Lovie AI: Someone in our audience asked about doula training and I think this is worth slowing down for because there is a lot of information out there and it can get overwhelming fast. Thank you for hanging out with us today. ⁓ If something hit different, if you got nugget you needed or it just made you think, do not keep it to yourself, share it with somebody. Welcome to It's Just Business. I am your host, Lovie. Today we are sitting down with LaKesha Harris, Executive Director of Chicago Volunteer Dulas and founder of Duinola. LaKesha is doing the kind of work that does not always make the highlight real, but absolutely deserves to be talked about. We are getting into what growth actually looks like you are leading a nonprofit, not the polished version, the real one, the one that includes hard decisions, Stories have been surfacing on social media in the news that there are so many Brown mothers who go into the hospital to have a baby and they never come home. ⁓ You can catch, us on Amazon Music, Spotify, Apple podcasts, and iHeartRadio. ⁓ If you want the video experience, the behind the scenes and the live episodes, find us on YouTube. Until next time, keep making intentional decisions shifting responsibilities, and building something meaningful while life is still happening around you. This is a conversation for anyone who has ever been in the middle of building something and wondered if they were doing it right. Let's get into it.

Lovie: I started thinking about growth and sometimes people think growth is just growing your ⁓ And even though we're a business community, business owners have to remember It's just not growing your business. it's growing in your wellness and Sometimes it's growth in your spirit and direction that God wants to send you I get exhausted and I have to realize I need to give myself grace Well as business give yourself grace ⁓ I have to myself first ⁓ and when you start to prioritize yourself People get hurt people may not understand but it's about my growth. ⁓ I realized that that endurance is what I need for growth. ⁓ That growth hurts, growth is painful, ⁓ but we keep pushing. And really wanted to get to know about your growth with two nonprofits. ⁓ I'm just so excited and proud to have you here. ⁓ Recently,

LaKeesha: and they never come out.

Lovie: Because our care is always neglected. If there's a line of 10 people by race, gender, we're going to be the last one. They'll even take our men sometimes before they take us. But we're the anchor of our household, our community, our family. are the anchors. I'm a 92 percenter and I'm proud of it. For me.

LaKeesha: and always have.

Lovie: I for what I believe we need to do.

LaKeesha: Absolutely. beautiful to be here. So a little bit about me. I'm the Executive Director of Chicago Volunteer Doulas and the founder ⁓ of Duenola. Chicago Volunteer Doulas offers low and no and sliding scale fees for service ruler care to low income marginalized folks who are resource in their communities. essentially focusing the need of Black and Brown women to survive the birthing process. ⁓ spoke a little bit about that, Lovie, but me give you the numbers. Right? In ⁓ women are to six times ⁓ greater, have a four to six times greater maternal mortality rate and that depends on where you're located in the United States. ⁓ Chicago, Illinois, it's six times greater ⁓ though we have all of these major research hospitals and technology like everybody wants to go to at UIC and University of Chicago, ⁓ right? have all of these research clinics and we still have a six times greater maternal mortality ⁓ that means that Black women are dying in childbirth ⁓ they're good home. Because maternal rate is calculated not just when they die in the hospital, but it's up a year after they've had the baby. a year postpartum. ⁓ And so we have doulas provide care advocacy in the hospital. And then we have postpartum doulas that care for people, birthing people and women when they get home. So that we are not just providing foot massages because everybody thinks that's what a doula does, right? We're not just providing the foot massages or the laundry, but we are actually providing, we are the providers of resources and community networks to care, food sustainability, mental health services. We are the plug, as they used to say back in my days, right? We are the connectors to service and care in the community and making sure just that the mother or the birthing person is whole, but that the family is whole. And that is what's needed in community. And our doulas serve the community that they are providing care in, that they are living in. ⁓ that is the distinction. And as much We also offer training for free those people that are existing in community, existing in the low resource areas that they are providing care. So we provide that doula education full spectrum for free. And then we turn around and employ those doulas that we are providing education to. So they come under us. So after they're trained, we make sure that they have jobs. Yeah, and so that's That's just CVD About Duenola which is a postpartum house that I'm starting that will be up and running this year.

Lovie: And I saw that love that ⁓ you have an education opportunity that continuously ⁓ helping people protecting the of our communities.

