Black Boomer Besties from Brooklyn
Black Boomer Besties from Brooklyn
Ep142 Legacy Work: Guiding girls into STEM/STEAM with global travel experiences
Black Girls Go Global is changing the world through their one-week STEAM educational program where young Black women travel internationally to learn about sustainable development. Board members Rolanda Goodwin and Lisa Randolph share how this organization is creating pathways for Black girls in STEAM fields where only 2% of the workforce is African American women.
Visit blackgirlsgoglobal.org (IG: https://www.instagram.com/black_girls_go_global to learn more about supporting this organization through volunteering on their committees or becoming a monthly donor. With Black women making up only 2% of the STEM workforce, your support helps create essential pathways for the next generation.
Chapter Markers:
- 0:00
Introducing Black Girls Go Global - 9:24
The Genesis of a Movement - 17:18
STEAM vs STEM: Adding Art to the Equation - 22:20
Breaking Barriers in Representation - 29:10
Costa Rica Experience: Hands-On Learning - 33:07
Legacy Work and Board Commitment - 38:02
How to Support: Resources and Funding - 42:13
The Numbers: Why This Matters
References mentioned:
The Hidden Women of STEM | Alexis Scott | TEDxMountainViewCollege
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Visit Black Boomer Besties from Brooklyn website for behind-the-scenes extras.
Hey Ang, hey Les. What's cooking? A lot's cooking. Yes, I'll tell you, it's going to be hot today. Ask me why.
Speaker 2:Why, Leslie? Why is it going to be hot today?
Speaker 1:We have guests that are going to blow you away. Indeed, we're going to tell you about an organization that they're going to change the world, literally change the world.
Speaker 2:They are in the process of that right now.
Speaker 1:That's right. That's right. And when you are introduced to these ladies and when you hear about the dynamic things that are doing, you're going to want to partner with them. So listen with your good ears and listen about.
Speaker 4:OK.
Speaker 1:Nana, margaret, with your good ears, and I really want to. No jokes aside, we need some changes in this world. We need some changes in this world and when people, instead of just sitting on the couch and complaining about things, there are real people in this world that actually put their heart and effort into it and do things. And we're going to introduce you to the board members for the group Black Girls Go Global. Black Girls Go Global is a program is a one week, I'll tell them one second one second, I know, I know, shall I go back.
Speaker 1:She likes to break rules. She's a rule breaker.
Speaker 2:I'm a rule breaker Go for it. This is our party, we can do what we want to. That's right.
Speaker 1:Black Girls Go Global program is a one-week STEAM educational program where participants travel to a host country to emerge themselves in an educational topic that hits on one or more 17 sustainable development goals as established by the United Nations in 2015 for a better world cultural and recreational activities. So I invite you to Black Boomer Besties from Brooklyn.
Speaker 2:Listen, listen. You're so lucky that I've known you for so long. I let you get away with so much. Hi guys, I'm Angela. That's Leslie, my best friend of almost 50 years. We are two free-thinking 60-something-year-old Black women and we've decided to live life more boldly and more joyfully. We invite you to join us on our journey. Hopefully, you're on your journey or you're going to start your journey, and we started this podcast so that we can share insights and people who are doing amazing things, like the guests that we have today.
Speaker 2:This particular episode is within a mini series that we're doing around legacy. We talk about legacy a lot here because we're older women and you know we're at the point in our lives where we're thinking about things like that what is our legacy, what are we leaving behind, and so on. How can we help? How can we reach a hand? Because we tend to be professional women that we invite on the podcast, and so this organization that Leslie mentioned is an opportunity for you to see women in legacy work, and also I want to remind you that a part of our African diasporic culture is to support one another. We don't have to up with people who are doing good work and we can do that work together, and so we encourage you, as you hear about Black Girls Go Global, that you can think about how you can support this organization and, yeah, so welcome.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I introduce you to Rolanda Goodwin and Lisa Randolph from Black Girls Go Global. Welcome ladies. Thank you, great to be here, yes, yes.
Speaker 2:Okay, so the first thing I want to talk about is why, like who had the idea, what was the nucleus of the idea? Because every great move in the world starts with the idea. Where did this organization have its roots?
Speaker 3:the genesis of Black Girls Goes Global. The founder, alma Garcia, and I have been doing mentorship work with youth for over oh my gosh. We met, like maybe 12 years ago, mentoring through organizations that work towards empowering women, and so it's just a passion for both of us, and really the whole organization came about through an organic conversation we were having, and isn't that the way the most things start?
