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The Gregorys have been in this business together for over thirty years. The couple was motivated to create solutions to help the black community after attending multiple meetings that resulted in little to no change. With absolutely no funding and no real guide to how to accomplish their goals, all they relied on was their faith and passion. To this day, the Gregorys raised millions in funding, helped over 50,000 families, and provided employment opportunities for over 10,000 people of color.
The National African American Male Wellness Agency (AAWellness) was established in 2004 to empower men to understand through prevention that one can live longer. The awareness campaign is the largest Wellness Initiative of its kind in Central Ohio and has expanded to Akron, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Mahoning Valley, and Toledo. The Wellness Initiative has provided thousands of residents with free health screenings across the state of Ohio, resulting in recognition from former President Obama, also having August declared as African American Male Wellness Month by former Governor John Kasich.
The Gregorys spoke to Black Enterprise about expanding Wellness Agencies and NCUS TEC. They also revealed to the publication that they plan to do a speaking tour to help small businesses evolve. “We want to pass down the lessons that we’ve learned. We want to share our successes and our failures. Each one should teach one,” John and Pamela Gregory said.
AA Wellness has expanded to six cities outside of Ohio; Atlanta, Charlotte, Indianapolis, New Orleans, Renton, and Washington D.C., making their movement nationally recognized.
The overall health and wellness of the black community are dependent on the health of black men in the community. African American men are dying from preventable diseases at ten times the rate of other men, which drives the mission of AA Wellness. They have increased community participation to over 50,000 Nationally.
Managing their own family with kids was hard enough, but the least of many challenges they had to face. John faced multiple health issues, which included going blind and battling cancer not once but twice. Despite this, he founded the National Center for Urban Solutions. His solutions have led to thousands of African American men getting jobs in public assistance and hundreds of urban youth obtaining their high school diplomas.