LaKeesha: Yes, yes. You know, Black women are the safe space. We have been the connectors for forever, right? We have been, ⁓ we're doula-ing people and providing jobs, I about Ida B. Wells, right? Mama Ida Wells does not, I like, get enough credit for all that she's done. But she started the kindergarten program. Like she was one the first, ⁓ if not the first. kindergarten education for our children. We're always thinking of resources and how to get things done. So she is the mother of early education. And when they would not give her housing for homeless men in Chicago, right, she went and asked ⁓ some of the and sex workers in the community to provide those those and that space for her to raise money. was like she didn't look down at anybody. She went to the community and asked the community, can you help me help the community? And that is what we do. That is inherently what we do. Sometimes we forgo ourselves and our own health doing that work. And I'm so glad, Lovie that you brought up having balance and boundaries and rest time because that is key, especially in this political moment.

Lovie: I want to take a step back and you what is a doula and let's explain to people never heard of a doula, don't know what a doula does ⁓ so we're going to talk the person out there that has no idea who you are and what you do.

LaKeesha: Yes. So a doula historically was meant ⁓ people have taken it in the context of slave woman who cared for people doing pregnancy and then post childbirth. Right. That's the historical meaning. But doula in the context that we know it to be are the servants of the people and they provide. When I was coming up 25 years ago and becoming a doula, it meant right. to mother the mother, right? So many times women get lost in the shovel. Everybody's excited for the baby and nobody is looking out for the mother. And so we provide intentional care to the mother and care to the mother. If meals that need to be catered to, right? If there is, ⁓ maybe light washing. We are not doing full household cleaning, but we'll tidy up a little bit, right? So that that mother is not stressed out and being like, ⁓ you know, people are going to come over and see the baby. How do I do that? How do I, you know, present myself? And then we also, so the care that we provide give permission for the mother to be cared for. So many times we're just like, the mother, the mother got to take take care of the babies. But what about the mother? What about her care? What about her needs? But deeper than that, right, we are monitoring for signs anything going wrong in the body at the time, postpartum wise, right? And explaining, we're helping to navigate them through the hospital. services and community services, explaining material that may be over the head of a mother that has a lot of information coming in from doctors and nurses and everybody's trying to triage them or what have you. We're saying, hold on a minute. Did you get that? Did you understand what they're saying? So we provide advocacy and care and loving support and navigation through ⁓ what can be a tumultuous experience in the hospital and doing that same thing when they get home.

Lovie: So are you in the hospital? Is the doula in the hospital with the mom or at home or is it the mom's choice to do whichever?

LaKeesha: Well, we encourage our clients to do both. Many clients, much more clients ask us for labor and delivery service right here in the hospital with them. I encourage them to get both services, right, for continuity of care. So they get labor, a traditional labor support, and then when you get home, you can get up to 40 hours of service.

Lovie: That's awesome. And this is all free correct? Based on insurance.

LaKeesha: Yes, so we don't turn any way one away, right? For services. So that's one thing. And then we offer a sliding scale for donations from our clients. That's how we get money. So if they can pay $25, they pay $25. if they can pay $200, then they pay $200 for the services. or whatever they can give that ⁓ scale. But also ⁓ get our funds from ⁓ So I'm the grant writer. I'm the ED and I'm writing them grants as I told you before. It's grant writing season. So I'm at my computer asking donations. But what we don't do and which I am so glad of, we don't take state or federal funding. And I am so grateful that I didn't get into that cesspool because what people are going through, nonprofits are going through right now, is having their funds stripped away from them if they center the lives of Black and Brown people because of anti-DHPVI omissive that's going on at the federal level.

Lovie: wow. ⁓ I worked in insurance and at one time under Medicaid states for doula services I think Louisiana is one of them, do you know?

LaKeesha: Louisiana is one of them, but what they don't tell you about that process, one, you gotta go through so many hoops. That process, Medicaid, let's be clear. process of Medicaid is not beneficial for doulas to be paid. You have to go through a whole process to get that money, right? And most people, most doulas infrastructure is not set up for them. It's not conducive to them even thriving as a business model solely depending on getting insurance reimbursement and Medicaid reimbursement. Doctors have been talking about this for years. And so doula, while we could be covered under Medicaid and insurance, CVD is not in a place, and we're an organization. I have educated 100 doulas, right? But we as an organization are not ⁓ set up to accept reimbursements and Medicaid. So the individual doula is going to have hard time going through that process. It's not an easy process.

