Announcing #Since2017: A Note from Our Founder on her 24th Birthday
Yesterday, I celebrated my 24th birthday – and in reflecting on the personal growth I’ve experienced over the past year, I believe much of that growth is thanks to Better to Speak. Specifically, I’ve confronted and come to a much deeper understanding of the reality of the African proverb “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
Since first dreaming up Better to Speak as a freshman at Howard University, the past five years have been a journey of expanding to overcome fear and apprehension over and over again to get my ideas out into the world, to believe in my ability to bring them to fruition, to accept and actively seek out support from my community and – in the words of Audre Lorde – truly believe that “what is most important to me must be spoken, made verbal and shared, even at the risk of having it bruised or misunderstood.”
Looking forward, I’m challenging myself doubly on that belief, to trust that Better to Speak is ready for a deeper level of investment – namely from me, to trust and believe in the support from my team and my community – including all of you.
That’s why we are launching our first-ever grassroots fundraising campaign, #Since2017 – to celebrate the journey we’ve made so far and take the first steps toward making that deeper investment in what we can accomplish in the near-term future and beyond.
We are aiming to raise at least $5,000 to support our operations for the next few months and continue the incredible work we’ve done so far. This money will sustain Better to Speak’s programming as we explore longer-term funding opportunities.
We are counting on your support to help us reach our goal of raising $5,000 by Better to Speak’s 5th anniversary at the end of July. Help us launch our campaign by being one of the first supporters of our strategic goals for 2022 and beyond by donating whatever you can here!
As Better to Speak moves into its fifth year of existence – and our first as a full-fledged team – it's important to remember where we started in 2017, including the growth we’ve experienced and the community we’ve built so far. Can we count on your support?
Thank you for supporting Better to Speak – and, really, for supporting me as I’ve journeyed with Better to Speak – #Since2017.
In Solidarity,
Kési - Founder, Head of Storytelling + Strategy
The Dream Team needs your help to continue amplifying the voices and stories of Black youth and young adults working to transform silence into language and action. Can we count on your support?