Speaker 2:It's just through chatting right, it's just a conversation.
Speaker 3:And so at the time, alma had gone on to do some volunteer work with an organization called Bright Light Volunteers and what she was doing is she was actually a I'm losing my pieces here, but I'm putting them back in she was actually a program director for this organization. He was actually a program director for this organization, and what this organization would do is they would take high school kids grades 10 through 12, to other countries to learn about different cultures, education around other cultures, to learn about leadership and just to see the bigger scope of the world. And just to see the bigger scope of the world. But so they went to Cuba, peru, costa Rica and a few other places.
Speaker 3:And one thing Alma noticed was that there were never any black girls involved. You know, it was always Anglo to the director of this organization and said I would like to start a leg where we see more Black girls involved in some of these trips, and so there was a lot of discussion around it, and so we kind of became a guinea pig program for them, so to speak. But one of the things that we noticed because Alma was telling me what she wanted to do one of the things that was noticed was, even though they were saying that we wanted their programs. We had like this much on the website. You know, very like a brochure that did not show representation of us. It was a brochure that still had white kids on it.
Speaker 3:Yeah, you know just put it out there, yeah. And so we're like you're not speaking to our audience. And so Alma and I talked about how to really make this happen, and so we just we took baby steps with it and I worked with her on putting together a strategy. And I said what on putting together a strategy? And I said what is your big, bigger vision for this program? And so I went to Costa Rica, because she lives in Costa Rica Now. She retired there. Ah, okay.
Speaker 2:She's going to be my neighbor.
Speaker 3:Yes, she is she can't wait to meet you. So she, I went, we sat down, talked about what this would look like and how to kick this off, and the rest is really, it's really just history. And I did tell her, I said, you know, alma, we do probably need to tie this around an initiative, because otherwise it's just going to look like a vacation, to take these girls on vacation. So we're not going to get any buy-in from, you know, donors and sponsors. And so we talked about where is there a need, what's lacking? Where can we fill a need with these young Black women and empower them to think about, you know, their careers and dreaming and what they want to do.
Speaker 3:And we came up with STEAM, and actually STEAM because we included art in there. And so that became our focus and that's kind of the genesis of Black Girls Goes Global, you know it's, yes, it's tied to global leadership, global travel, but also when they go to these other countries which we've been to Costa Rica right now they are learning about, as you said, leslie, we're using the sustainable development model, you know, and that's what we're going to continue to focus on, and so they're going to learn about the different ways that they could step into that space and become STEAM professionals, where there's huge lack of people that look like us.
Speaker 1:Yeah so yeah. Yeah, I looked at one of the sample itineraries for the trips and we'll talk about that, the details of that, but it was like wow.
Speaker 2:Yeah, what I looked at on the website and it's blackgirlsgoglobalcom. Is that correct?
Speaker 2:It's org org, blackgirlsgoglobalorg, and I loved that you had what a scientist looks like, right, because we tend to have this idea that scientists look a certain way. That's just how things show up, and I think, sometimes, because things are shifting right, because you know the first and the first and the first, we have broken through that but there's still so few, there's still so few and it's still not like a natural thought that, oh, if it's a scientist, oh, it could be a Black woman, right? That doesn't immediately come to mind, and so I think this work continues to be important until that comes to mind, until the question is oh, you know, right, when it's not surprising when you see the person walk in, it's not surprising any longer that this person is in a STEAM field. I want to. You know, this is important to me, so let's just jump right in.
Speaker 2:Maybe, rolanda, you can speak to the A part, because, by the way, I know Rolanda from Cisco. We were colleagues and friends at Cisco, we're techies and so this idea of STEM is very kind of rooted in us S-T-E-M science, technology, engineering and math. But now, thank goodness, many places have added an, a organization transitioned from STEM to STEAM and what that is all about and what might be some of the shifts, because the art part was added to to the equation.
Speaker 4:Yeah, well, I'm the newbie on the board of the rectors, but I believe it's always been this, the STEAM part, as Lisa said, and you know when I was. You know I've been in corporate America for about actually this year 30 years working in the high tech industry and my background is engineering.
