We recently connected with Jasmine Gilliam and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Jasmine thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?
Blk + Healthy’s mission is to encourage healthier lifestyle habits by providing the resources of majority Black owned businesses, organizations and individuals that work within Health & Wellness.
It’s top priority to help the Black community to improve our Health and Wellness habits. Throughout our history, we’ve endured many challenges that have impacted our health in ways we may not realize. We can’t undue what has been done, but we can decide to make adjustments today. I believe our ancestors did their entire best so that we could have a better life. We’re in a time that is beyond or ancestor’s dreams. It’s our time to evolve our lineages and Blk + Healthy wants to encourage that in the Black community.
This requires providing a safe environment for individuals to converse, learn and take a step forward into choosing better health habits. The individuals are not only provided a safe environment, they’re able to speak with professionals that may look like them. It’s important to have Black Health and Wellness professionals because they understand various perspectives of Black people whether it’s their own experience and and / or their lived experiences with their families and friends.
Supporting Black-owned businesses, organizations and individuals is greatly important. Due to the great disparities that not only Black people have endured, but also Black-owned businesses, this mission makes it so much greater to support these businesses that work towards sustaining the wealth, health and legacy of the Black community. Black-owned businesses have been displaced for decades. More than ever, we have more Black-owned businesses rising and evolving to greater heights, and there is so much more to be done. It’s not just about supporting these Black-owned businesses, it’s also about being organized, strategic and consistent within Blk + Healthy to earn trust. This is a mind-shift movement. This is a network of support. We strive to remove barriers for the Black-community and to create opportunities for better health and healing in the same.
Jasmine, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
My name is Jasmine Gilliam from Spartanburg, South Carolina and I am the owner of Wonderfully M’de. We celebrate the beauty and culture of black women and also curate black cultural events. Blk + Healthy was created as a health initiative under the Wonderfully M’de umbrella. Lately Blk + Healthy has been the focus due to the changes that the pandemic of COVID-19 created. I saw a need from people who needed a therapist or other Health & Wellness resources. I knew of some businesses and individuals, so I would refer them as much as I could. I then decided we needed a place for people to meet these great businesses to support them as COVID-19 was hitting our communities. My motto is be the change you want to see. I’ve always been active and have been intentional about about making better health choices and developing better habits. That’s how Blk + Healthy was created. Since I was a kid I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit. At heart I am a creative and I’m here to create positive experiences. I graduated from Savannah College of Art and Design where my creative skills were evolved. There are many things that I have yet to create, but I am so proud of what has been created with Blk + Healthy this far! I’ve created an event in 2020 called Lovers and Friends that celebrates Black love and provides an environment not only for lovers, but also for individuals who are embracing their singleness and want to make new friends. It will be returning! Ultimately in creating these experiences, I know many relationships have been created and that fuels the joy and passion within me. I love to connect people to make this world a better place. If God continues to allow me to create these experiences within these spaces, I will keep going! There are so many visions God has given me and I’m doing my part to cultivate these experiences, but I’m also excited and waiting for Him to turn up when it’s the right time.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Honestly, when have I not been resilient? (I’m laughing) I thank my life experiences and specifically college for building my resilience to bounce back, up and through the journey as a creative and entrepreneur. I’ve been prepared to plan but to know unexpected occurrences will appear. I’ve literally lost final projects in my life. Talk about an awakening. The key to resilience is how you will respond when the unexpected appears. As a business owner and creative I knew people would question and as we call it today “bombastically side eye” me on my ideas. They still do till this day and that’s ok. I remind myself that God gave me the vision and it’s not my business as to how people feel about it. I will share, planning every Blk + Healthy event that I have had personal issues that were really challenging me beyond my comfort zone. I always remind myself that the vision is greater than my temporary storms. Resilience with faith is looking beyond your current situation and trusting that everything is truly working out how it’s supposed to. You have to decide what you are going to do in the situation. You have to ask yourself if what’s happening helping you progress forward (honestly probably yes, even if you don’t like it) and based on that answer, how will you move forward within your personal control. You can’t control everything around you, but you can control what you do.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
I had to unlearn that everything will not always be “my perfect.” Everything will be God’s perfect and everything will happen as it should. We can create ideas or scenarios of how we think something should go. In reality, we can set ourselves up for disappointment and miss out on the true gift of what the idea and scenario was actually supposed to be. While planning or connecting with others, I’ve learned to know that everything will be the way it was intended and that the people who are present were supposed to be there. The beauty of it is knowing that it’s all for a reason. It doesn’t have to be a major reason, and we’re not guaranteed to know all the reasons but, in some way, the occurrence will make a difference in someone’s life. I always pray in a good way.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.blknhealthy.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blknhealthy/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blknhealthy
Image Credits
Headshot Photo : SmithaLee Event Photos: Shot By Sanny