Testimonies

Real Black Grandmothers Creator and Founder, Dr. LaShawnDa Pittman talks about the importance of preserving Black grandmothers stories.

“What Did I Tell You About Climbing Those Damn Apple Trees?”

My grandma was Valerie Smith (1926-1968). We used to live on an apple orchard. She would make us go …
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“Baby It’s Enough of Waneda to Go Around”

My grandmother, Waneda Loretta Pittman (Neda) (May 30, 1933-May 2, 2015), kept us in church with her. She raised her household in …
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“A Haiku for Maw Maw”

Eat Organic Save Money Listen to sages Practice kindness and interdependence Repeat

As a child, I was left in …
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Naima Mora, talks about the stories she can recollect and those that she wish were documented from her grandmother sculptor Elizabeth Catlett (April 15, 1915-April 2, 2012).

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Resilience is cultivating religious/spiritual practices. They give you something bigger than yourself to believe in and to rely upon.  Not to mention, provide a sense of wonder and magic. Loreli Warren …
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AYEEYO MACAAN (SWEET GRANDMOTHER)

“I remember the scorching sun hitting my back while tears strolled down my eyes. I was eight months pregnant and was holding my two boys’ hand …
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My grandmother, Ruth Ruffin (September 3, 1938-), is the daughter of Mable Toney and Wingfield Ruffin. Her grandchildren call her ‘Grandma Ruth’ or ‘Gee Gee’ and she lives in …
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“The Life in All Living Things”

My parents were teenagers when I was born. So, my parents and I lived with my grandparents in their home in Seattle, Washington …
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Resilience is always giving it your best. Erica Haynes-Ferguson’s great-grandmother, Dr. Annie Lee Richardson (March 13, 1918) passed down to her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren the motto: “Good, better, best never let …
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