Speaker 4:But you know it was years and years ago it was only STEM as Angela said but now I love the expansion to STEAM and it's adding the A, it's adding the arts piece in there and I believe what that brings is additional creativity to things that we do Right. It just gives an additional perspective, particularly for those that are very left brained. I think that's the right term. I'm the very analytical one, you know, logical one, and I'm always amazed when I work with people that just have such a great balance of the technology piece and the creativity side, such as Angela.
Speaker 1:I know she's one of those people. Oh my God.
Speaker 4:So, but I also think that when you add the A in there, it kind of it can draw more people into it. Because when we just say science, technology, engineering and math, just that alone can make someone feel like oh, you know, that's not for me, but you add in those arts, and then it kind of opens up more possibilities.
Speaker 2:Absolutely Sure, and I think the two sides blend into each other right.
Speaker 1:They're not mutually exclusive, that's right.
Speaker 2:There's so many times where you kind of draw these hard lines between things, and I think most people are an intersection of things, some more dominant than others, some more dominant than others. But I do think it's so. When you bring young people together from different sides of this, they kind of bleed into, and so the idea is it becomes a whole brain, not just a left brain or a right brain, it becomes whole brain.
Speaker 3:That diversity yeah, absolutely. And her dexterous brain yeah, yeah, that's right.
Speaker 1:Lisa, I want to pick up on something that you mentioned earlier when you were speaking about the origins of the program where you went to the other. You and Alma went to the other organization and, even though they said yes, you could tell that they weren't really bought in by virtue of their brochures. You know, and it's like wait a minute, this doesn't. You know that's so important. It speaks to who's in the room, and this is something that Angie talks about all the time. We can look at advertisement and whatever and you can know who was not only in the room, but you can tell who's not in the room. So, unless there's a total buy-in, you can tell that they don't know. You know they don't know that this would get them nowhere. You may have put the effort into it, but you're not going to. People need to see themselves.
Speaker 1:The TED Talk I looked at that your co-board member, alexis Scott, put together a couple years ago, where she talked about the curse of invisibility and you just said if we don't see ourselves in these fields, doing these actions, we don't know that it's possible, we don't know. So by being out there, I mean she described painfully at some point where, when she looked at the movie Hidden Figures. It brought her to tears because it was so reminiscent of the experiences that she's had personally. People look at her, people look at me as a physician and they ask where's the doctor? You know when are you going to call my doctor. Or they look at her where's the mathematics? Where's the math professor? You know, they don't know. They don't know what we're supposed to look like. So I love that Ang brought up the fact what does a scientist look like? Looks like all of us.
Speaker 3:Right, right, and I'm glad you guys picked up on that, because that was important for us when it came to rebranding the pictures on the website. When we finally did a separate website, yeah, it was like we need to show that this is what a scientist also looks like. They look like us, yeah.
Speaker 2:And you know I want to like jump into something because I can't shake it. So, and no malintent to the organization, mal intent to the organization, but it's hard for people to make the shift right Unless they've lived the experience of being left out. Do you know what I mean? Of having something that doesn't speak to them, and when? So, when you talked about the fact that, even though you had these conversations, that that they didn't quite, didn't quite get it, um, and the part about being in the room, how many times and I know we've all been in, well, leslie hasn't really been corporate because she's a physician but been in those rooms where those decisions are being made, like you know, when those decisions are being made, and if someone, even in the room, doesn't speak up because you could be in the room and not using your voice, yeah, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2:You, you, you, all the doors are open to you could be sitting there, but you're not using your voice, you're not being the representation, um that that you need to be, and so sometimes, like you guys did, it's's like okay, they're doing their work for that group of people, and so we believe we have to do our work over here for another set of people. Right, you learn and you pivot, and I think it's beautiful that you've created this now for these young Black women to do the work and to go take a little trip abroad too. They have to get passports and all of that they have to get passports.
Speaker 3:Yes, yes, a lot of them haven't even been out of their own backyard, but it's true, yeah.
Speaker 2:Wow, a lot of listen. A lot of 60-year-olds have not been out of their own backyards. You know what I mean and you're starting. This is a whole. It's not to over, not to, it's a whole legacy.
Speaker 3:This is how.
Speaker 2:This is how you change the world. It really is, because they're going to be forever changed.
Speaker 1:There are generations that we just don't travel.
Speaker 3:Let's just say Like we're not a traveling people.
Speaker 1:You know they have their own little circle and enclave and you know their neighborhood and their homes and their communities, but their traveling is not a thing for them. But when the young people come back and say this is what we did and listen, and these are the people that we saw and we got on a plane and we got a passport and what have you? It opens up opportunities, not just to their families, but generations as well.
