My Dad was a dreamer!
He was an only child who played the trumpet, lived life on his terms, and his presence was felt when he walked into the room.
My dad went to North Carolina A&T, was friends with Jesse Jackson, participated in student protests and marches to bring equity to the city of Greensboro. He was a member of Kappa Alpha Psi and had friends all over the world.
Full-length Fur Coat!
He was so cool!
I loved Chicago because of my Dad. When I was a kid he drove an orange Mercedes, snapped his fingers as sang along to Soul music while he effortlessly wove through traffic down the Dan Ryan. He wore full-length fur coats & fly suits, cowboy hats & purple lizard-skinned boots, or his beloved African outfits. When he told stories, everyone leaned in to listened. And Dad loved to give advice!
One of my Dad’s companies Natural Essence Shea Butter
He owned several of his own companies: a magazine, sales & marketing firm (which I worked at one summer promoting hair care products all over Chicago), and shea butter products way before it was a thing. He made connections with the people of West African, especially in Ghana and Mali. They loved him there, too! So much so that he was named a chief in Mali.
Dad’s final dream came true when he opened Thom’s Turkey in 2009. Everyone loved his smoked turkey and encouraged him to open a restaurant. Sadly he passed away less than two months after its opening. My stepmother, brothers, Tommy & Billy, as well as my niece, Alexa, kept Dad’s dream alive for almost a decade after his death.
Dad was a dreamer.
He would say to me all the time that I should be my own boss, have my own business. And I would say, “No Dad, that’s your dream, not mine. I like being a librarian and knowing when my money is coming.”
But yesterday, I got a donation for my #DreamsToReality crowdfunding campaign through IFundWomen from one of my Dad’s favorite nieces, Gwen. She wrote, “Your dad is smiling down and cheering on you!”
That was a full-circle moment.
My dreams have been to open my own yoga studio, teaching women of color to be yoga teachers, and now have my own branded yoga mat.
