“I’m a woman of faith and a child born of trauma. I’m not one of those people that chose a crutch. I’m one of those people that it scares me more not to get up and do what I need to do. I have 3 humans depending on me.”
A recent college graduate and mother to three children between the ages of 1 and 12, Raven lives by the phrase “get your house in order.” That’s what she’s doing daily in her hometown of Portland, Oregon. Even her goals are in order for herself, her children, and her community to get better. Raven often ponders the idea of pursuing her Masters and Doctorate degrees at an HBCU.
“This is [the point in my life] where I’m stable until I get myself situated,” she said.
In 2019 Raven went back to school to obtain her associate's and bachelor's degrees, feeling those accomplishments would unlock more for her future.
“The government wants a piece of paper for credentials,” she said. “I’ll have more opportunities to advocate for my community and go different places on my own.”
Raven advocates for communities of color primarily because she remembers not having a community of her own growing up.
“As I got older, I saw the importance of sticking together and learning more about history and culture. It became more apparent that’s what I need to do,” said Raven.
Raven also found community in an organization called Healthy Birth Initiative (HBI). Their mission is to achieve healthy birth outcomes by improving the well-being of mothers, fathers, and their children throughout pregnancy and beyond.
“It’s been amazing since the beginning. I wasn’t treated like a client, I was treated like a human,” said Raven. “My community health worker has been majorly supportive and pushed me to where I am in the most gracious of ways.”
It was HBI that recommended Raven for the Multnomah Mothers Trust—a fund that provided direct cash investments to mothers in Multnomah County in partnership with UpTogether and Portland-based Multnomah Mothers Trust.
“I didn’t think it was real, but I was like that’s an amazing thing because it’s something that’s needed,” Raven said.
Her 2-year-old son was recently diagnosed as on the autistic spectrum. Raven took a leave from work for mental health reasons and to care for her son, creating a scenario where she had few options for income. The additional cash investments that she received through the Multnomah Mothers Trust allowed her to keep up with bills without being on such a restricted income.
“Didn’t have to worry about diapers, food for my kids, bills being late. It took away a lot of stress. Allowed me to fix my credit and be with my kids without a constant state of worry about finances.”
Until Raven is cleared to work again, Raven is devoted to staying active and involved in her community. She developed a food program called Fathers and Nutrition, that she presented with HBI for the National Healthy Start Association grant. The project was focused on empowering and supporting fathers with making healthier food choices for their children. Raven did research on the layouts of grocery stores and the food economy, compiled recipes from elders in her community, and even took some of the elders and fathers in her community grocery shopping.
“HBI gave me a sense of purpose and a voice as a parent that was already a part of the program to take part in the program,” she said.
Raven also recently crossed off a major bucket list item—taking her first flight to Puerto Rico and being honored for her work with the grant.
Raven is not sitting still—she’s studying to be a public notary in Oregon. In her community, there have been a number of circumstances where individuals and families needed documents notarized and had no idea of where to go.
“That is education we should have. So if we need a public notary, let’s do that,” said Raven. “Going to notary school just puts me in part of the process, another thing that I can do to help.”
Now that Raven has graduated with her associates in mental health social services and addiction, she hopes to obtain her doctrine and go into business for herself. Her road to triumph clearly begins and ends with community. She wants others to know that creating community is “an ok thing to do.”