Speaker 2:Their whole world. Their whole world. So I wanted to kind of touch on. You said that the last trip was was to Costa Rica. How many girls did you take with you?
Speaker 3:You know that was our inaugural trip. We call it our beta group you know, so we have proof of concept that this was going to happen. Beautiful.
Speaker 2:It's very tech of you to have a proof of concept. We have to have a proof of concept, you know.
Speaker 3:I'm not in the tech field, but I am an entrepreneur there, you go.
Speaker 2:Got to have a perfect concept, absolutely.
Speaker 3:So we took nine young ladies with us and they were from different parts of the United States, so we had some from Maryland, some from Georgia, a little place called Sparta Georgia which is very small.
Speaker 3:And then we had one from Tulsa, oklahoma, okay, and yeah, that was our makeup. So a few of them knew each other, but a lot of them did not. So they got the chance to meet each other before because we did some zooms and you know things like that, but they actually met each other during the travels, okay okay, yeah, so that that begs to ask what?
Speaker 2:how do people come into the program? How did you get these people from all over the United States?
Speaker 3:you know at that point because we didn, we were still working on our system, it was about who we knew we would open our mouth and say this is our program. You know, and don't be afraid there again. Getting back to what you said, angela, about using your voice. Yeah, you know, if we didn't open our mouth about what we were doing, we probably would have had that first program and then people were like that is great. You know, how can, how can we get some young ladies involved?
Speaker 3:And that's what it was. It was just us speaking, you know, and the young ladies from Sparta. I was having a breakfast meeting with a colleague of mine and she's from Sparta and I was telling her about the program and she said said how can I get some girls from my school involved? She said I'm on the alumni committee. She said and our girls have? She said to such a poor area in Georgia that they have never been anywhere. And can I get three or four girls involved? Just like that that was it.
Speaker 2:I love that yeah.
Speaker 3:I love that.
Speaker 2:So what's some of the experiences that they've had?
Speaker 3:Being on the trip yeah, While they were in Costa Rica, so the first trip we have, them focus on agriculture, so you know, getting into the whole steam thing. So it was around more like the science piece of it. So they spent a few days at what was a monkey wildlife foundation park and just learned about the agriculture, the soils there, the animals that were there. So we planted trees and things like that that the animals would use to eat and grow things that were safe for them. So they learned what was safe and what wasn't. They learned about water conservation, composting A lot of them didn't know what composting was and then the animals there.
Speaker 3:The interesting thing about this place which, first of all, the place was woman-owned and so the thing, oh it was so beautiful, we wanted it to be a woman-owned partnership, and so it was a refuge place for animals that had been abused. So somebody abused them, ran over them, pulled their wings off, and so it was a place for them to come and heal. And so they learned all about the animals and wildlife there.
Speaker 1:Oh man and they really got into it. They really got into it. Yeah, yeah, hands on, yeah, man and they really got into it.
Speaker 3:They really got into it. Yeah yeah, hands on, yeah yeah. Then they did some beach cleanup, which was about learning about keeping the environment.
Speaker 2:Listen. You took them to the beach and they had to clean up If you want to get in that water.
Speaker 3:We have to make sure it's beautiful and clean for you. Yeah, you know, you did tell them it. We have to make sure it's beautiful.
Speaker 2:You did tell them it wasn't just a vacation, right.
Speaker 3:Exactly so they learned why it was important to keep the environment clean. So you know, and all of that. There again, it fits within the, the sustainability goals.
Speaker 2:You know the 17 goals.
Speaker 3:So everything they did kind of tied into that.
Speaker 1:And what I like is that these are typical things. You're going to find animals everywhere. You're going to find beaches and water and debris and water conservation, and you know these things are not just in beautiful Costa Rica, but they're in your backyard.
Speaker 3:Exactly. Exactly so we did encourage them to come back and go. How can you apply some of the things that you learned to your own environment, you know, or how can you start an initiative to make? A difference to make a difference. So, and moving forward with the 2026 program, we're really going to enforce that and do some really good follow-up on that. Absolutely, you know that reminds me.
Speaker 1:I used to be a high school science teacher before I went to medical school and I took my students one year to a New York City water treatment plant and you know I think about that trip regularly. I recently drove down the West Side Highway in Manhattan and I looked at the water and I mentioned to my partner. I said you know, I was inside that building and I saw the way that the water is treated from whatever. I'll never forget it. This was maybe 30 years ago.