Lovie: And I truly believe that, so it all makes sense.

LaKeesha: Yeah, Illinois has it but the process is tremorous is to try to even get insurance reimbursed and the whole setup for it It's not it's not conducive to people doing you almost have to have a billing portion of your services and when you're a birth worker It's not it's not a good So the recognition We're doing that work. small kudos for recommending us. We've been here.

Lovie: Well, I'm longer that side, as Black women, we just want to be seen. So that really felt good. I agree You guys probably like I'll give you the small violin. Yay. But it's always a start. So moving into the business side. nonprofits are businesses. they run like businesses it's just a little tax difference so respect the hustle of a non-profit because usually if you're ⁓ off of a grant you're really under tight eye with your financial and your billing especially if it's a federal government grant ⁓ ⁓ So You were talking about growth Planting a seed and growth. I just want to know as nonprofit founder, what is the different seasons of your look like in growth? And you can relate this to anything you want, through childbirth, whether through as your organization, ⁓ just what the year seasons of growth look like.

LaKeesha: Okay, I'm gonna take you in step by step right now because when I first came in to CVD I want to say it was the springtime and I was so excited about this new organization this new position right and it was it was coming an organization full doulas and not really knowing ⁓ exactly was needed for the job, right? I think that also they give women leadership roles sometimes because we've been and saying we could do these jobs, right? And ⁓ and they haven't let us in the door. We've always hit a glass ceiling somewhere along the lines. And so now when they do give us the positions, we don't always know what the back looks like. And so when I got in the back, it was the summertime and it was hot. Okay. It was hot when I got to the numbers and I was like, hold up. We ain't got what? We ain't got enough money to pay me. What's happening? We got no money to pay these doulas. And so everybody thinks that CVD is bigger than what it And so there was so many expectations, I think, from the doula that I tried to meet. So I was in summertime. It was hot, hotter than July, as Stevie Wonder would say. so I was trying to do, do, do, be, be, be. It was a new position. And I had voices in my ear. Well come the fall I was like I was looking around I was stressed out. I was tired, hair thinning, nerves thinner, okay. And then I sat with myself in the winter time come winter time and made some assessments. Went to the boundaries people got mad. you're gonna show up to the conference you're not gonna show up to the this and that so I was like no, this is kind is cutting season. This is winter time. I'm gonna get some rest And came out of that back into I think a spring. I'm back in a full circle moment ⁓ where I see my way clear. I think that CVD, I know that CVD is in a much more financially stable. ⁓ To speak to you said, Lovie. with the all eyes being on you for these grants, honey, all eyes you. My because I got it right after COVID, I got my position right after COVID, there was no audits that been done. So I went through a season when I said it was hot, ⁓ it was and hot, I had to go through all those back audits. You know, and those audits fall on you as the Executive Director, even though you're new, it falls under you. So I had to catch up on all of those audits from 2020. So, yeah, they want to look if you buy a pack of bubble gum, if you take a flight, they want to know how much the travel expenses, they want to know how much you pay on your doulas. They want to know how many clients you've service. Right. They want those numbers and this is what I tell my doulas like you got to keep paperwork in alignment. They don't necessarily understand it from the back point of view, right? They just think that I'm being demanding and know these grants if you want to get paid, right? I got to report these numbers if you want them to recertify and continue to fund these programs to report numbers back to that. So I'm so glad that you you talking about that because baby it be hot in this seat sometimes the ED seat right heavy is the head that wears the crown. Okay.

Lovie: What is your fulfilling moment?

