent that needed to be cultivated with classes and exploration she never denied me the opportunity to go in, try something new, make mistakes and fail. Read more>>

Emily Jamea

I grew up in a small, conservative town in southeast Tennessee. Needless to say, sex ed was limited, if not nonexistent. Fortunately for me though, my parents were open and progressive. My dad was an OBGYN and sex simply wasn’t a taboo topic in my home. I grew up feeling empowered to make decisions, something that most of my peers did not. My friends soon saw me as a sex ed resource, and so I started giving sex advice long before I was officially a sex therapist. The rest is history! Read more>>

Cederick Campbell

Something my parents did right was keeping my brother and me in settings that allowed us to express ourselves creatively. Whether it was playing in our school’s orchestra or encouraging us to join the Architecture prep program, we were always pushed to express our creativity in a plethora of ways. I benefit from it as an adult because not only am I confident in my creative abilities, but I have/am familiar with the resources necessary to express my creativity. Read more>>

MoAndra Johnson, MFT

I will always say I was born with an entrepreneur sprit. The perfect balance of my mother’s relentless tenacity and my fathers entrepreneur mindset. Growing up my mother never turned my ideas down no matter how “unique” they were. I can honestly say this gave me the space to dream. From age 7-12, my cousins and I would have a lemonade stand every summer. My father would help us with “marketing ideas” and ways to expand like adding snow cones. Read more>>

Katie Edwards

I definitely had a rocky relationship with my parents at points, as we all do. I was a very strong willed kid and my parents are both very strong personalities, so of course they raised someone as such. One of the biggest lessons my dad ever taught me was to never have to rely on anyone, especially a man to provide for you. They wanted me to grow up knowing how to handle myself and my finances. Read more>>

Sonata Allison

I think something my parents did right was by being people who did things in excellent. My mom was a teacher and my dad was a pianist and they were both excellent at what they did. They were also fun loving, I remember when I was a kind, too scared to go on rollercoasters, my parents went on the hulk at six flags and I thought that was so cool. Read more>>

Sarah Keel

When I was in my active addiction, my mom allowed me to suffer consequences for my actions. She would not bail me out of jail and she would not give me money. I remember the last time I was arrested in Wilmington, NC, I called my mom at 3 am just to let her know where I was going to be for the next couple of months so that she did not worry. Read more>>

Durell Comedy

My parents were not very vocal people. Not always the most affirming but they were never negative or discouraging speakers. BUT one of the greatest memories I have and the culture of our home was whatever we were passionate about or eager to learn about, they would create a space in our lives to pursue that. Read more>>

Iesha Price

I was fortunate enough to have two sets of parents. My biological mother- Helen Holston and step father- Archie Holston Sr. raised me and my siblings Arshanese & Archie Holston Jr. My parents laid down a very solid foundation for our family structure. I could easily say that I came from a broken home; my mother had me at a very young age, born out of wedlock and was raised by my step dad. Despite those things, they did an outstanding job of working together as a team and making sure we were raised to understand important family values: Read more>>

Janice Ringstaff

My parents did many things right so it is a bit challenging to identify all of them. However, here are a few of them; though not in chronological order. My parents (mother and second dad, same as others might label him ‘step-dad’), were prayerful, planners, and to the best they could be, protectors. I, like most kids, didn’t agree with their perspectives and choices, but negotiation in their household was quite limited. Read more>>

Amanda Reyes

My parents are second generation Mexican-Americans. They both came from humble beginnings and always had to work multiple jobs or have side hustles to support their family. They’re both brilliant, kind, creative and the best kinds of people. I couldn’t be prouder of who they are and what they’ve accomplished in this challenging world. Read more>>

Killamari

This one’s really important to me, cause culturally most Asian Americans don’t have parents that support the idea of being an artist. Usually it’s a “You want to be what? No that’s stupid, you’ll never make money or be successful.” I lucked out with this because both of my parents have always been supportive of my art and the idea of me pursuing art as a profession. Being a father myself, I will always appreciate that they always 100% supported my need to be an artist, and I will be just as supportive if not more, in whatever my girls want to explore. Read more>>

Saru Bala

Growing up with immigrant parents, my whole life I was always told from all my family members and people within our community that I have to work hard and be the usual “doctor, engineer, lawyer, etc.” Read more>>

Cryss Simmons

I come from good stock. Period. I was raised by my entire family – literally. My grandparents and my mom. They all played an intricate part of me becoming the woman I am today. My grandparents were always in business – dry cleaning, car dealership, serving the community through the church and a local rec center. Read more>>

Levi Hollandsworth

My parents taught me to be fiercely independent growing up. I spent half my childhood traveling in a bus from Wyoming to Washington to Alaska and finally Jamaica. My mother home schooled my brothers and I because we where never somewhere long enough to get engrained into a school system. Her and my father taught us to be auto didactic, to give more than what is required, to walk with our heads up and not with our hands out. Read more>>

Ashley Smith

Growing up, I was surrounded by parents (Dad, Step Mom, Mom, and Step Dad) who were incredibly hard workers. 3 of them being self starting business owners. My father worked for PepsiCo as a manager from the time I was 2 years old. My Step Mother was a business owner Cosmetologist. My Mother and Step Father are business owners in the security business. I was raised with adults who believed in working hard and always reaching your goals through hard work and perseverance. Read more>>

Av Grannan

I grew up in an artistic family. My mother owns a branding studio and is an artist; my father is the Head of the Graphic Design Department at Mount St. Joseph University and a painter. My childhood was an intense visual and auditory experience. Running around my dad’s studio as he would paint, going to galleries every other weekend, and doing figure drawing with my parents and their artist friends as I would try to figure out what art was. Read more>>

Nic Navarro

Gaia Farm is rooted in family and we really couldn’t do it without each other. Myself, my Mom Tracy, Stepdad Brian, and Partner Amanda are the only employees, though our community of friends, neighbors, and supporters is ever growing. We share in all of the success together, work through every challenge together, but that’s not to say our life is all baby goats, rainbows, and fresh steaks on the grill. Patience, the value of communication, the importance of rest, are all principles we aspire towards together. Read more>>

SHAMIKA White

My Parents Ila Hodge/ Melvin Sanders and Clarence White, taught me the importance of growing up being responsible and pushing for what I WANT IN LIFE. My Parents has always worked hard putting blood sweat and tears in all they do. My Mom ensured that I HAD ALL I NEEDED GROWING UP. My Brothers and I were part of a dance group operated by Sonny Metcalfe… We were blessed to be apart of an amazing team that went around performing at some of the most prestigious places in St. Louis. Read more>>

Fred “PAID” Adams

I contemplated on answering this question.. why? Because everything that glitters ain’t Gold. Answering this was way more complicated than I expected it to be. It wouldn’t even sound right saying my parents didn’t do “no right” when it comes to my upbringing, but the Truth is, it seems like the bad always outweighed the good. So to answer this question truthfully .. Read more>>