The Love Month: Sheen Magazine Speaks W/ Kindred Hearts

I am the daughter of Elbert and Earline, the Granddaughter of Maynard and Willie Mae, Hubbard (wife, Alice) and Julia Mae; the great-granddaughter of William and Mary; and, Ivory and Florence. My brothers call me Black, Kim, or Sis. My nieces and nephews call me Auntie/Ma. My most treasured name to answer to is Mum or Ma, by my bonus daughter Abie and my son, Ebrima. I offer this information to pay homage to my strong foundation! All in our own right are natural servants. Stories and personal memories of the lives of my grandparents, reflections of the teachings of my parents, and the responsibility of being a positive influence to the ones coming behind me, keep me humbled and remind me of the charge I have to be accountable.

I am called to minister, and while not ordained through an established religious organization, I have known my calling to serve through the teachings of Jesus Christ, since the age of thirteen. So, it’s not strange to me to find myself in the positions I am in socially and professionally. I GET TO SERVE, the constituents of Richland County, South Carolina, through my appointment as the Executive Director for the Richland County Legislative Delegation and Veterans Affairs Office. I am humbled to lead the mission to ensure those dear hearts who accept the responsibility to raise their kin’s children, as the Co-Founder/CEO of Kindred Hearts SC. I am offered the opportunity to share my belief in lifelong learning as a member of the Adjunct Faculty at Columbia International University. Imperative to my success in these arenas is the encounters with other servants that I am honored to serve with on the South Carolina Citizen Review Midlands Panel, SC Kinship Care Advisory Council, SC DSS Kinship Care Advisory Panel, and the collaborative partnerships developed to serve throughout South Carolina and through human service national contacts.

I am a natural encourager, well-loved individual, who believes that through an active village, we can all thrive!

Sheen Magazine recently attended the 1st Annual Kindred Hearts Gala, and it was an incredible experience.

I started Kindred Hearts South Carolina, from the idea of (then) four members of the South Carolina Citizen Review Panel (SCCRP). It would be remiss of me not to mention their names; Kayla Mallett Bacote, Lee Patterson, and Dr. Brooke Ellis Wymer. We devised a service initiative to hear from caregivers and provide valuable resources and support. After realizing the need for support for families, with formal and informal placements, exceeding the scope of the CRP’s policy review and public outreach obligations; Kayla Mallett Bacote and I, sought to create a more robust and comprehensive plan to better serve kinship communities. This is why I carry the title as Co-Founder, to give credit to the intellectual property of these ladies.

Kindred Hearts isn’t just an initiative based on the idea or fact that there is a huge kinship population or that there is a need for resources to ensure the caregivers and the families are able to maintain a safe, healthy and thriving living environment. It is born from my foundation, I come from a place where kinship care was/is a part of my family structure. My older two brothers John (deceased Nov 2020) and Arthur are my paternal first cousins was raised by my grandmother Julia; with the support of my parents and our active village; uncles on my maternal and paternal sides are actually cousins; and, I can name friends who were raised by their grandparents, aunts/uncles or family friends. So, it wasn’t strange to me when life called for me to assist in the care of my two nieces and three nephews at the death of their mother. Mrs. Gillia Robinson Bazemore, is the maternal grandmother of Alexius, Laquan, Kaywhon, Akealion and Nikayla. These babies lost their mother in a car accident, in Feb. 2003. They were 7, 6, 5, 4 years and three months old. Ms. Gillia, affectionately called “Ms. Mott”, didn’t want the children to be separated, so after the funeral in our home county, Marlboro, SC, she brought them back to Columbia to reside with her. From the start, I served as her support for the needs of the children. I guess I kinda threw myself in the loop. Again, this was normal to me. I had no second thoughts.

Anything that we didn’t know we sought help through our village and other community resources. So, this experience afforded us the realization of the benefit of working together, not being afraid to assess, and acknowledge the need for help and asking for it. This is the mindset in which we developed and managed our programs at Kindred Hearts. There is a growing need for kinship caregivers to have continuous support. This can only be done through awareness and a community of service providers who are intentional in making certain that persons who have obligated themselves to the safety and well-being of children in our community are well-supported.

So, at any point did I ever feel like giving up? I can’t say that I have. I have had many times that I had to assess and regroup. I had to push through disappointments, conflicts and the hard task of self-evaluation. I had to look at the challenges that were before me and start anew on conquering them, but I have never thought to give up on this mission! Ensuring the caregiver is good so the children in their care are good, is a concept that is strength within itself. I have support through my board and other community organizations that are ensuring they are intentional in their service to this population. I just need the entire community to believe that we have an obligation to serve effectively in our identified capacities. I need us to choose Community over Chaos!

I know that you are truly grateful for the support of your family and friends.