LaKeesha: I know that it is because I say to everybody that I have two clients right? I have the doula. ⁓ that whom I'm educating, and employing ⁓ I want to make them happy ⁓ want to stay and work so my duties and employees ⁓ my client as an executive director. And then also the clients that we are serving with labor support and postpartum care. So my mind is forever on those two. So if I'm doing a good job employing my employees, they're gonna wanna go out and continue to serve the community. And I judge my impact as a leader, right? How happy I'm making both ⁓ groups of people. also, like you said, we don't make a profit. ⁓ But I'm wealthy in communities, right? It makes me happy. It makes me really happy when a mama comes home. to know that, knock on wood, knock linoleum, knock on the heavens, ⁓ we no maternal mortality ⁓ just our doulas right? And so that makes me, that is rewarding. The life of mamas coming home from the hospital, and not dying in the postpartum period and back that, woo, my doula made me so happy. ⁓ My I hear those types of stories. We hear that back and get that feedback. So, you know, we gotta look at wealth in different ways. The profit is the people. Like, right? We have to see it that way. And I want to take you back historically. We are reading as a group, we are reading the book, Coming And in that book, Dr. Black, she's a professor of history of our culture and people. But I want to say this, White people, when they had us enslaved, knew the wealth of maintaining our reproduction and so the wealth of maintaining Black women and keeping them healthy. And it only because they saw the profit ⁓ or saw as they saw us as worthy, right? We have to see the wealth within our community and know that keeping Black women alive, If I look to the left and the right and my sisters aren't there, else matters. Nothing else matters. ⁓ build generational wealth for them, ⁓ we have to see ourselves and wealth within each other. So no, don't get paid a whole lot, but we get paid enough to sustain ourselves, right? And I work to try to make it better and more. So. For the doula, on the doula side of things, I implemented when I came in, 765 per birth. So as they attend the birth, they get $765. And they also get pre-education. And also when they complete their certification, they go up to $1,000 per birth and $1,000 for postpartum care. And I wish I could pay more. because I value them. I know the wealth within my sister and my people when they take care of community and we have to start seeing that.

Lovie: What does growth look like in this season of your life? I'm in that hot season. in my area. July and August are the hottest months. So I'm there and ⁓ I'm right there in and August. ⁓ I am up on fire. Yeah, fire, but I'm up on fire. I am in the heat. of the moment. So just asking you are you ⁓ this season of your growth? And remember we're talking about growth personally, emotionally, wherever growth is because business owners ⁓ we look the whole package here. We're not just looking at where you're growing your business. This isn't corporate. This is us supporting us. ⁓ This is for us by us supporting each other for growth each other like I've said it's hard at the top and we don't always have people to talk to brainstorm with ⁓ to you know put that load you saying hey I got a lot going on i'm in the of the season ⁓ my season is spicy hot We don't have anyone if we're working in silos to come back and say, hey, girl, I worked on that grant. I got the grant, but I read a little bit deeper in that grant and I'm tired. I'm tired. my thing is always, I don't have it to give. So go through the seasons, the hot season. ⁓ And for me, when it starts, ⁓ maybe or fall, I started getting in that. I don't it to give. That's me telling myself. Let's start protecting yourself. ⁓ I'm at that point is self preservation. ⁓ at that point to say, I don't have it to give. I don't have anything to give to anyone but myself. I don't have anything to give for the tomfoolery ⁓ I just don't have it to give because I know ⁓ what's coming up, ⁓ And by protecting myself during the season,

LaKeesha: Right.

Lovie: ⁓ How do you prepare yourself during those moments ⁓ when you you're getting into your hot season of growth?

LaKeesha: Well, know, ⁓ so that first year, first two years, I really am just in this third year of my leadership coming in, I feel where I feel fully equipped and fully grounded in who I am as a leader and person. So I'm coming out of my winter season where I'm all snuggly and like, get away from me, don't talk to me, whatever, and preparing for a sewing of the spring, right? Putting in the dirt, what I really need, ⁓ I have my Black ED group that are, that's a small group of four Black women who support one another, who are executive directors, who know, like when going through or one's quiet, we like, let's send her some flowers. She must be in her hot season, okay? really shore her up, you know? So I have my Black ED group. I've just gotten the tools that are necessary to sustain me as a leader. And I'm so very grateful for that. So I'm in my... planting season. I'm in my growth season. I am I really am expanding like with Duenola It is expansion of the work that I have already done. And so now I can see that through to expand to a postpartum house in Louisiana. And I'm one of those growers. Okay, so can tell you about the season. So this is springtime coming up. We put the seeds in the ground. Because come late spring, summer, when you need it, when you need some tools when it's hot, when you need that food, and you need all the things that you need, right? You need that money. should have planted the seeds right about now. January, you should have been writing them grants right about now. ⁓ You be sowing in the summer. It's hot outside. You should be, that's when they picked the cotton, right? When it was hot. But them seeds were sown the rice plantations. Them seeds were sown in the winter months, right? Going into early spring, right? Depending on where you are. And so that you in your hot season, you have nourishment. ⁓ You the around you that you need that will shore you up and encourage you to go on one more day. So that's what you should be doing. know, take season will be taking inventory of who you are and what you are and who you need to keep going.

