"The Purple Ball Edition" with Ms BJ Martin & Tavia Farmer

Ms BJ Martin’s Snails With No Shells

The Shantia Alexandria Foundation was founded in May 2020. This foundation was founded by Shantavia and Shanice to honor our sister Shantia, who we tragically loss to suicide in August 2013. Shantia was a free spirited person, with a smile that was contagious. Her personality combined with that shining smile could brighten anyone’s day. Losing Shantia was hard but it was also an eye opener for us. We realized that suicide was a topic that is often avoided and rarely discussed in the African American community. At the time we didn’t know who to turn to or what to do to cope with what had occurred. This pushed us to create this foundation to not only honor our sister but to also serve as a beacon of light and educate others on the importance of mental health. Our foundation provides access to different resources that will help someone struggling mentally. We also host a number of events geared towards educating the community on the importance of mental health and how to support others. One of our goals outside of educating others was to create a safe place for people to come and express themselves freely. We hope to reach the lives of those in need and break the stigma around mental health. We aim to teach people how to live mentally healthier lives and normalize receiving mental health support and healing.