Speaker 3:You know it's, I'll never forget that experience.
Speaker 1:So. So these things stick with them, because I mean I'm drinking water out the faucet, you know?
Speaker 3:Yeah absolutely Like you said. It sticks with you.
Speaker 2:Absolutely Like you said, it sticks with you. So that's what we we're talking about doing legacy work, and I think it's really important to consider as your legacy work getting together with people who are already doing the work right. So these two women are now on the board of Black Girls Go Global, and so that's how they are supporting and becoming a part of this legacy work. What does it, what, what does being on the board require of you and why did you decide to do it? Because, as far as I understand it's, it's voluntary, right. So what made you decide to commit your time and your resources and your skills and your experience to this organization?
Speaker 4:Yeah, I can kind of start, because I've been on the board maybe like a year and a half.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 4:And I found out about this from Facebook and I was the founder and myself. We had a mutual friend on Facebook and I started seeing her post the pictures about, you know, with the girls in Costa Rica and everything. This was during the time of my sabbatical, Angela and Leslie, which you all are aware of yes, we will put a link to that episode where Londa was here talking about her sabbatical.
Speaker 2:This was early in our podcast journey and, yes, yeah, you guys are going to hear all about that story. It's really, really, really, really will get you off your butt.
Speaker 3:That's right. So much for that sabbatical.
Speaker 2:Well, sabbaticals they open you up, though you know, what.
Speaker 4:I mean they give you space in your brain to do things like this, and that's exactly what happened is that I started thinking about how I wanted to do more meaningful work and yes, I'm a mentor and I, you know, do a lot of things but that when I saw that, it just opened my mind to more and I thought about how important it is not just representation but also exposure to more. And so I reached out and Alma welcomed me with open arms. She set up a call with Lisa and her and myself and we started talking and started getting involved. And yeah, I mean it is a time commitment, but when it's something that you're passionate about, you do it.
Speaker 4:Yeah, but I'll let Lisa talk about some of our different committees and how we're structured and everything.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, and absolutely I just to piggyback on what Rolanda said when you're passionate about it, the time commitment just really doesn't matter, you know, if you feel like it's part of your purpose. And I love you guys talking about the legacy, and that was one of the reasons I did. It was because I'm in that legacy phase of my life where, you know, I want to give back and I've always been, like I said earlier, passionate about helping young women, especially young women of color, to find their leadership voices, to make an impact, and this is a great way to do that. And when it's all said and done, what footprint did I leave behind? Yeah, you know, and that's that's kind of the space I'm in right now, and this was a perfect opportunity to continue to have a voice heard afterwards and to empower these young ladies to go into the world and make a difference.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and so they can be innovative and just really make a difference with their talents.
Speaker 2:I can just hear them in there with their classmates. Yeah, when I was in Costa Rica and blah, blah, blah, blah, what.
Speaker 1:Yeah, doing my sustainable work.
Speaker 3:That's what you want. Absolutely, absolutely, because it's absolutely something to brag on.
Speaker 1:You know, they come back. Yeah, I came back and thought about it Now.
Speaker 3:I own my own engineering firm.
Speaker 2:I mean, you know just, that's something, and that that is the the, the seed planting. In such a time as this, yes, yes, where I think the ways that we um, I'm not going to say that we've lost, because I don't believe we've lost them, but the ways of our foreparents, the ways that they survived, I think it's going to be required of us again. We're going to have to brush off these ways that we have survived, creating community. You know, rubbing two knickers together.
Speaker 4:That's how churches were.
Speaker 2:This is. This is how churches were built.
Speaker 1:This is how communities were built, schools were built. We just learned from Dr Corita Brown. Absolutely Public education system in this country was built out of. They say we can't do it. We say we're doing it anywhere.
Speaker 2:Where's that tree?
Speaker 1:we can sit under and educate people.
Speaker 2:That's right. That's right and doing it because we are an inclusive people and doing it, these things that we do, they do create a roadmap for other people, Right, and so I think that you know. I want to ask you how can people help your organization to get some of the things that it needs? What are some of the gaps that you have, that maybe there are people in our audience that can help you to fill them?