Lovie: Okay, I get it. So now I'm in a planting season. So this is why I'm protecting myself so that I can grow and I can prosper.

LaKeesha: there are many, depending on where you are located, I've that there are so many doulas out there that are doing ⁓ either digitally ⁓ ⁓ in-person training. ⁓ would suggest, ⁓ doulas are trained through Doulas of North America. They have a certification. process, you can reach out to any of those trainers there. And what you get through DONA is international, you get international certification. So you can take your certification anywhere in the world and work. So I encourage that. I really, really do encourage that getting certification. mean, I tell my doulas all the time ⁓ matters. paperwork matters, certification matters, training matters, right? And so to be able to take your training and take it internationally.

Lovie: ⁓ ⁓ What are your needs?

LaKeesha: have a bunch of me for CVD we just need ⁓ volunteers at this if you in Chicago, ⁓ we could use to help write cards and letters of support to our mama's babies have birthdays so we're gonna get some cards and happy birthday greetings to our mommas and babies this year. We also just moved into our space. So if you have furniture to donate that ⁓ good new or gently used, we could use some of that. Also, if you want to give ⁓ nice donations our doulas, ⁓ I would y'all to send them flowers because Birth workers need care, that would be so lovely. you wanna donate gift cards so that I can have raffles for them, that would be lovely as well. In New Orleans, we're getting this postpartum house underway. So I could use folks that are gardeners, people who are painters, who wanna paint a bedroom, who wanna decorate. If you wanna send clothes to the babies and the mamas. I also have in the back of the house a little barn that I keep for food. So if you want to send non-perishable items here, that is wonderful. Diapers, wipes, pads, any and all things. We're going to have a resource list put on the website. And that's forthcoming shortly. If you want to visit the website, that's and www.duenola.org. ⁓

Lovie: So what is your why?

LaKeesha: My life has always been and will continue to be until the day that I die, the people. My life is the people. Even when they even when they foolish, even when they upset me, even when they tried me and get on my last nerve. life has always been the people because just as soon as they upset me, somebody comes, you Lovie, other people come and be, you made me remember my life. Thank you for being good. Thank you for being God's light in this world. Thank you for being, you know, the space holder and the way makers and the so that I can see the way forward. you know, it's always the people. But also, ⁓ I would be ⁓ if I didn't I was being selfish because serving the people makes me happy. Like they're is joy that I get when ⁓ mama comes home and is self-sufficient and can take care of herself and her baby, right? I feel part of the community when that happens. I there is amongst birth workers, we say it's like a baby fever. Like when you go in that room and you see and you're sitting in that middle space of birth, life and death, right? There is this joy when you have a baby cry and you're like, ⁓ I can do this again and again. get like a baby high, a rush. Any birth workers in here can substantiate that. But there is a birth high that you get and you be like, okay, I can do this. I can keep doing this as long as I can sit them at your house and not my house.

Lovie: kudos to you for ⁓ keeping community together for being our anchor because you're bringing lives into this world ⁓ Can you tell a little bit about the history of a doula? ⁓

LaKeesha: So going back to what I said, right, doulas have been around forever since we were African, right? Since we were African and not Black American, right? This is motherland traditions. taking it back there, ⁓ women-centered work, right? We served ⁓ we were the caretakers. And this is different than the midwives. ⁓ I really want y'all to know that the midwives are a different thing. Dulas take care of the mamas after the midwife and the doctors have left. The Dulas are there as servant of the people, servant of the mamas, servant of the family, right? And making sure that they are eating well. We were the stew cookers, right? And the laundress the foot soakers, we are the healers that you all refer to. And that is the distinction, right? The midwives in terms, the midwives catch the baby and the doulas take care of the babies and the mamas once the midwives are gone. Okay. So this history goes back to Africa and like us our ancestors, the traditions came over. on those boats with us. We didn't forget. We didn't forget what we supposed to be doing. ⁓ for those who are situated and their selves to be indigenous American Black or foundational Blacks, those traditions is rooted in the indigenous heritage ⁓ of where sit in America. Those indigenous heritage had the soup cookers and the and the way makers. Right. And so that is the history of what it means to be a doula. It's really inherent. The servant of the community, the servant of the tribe, the woman servant of the community.

Lovie: Let me ask you, are the doula's also like, advocate for the mothers when they're in those hospital?

