Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Bernada Nicole Baker.
Dr. Bernada, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I grew up in Chicago, IL. Born and raised and after college I ended up mentoring young girls. One thing led to another and everywhere I went, I always had girls following me and asking me for my advice. I kept them closely underneath my wings and the rest was history.
I started the Princess Within Foundation, 15 years ago and it has morphed into an amazing journey that has truly impacted the lives of over 7,000 girls across the globe. Serving as an inspiration and a role model for young girls and women came naturally for me. I wanted to make sure that girls who looked like me had someone that they could turn to for advice about life and academic counsel. I believe wholeheartedly in strengthening our communities, one girl at a time. “Teach a girl, teach a nation.” The Princess Within is a strengths based program that seeks to cultivate self-esteem and build social & emotional learning skills for at risk girls. The Princess Within is a gender responsive program that focuses on personal & professional development, character building, anger management, cultivates self-esteem and empowers girls to overcome the obstacles of life in an effort to become positive and productive citizens in their communities.
Fast forward, I relocated to Houston, 3.5 years ago and was using my gifts and talents during Hurricane Harvey and ended up adopting a blue eyed baby girl as a result of just operating in my purpose. I strongly believe that Bella is an extension of my work with The Princess Within Foundation and she is an up close and live example of not only talking about doing the work but actually doing the work! Adopting Bella has changed my life in so many ways and has redefined my mission for the work of empowering and educating young girls.
Here are some links that highlight the work that I have done.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gsg80V-Th9U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrkDO_ZM-tM&t=123s
Here is the link to Bella’s adoption story
https://youtu.be/eeMt1rwG5kU
https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/houston-woman-adopts-baby-she-took-in-after-harvey/285-623996067
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Smooth road, is there really such a thing? My journey has been comprised of twists, turns, heartaches, frustrations, lonely moments, limited resources, lack of support, headaches, closed doors, uncertainty and thunderstorms that produced a multitude of tears. The upside has been filled with joy of seeing girls evolve and maximize their potential, seeing girls triumph over situations that would have otherwise been their demise. The journey has been rewarding despite the countless sacrifices and the stress surrounding being an entrepreneur.
Life as a new mom has been a MAJOR challenge! Kids require a lot and are expensive as ever! Being a single mom was not something I ever envisioned for myself and being away from my family back home has been difficult while raising Bella. I am always on, tending to my baby girl. She is a joy and has brought an abundance of love, light, and laughter to my life and if I had to do it over, I would do it twice. As a result of my adoption process, I am also looking to create a platform as an adoption advocate, especially for women of color.
There have been many days that I questioned whether or not I made the right decision with going through with the adoption. I have lived a very pre planned life and gaining a baby without having any preparations was a major life transformation for me. Bella is a beautiful, thriving, bossy, creative and advanced little girl and I honored to call myself her mom.
Please tell us about The Princess Within Foundation.
The Princess Within Foundation is most known for the sense of community that I have established for my girls and their parents. My girls know that they have access to me no matter where they are on their journey. I have girls who started out with me when they were 14 & 15 and now they are married with kids and they still have me on speed dial. Ms. Bernada is hands on, I am all in and I give my all because I did not have a program like The Princess Within Program when I was growing up.
I am proud that I have invested my all into my business and I have seen the fruits of my labor. I have witnessed girls have life-changing experiences and truly maximize their potential.
I specialize in mentoring/coaching and walking hand in hands with my girls every step of their journey.
Adopting Bella was truly a bold display of my commitment to the mission of The Princess Within Foundation.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
I believe that integrity and commitment is important. You have many people who say that they stand for a certain thing and then behind closed doors it may not always line up. I believe that I uphold integrity with so much pride and I am uber transparent and excellent when it comes to creating sacred spaces for people to be who they are without having to wear masks and pretend. People need to be embraced, not judged and ridiculed.
Contact Info:
- Address: 7710 Cherry Park Dr. STE T. #310
Houston, Texas - Phone: 312-371-6740
- Email: info@theprincesswithin.org
- Instagram: theprincesswithinfoundation
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theprincesswithinfoundation/
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