These are the stories everyone needs to read, and you did it by uplifting industry leaders of color. We have been ignored and made to feel unwelcome for too long. Hopefully we can all continue this conversation to make the hospitality, travel, and entrepreneurial cultures more inclusive.

On Friday, January 6th, I volunteered time to offer resources and mentorship to people from the Baltimore City squeegee community at the Mayor’s Playbook Kick-Off event. I’ve been an active contributor to the Mayor’s Squeegee Collaborative. The goal of this event was to offer Baltimore youth help with careers, personal development, and more.

Starting a small business can be a rewarding and fulfilling experience, but it can also be overwhelming and stressful. Many entrepreneurs feel pressure to make their business as successful as possible, as quickly as possible.

Donte Johnson (GM of Revival) and I were surprised with an opportunity to do the opening remarks as a part of the NYE Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s Fusion concert of Beethoven to Beyoncé.

Hosting an event at the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra was never on my list of things to accomplish because I didn’t think it was possible. It’s a great personal lesson in thinking small and how I need to think even bigger in 2023.

For most of my life I never understood the man with only 2 pairs of shoes; black and brown. But now I am testing if I can primarily wear a pair of black, brown, and off-white/tan sneakers most of the year. I do keep a fourth pair of special occasion shoes, but I find myself in way less special occasions these days.

Revival’s mission is the Make Lives Better and it’s even more important to show love and care during the holidays. This year we brought back our toy drive to benefit My Sister’s Place which is a shelter for women and children experiencing homelessness or domestic violence.

I’ve been slowly rolling out @greattradeco over the last two months and it feels good to back making products again. Over the past 3 years I’ve gotten a deeper appreciation for the hospitality industry.

This week I was nominated by Hyatt for my values in how I exemplify inclusion. As part of Hyatt’s Living our Values video series, they invited leaders to nominate members of their teams who embody their values and supporting behaviors.

CBS Baltimore featured the Super Silky project inspired by the C.R.O.W.N Act in a recent news segment and interviewed me during their morning show with hosts Megan McNamara and Sina Gebre-Ab. Read my previous blog post and watch the full interview here.

Spurred on by an organization’s interest in the stories behind those we see every day at our city’s intersections, By Any Means Necessary contextualizes this sector against the history of “hustle” or gig economies in the Black community. It provides interviews with those who participate, allowing for first-person accounts of the “why” behind squeegeeing and presenting the concept that the reasons and the participants are not monolithic. The screening of By Any Means Necessary will be followed by a panel discussion.

I constantly strive to eliminate discrimination of all forms and elevate the culture in everything I do. At this age, I am not just motivated by money, the passion of making lives better fuels my engine. When I learned about the C.R.O.W.N Act I knew there was something we could do at Revival that would support everything the act represented, bring more attention to the cause, and take one more step towards a more inclusive sense of hospitality. If DOVE, the soap company, can be a co-founder of legislation like this, then what can WE do?

I am always grateful for opportunities to share the stories of Impact Hospitality and help create pathways into the hospitality industry. When Ashli Johnson, Executive Director of the Marriott-Sorenson Center for Hospitality Leadership at Howard University, called and asked if Donte Johnson and I would speak to the School of Business Executive Leadership Honors Program students - we both said yes.

Over the last 3 years I’ve helped to create, define, and embody the definition of Impact Hospitality. I frequently get asked the meaning of the words, impact hospitality, so I thought it would be helpful to give you my best attempt at providing an understanding. Let’s start with the definition of hospitality.

I have a personal and professional commitment to contribute to the improvement of our communities in ways that would be most meaningful to them. Over the past year, the Revival Baltimore team has developed a strong relationship with Tench-Tilghmen EMS in East Baltimore that started with volunteering to clean-up the exterior on a regular basis.

And the winner is…..

Most of the culture and impact programming we create at Revival isn’t common for traditional corporate spaces nor a hotel. One thing we’ve have established over the last 2 years is our commitment to entrepreneurs and community.

Last night we had the pitch competition for our first cohort of the 2022 BRB Program created by B.E.L.L. and Revival Baltimore. The competition was the next phase of the BRB program and would allow the willing participants to compete for a $10,000 cash prize

My professional journey was and is far from traditional. At every milestone in life, I’d attempt to slide into the most familiar industry tracks created by family and friends with the hope that it would lead to a successful future if I followed the rules. After high school, you’re expected to decide on a profession that defines you for life. Honestly who TF knows at 17 what they’re supposed to do with their lives?

MId-May I received an email that I’ve been selected to get the 2022 HDAC Excellence Award and could I come to New York in a few weeks to accept it. The email came from an unknown source and from an unknown person asking me to do something, which these days triggers thoughts of a potential scam, but I did a little digging and it was legit HAHA.

They said it, I didn’t, but I am the official 2022 ICON of Culture Award winner :) I appreciate the recognition and the love ILC. Read more about the full experience….