LaKeesha: Absolutely. Like I said before, CVD, the clients that we take care of come out of the hospital. And all praises to the creator for that, right? The clients we take care of come home. They're with their family. That's why we're there. We're advocating. We're saying, hold up. They don't understand what you're saying. Can you break that down for them? Why is a c-section necessary in this moment? Can we take a beat and think about what a c-section you want to labor a little bit longer, ⁓ they want to epidural because some our clients go in there and because they assume that all Black women are on drugs or the narrative is that we can withstand pain longer than anybody else. So when we ask for the epidural, they don't give it to us, right? Doulas aren't just about laboring naturally. We're about what that mother wants to have. So if she then wants an epidural and she wants pain management, right? Can you give her that pain management now? Can you give her the epidural? Not in two hours, she's in pain now. Can you give it to her now? So we are, I say, I want to say the Dora Milaje of birth. If that makes sense.

Lovie: Okay

LaKeesha: We are the people of the birth world. It was.

Lovie: Look us. Do you know of any other programs similar to yours in other states?

LaKeesha: listen, all states, ⁓ Google ⁓ in state, or doula trainings in my state, they'll all come up. We have, like for instance, in Georgia, the Atlanta midwives birthing ⁓ collective is there in We also have in New Orleans, we have birthmark doulas that are here. in Louisiana doing great and beautiful things. So just look up those networks of doulas. all around. And then nationally, we have the Doula Network that has a listing of networks We have the Black Midwifery Collective here in Illinois. If you want a Black midwife, we out here, y'all, and we're taking back our birth space. that was taking from the granny midwife so very long ago. Janine is my ⁓ communications and tech manager. She said Memphis ⁓ naturally nurtured birth services. They are and they have a birth center on the premises. So you want a birth, outside of the hospital or the medical industrial complex in Memphis. Naturally nurtured birth services is amazing. ⁓ and shout out to Chicago South Side Birth Center that is being built on the South Side of Chicago by Black midwife Janine Valerie Logan. She has stewarded the South Side Birth Center, raised all the funds, again, a Black midwife doing. what we do all the time. just be in awe of Black women. We are the magic makers and the way makers and I don't think that we honor ourselves enough for that.

Lovie: I hope you can come back at some time and I wanted to say to you you look absolutely beautiful. I love your colors. I'm just loving everything, your look. I wanted you to give us your final thoughts and in your final thoughts you wanted to talk about Omi Omi. versus Lakisha, this is your opportunity to just send us home with more blessings.

LaKeesha: Yes, Ashe, thank you for that. my spiritual name you'll see on the screen is called Omi, is entitled Omi Omi Ire. Omi Omi Ire means that the blessings is in Yamaya's water. I am a priestess of Yamaya in the Lukumi tradition, in the tradition of our ancestors, in the African traditional spiritual traditions. One thing about Yamaya is that she is the mother of all waters, the amniotic fluid to the sea waters ⁓ the ocean. She brings forth life and she brings forth justice, but she also brings forth harmony within our community. She is the great mother, the mother that oversees us all on planet. So, ⁓ Omi would be considered, ⁓ I guess what was called my basket name or community name. And so it was given to me by my godparents who initiated me into the tradition. I want y'all to COMBEE by Dr. Get into that book, know the value of who you are, where you came from, and get the tradition of, especially in this moment, grow something. If it ain't but a tomato. If it's nothing but herbs, basil is so easy to grow and it's so useful for so many things health wise. You ain't got to do too much to it. ⁓ Vera is so good. It's so useful. People are, know, and it's so it's a succulent, but it's medicine too. And so grow something and keep watch ⁓ over the who are pregnant or giving birth in your family and in your community. They are sacred. When you see them pregnant, ask them, have they eaten today? When I was an apprentice midwife, right, because I'm going back to that, I'm becoming a midwife, I stopped being I stopped apprenticing for various reasons. But when I was an apprentice midwife, my grand midwife told me Always have something cooking when someone is coming over to your house, specifically a pregnant person in their family, because you never know when they have eaten. if it's just a pot of beans, some cornbread, and I always remember that. Make sure that they are hydrated. Make sure that you keep a bottle of water on you in case you come across a pregnant person. ⁓ In times, It's going money is going to get strained. But remember I said that our wealth is in each other and the community. They knew it when we were enslaved that we were the wealth and you should know that too without a doubt and let our community be your why