Ashborn Sanctuary

My Story

This is a vision that I've held and grown since childhood. Growing up in section 8 housing with a single mother working constantly to support her three children, I witnessed the systemic structures that allowed for the suffering of nuclear families such as my own. I grew up within black communities suffering in their own unique ways and bore witness to the various ways in which the pain would manifest in their daily lives. I envisioned a world where collaboration and love could co-exist.

I would often help a neighboring auntie in the apartment complex distribute snacks in tiny plastic baggies for 50 cents a bag to the local youths trapped in a perpetually violent neighborhood. She was struggling to survive herself but still found a way to help the community children by giving them some joy, hope and some semblance of autonomy in the early 90's. I wish I could recall her name. She inspired me greatly to open my eyes to the structures that brought us here. 

The Problem

What if we could bridge the gaps by joining hands in a way that recognized the fellow humanness on this planet? What if we could recognize our true responsibility to one another and the regenerative demand to heal the soil within which our very health is rooted? The fact of the matter is the nutrients in our soil are drastically deficient and we must regenerate these deficiencies to sustain our health and the health of our communities.

Cultural diversity is something to be celebrated rather than leveraged as a cause for conflict. Too often there are simply too many cooks in the kitchen and not enough cohesive efficiency. Perspective differences are necessary to collaborate and find creative solutions to complex issues. My vision for Ashborn Sanctuary is a place where the simplicity of love is fostered, and if conflicts cannot be resolved, we find common ground to co-create together.

The Vision

I envision the ultimate goal as developing Ashborn Sanctuary into a web of community hubs as safe havens for community where the arts are accessible, and the earth becomes our churches once again. I envision a space where collaborations and public health are celebrated and honored together. A place where we support the growth of the individual who has fallen through the cracks of resources by offering affordable transitional housing with the supports and tools to achieve great success. 

The infrastructure of this initiative is designed using permaculture design strategies where all aspects of this initiative are interconnected to support one another in a holistic approach to the community. The sanctuary is designed to connect existing resources within the community and place the families in need of these resources into the hands of those that provide them with compassion and care. We are designed to examine the gaps that exist within the community infrastructure and collaborate with these organizations to find creative collaborative solutions to meet the needs. 

Ashborn Sanctuary will be built in stages. The present stage is sourcing funding. My voice has not been taken seriously by the communities and organizations I've served within, so I have resorted to taking funding into my own hands with my own ventures to invest back into this project. Everything that I do, between the independent services I provide, my books, art, my late husband's artwork has been built with this vision in the crosshairs of my mind. It is time to reveal this ultimate goal and request support. If you are interested in supporting this venture, please purchase one of my books, or visit my husband's art website here. If you're wishing to contribute as a tributary funder, please contact me directly here.