Speaker 3:Sure, absolutely. And that kind of leads into Rolanda saying, hey, talk about some of the committees. We need human resources. We really do. We can't scale ourselves without more people. You can have the best mission in the world, but if you don't have the people to implement it right, to move it forward, there's only so much that five, six, seven, 10 people can do. So we really need people to bring their talents to some of our committees. We have a program committee right now and we really need people to help with that. We have our marketing committee. You know, somebody is well versed in marketing, pr, help us to get exposure. We would love to have them share their talents with us. And we also we really need fundraisers. You know. We need people that are not afraid to ask for the funds Right, because airfares are not free Lodging is not free.
Speaker 3:Getting passports is not free, none of that is free, right, and so we do need people that can really help us go out and seek the funding. You know, be it. You know grant writing, be it. Join the fundraising committee, and maybe somebody is good at sponsorships, getting corporations to be sponsors. You know we need somebody in that space right now, or if your company has a matching program think of us, yes or if you're a cousin's company, you know, just think about.
Speaker 3:you know your touch points. You know how many people do you know Share our mission with them, share what we're doing? So you know, yes, that that's what we need as far as human resources.
Speaker 2:Sure, can you tell me a little bit about the program committee? What does the I think the others speak for themselves marketing, fundraising, grant writing. What does the program committee do?
Speaker 3:Well, I'm the program chair, so I'm going to give that to her. Okay, let's go.
Speaker 4:The main thing that the program committee does is we make plans for what the girls would do for the year.
Speaker 4:So right now we're in the middle of the 2026 program, getting very close to deciding the actual project or projects our girls will work on in Costa Rica. So that's the main. That's the main thing that the program committee does and what we love to see. We like to have people that have diverse skill sets, like to have people that have diverse skill sets. So we have people that sit on the committee that have, you know, education background, even education in STEM, you know a corporate background. So you know, we want to expand that you know as much as we can, but that's the main goal of the program committee. Okay, okay.
Speaker 1:What region in Costa Rica do you all go to?
Speaker 3:What region in Costa Rica do you all go to? We the program was on the Pacific side, so Bonacosta. So, we flew into Liberia.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, or Liberia.
Speaker 3:Yeah, Liberia.
Speaker 1:I was there last year and we went from one end of the country to the other. Oh my goodness, oh my gosh yes yes, we haven't quite done that yet we haven't quite done that yet we haven't quite done that yet.
Speaker 3:We would like to eventually One of the things we did decide we were going to try to do the Caribbean side, but it just isn't cost effective for us right now, being such a young organization. I mean, it would have added an additional probably $30,000, $40,000 to our budget.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:So we decided, you know what, let's go back to the Pacific side in 2026 and form more partnerships there, yeah, and then we can look at moving on to the other side eventually. So you know, right now our goal is to raise the program. Next year is going to cost us about $50,000 total. So that's what we need to raise financially in order to make this thing happen, and you know we'll do that with an integrated mix of different things.
Speaker 1:Sure.
Speaker 3:The events, the individual giving the grants. We actually have a fundraiser. Actually, it's kind of a campaign, a giving campaign coming up in September. Oh, okay, good.
Speaker 2:That we'd like to share with everybody. Why don't you speak to what those dates are? We'll make sure to put them in the description notes, but, um, do you have them?
Speaker 3:yeah, locked in we actually do um, so it's this is our first year doing it and it's um. We're calling it an annual fall cafe and it's going to be for the month of september, so we're kicking it off september 1st through the 30th. Ah good Okay.
Speaker 3:And basically, I mean what it is is our goal with this is that we want to at least get $50. Who will do a $25 recurring pledge like a recurring oh yeah, I mean that's very reasonable 50 people to give us $25 over the course of 12 months and we think we can do more, but we think 50 is very realistic. I mean we make that happen. That'll bring in $15,000 for the organization. So imagine if we had 100 people who would give us $25 a month.
Speaker 2:Right, right. I think that's Rolanda and I we know this the SMART goal right.
Speaker 3:Right, you break it down.
Speaker 2:Realistic. Realistic that part.
Speaker 3:Time bound, Time bound. Exactly. I'm a big smart girl person. Let's go.
Speaker 1:You're safe sublet, so from now you're just going to need 49 donors, because.
Speaker 4:I'm in. Thank you Thank you Listen.
Speaker 2:should I jump in?
Speaker 3:Yeah, let me jump in. All right, let me jump in. All right, let me jump in All right, all right, okay. 48.
Speaker 2:The ACLU may have to be put on the back burner for a little bit there. Thank you.
Speaker 1:But you know, I'll tell you why I think this is this, or a few reasons why this is important and this giving campaign is helpful. It was triggered by what you just said putting something else on the back burner. What Karen Hunter on Urban View that I listened to on Sirius XM Radio does? They vet certain nonprofit organizations who they determine to be worthy of donations and whatever, and they ask their readers this month, let's all support this organization, and next month they encourage their listeners, this organization, you know this. And then they do that on a monthly basis so that the currency can come. It's undivided, it comes to one organization at a time so they can meet their financial goals when they need to, rather than say here's a list of 10 people, let's all you know, pick what you like or whatever. I love the fact that they do that. So if you say, ange, for the next 12 months I'm going to donate my $25 a month to this organization. Next year will be someone else.
Speaker 1:Because by that time you all will have way more than your $50,000 that you need for the year, because you're only going to donate right.
Speaker 3:Yeah, let me tell you what this is.
Speaker 2:There's something we have in Jamaica. It's in other places in the diaspora too. We call it patna, in Jamaica, partner Patna, but in Trinidad, I think they call it susu and all different names.
Speaker 1:Right, and this is exactly what it is.
Speaker 2:It's like you put your money into a pot and then that pot rotates.
Speaker 1:Whoever needs them. Well, it's on a rotation basis.
Speaker 2:So you know when the pot is going to be yours, so you can use it to if you want to set up a shop, or you know whatever it is, plan for graduation, whatever it is you know that January is when you're getting the pot and it rotates around and that's how so many things of substance are started in. Jamaica is around. This is micro lending. It is a wonderful way to approach community, building community.
Speaker 3:So let's go, let's go, let's go, we're going to help the next group of Black girls going global.
Speaker 2:That's right, we love it, I love it, I love it, let's do it.
Speaker 4:And I want to leave you guys with some numbers, because you can't fight with the numbers. And if you look at the the the STEM workforce, and you break down, you look at the statistics, it's over 60. It's like around 63 percent white, 15 percent Hispanic, 8 percent, 8.2 percent African-American Now that's African-American, but let's look percent African-American Now that's African-American. But let's look at African-American women. We barely make up about 2 percent of the STEM workforce. You can check those numbers on the National Science Board or, you know, google it. So this is added to the slide.
Speaker 1:That sounds like the National Science Board may be removed by the time we get to look it up. You know those numbers may be removed. You know how that is.
Speaker 4:It's unbelievable the changes that are being made.
Speaker 2:I grabbed them before you heard it here.
Speaker 4:We grabbed them before they scrubbed it. But you know what Rolanda says, that validates what we're doing.
Speaker 3:That's right. It's our mission. Yes, it validates the we're doing that's right. That's our mission.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 3:Validates the need. The need and we want somebody when Rolanda's ready to hang up you know her and retire her career.
Speaker 1:She's not retiring. She's not retiring.
Speaker 3:You can never retire, you will always. She takes a sabbatical.
Speaker 1:She's going to rest, and then she develops a wellness programical she's going to rest and then she develops a wellness program.
Speaker 4:And then she's going to develop a program for this Exactly.
Speaker 1:But, she's transitioning and pivoting to different things. All of that, All of that exactly.
Speaker 3:But that's why we need this next generation of young women to step in to her place. And so we have to keep feeding that pipeline and eventually, you know, one of our goals, our long-term goals, is to start with girls, even at a younger age. So we've got some great long-term goals also that we would like to share eventually, that's right.
Speaker 1:So we love a call to action, so that's our call to action folks. That's right. So we love a call to action, so that's our call to action folks.
Speaker 2:That's right, let's increase that 2%. You know this idea of you know all lives matters, that idea. When you look at these numbers, you understand why Black Lives Matter. Right, when you see that 2% versus the 63%, you get a sense of why these things matter. It's not that everybody doesn't matter. It's there is a particular need right now with this group of people. Please look at us. Nobody says that about anything else, right? Someone says, oh, we want to, you know it's for breast cancer. Nobody says, oh, why want to? You know it's for breast cancer. Nobody says, oh, why are you focusing on breast cancer? You're not focusing on all these other? Because there's a need right here. We've identified a need right here. This is a need. Two percent, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:That's a shame.
Speaker 2:That's a shame, shame shame and we can do something about it, right In such a time as this.
Speaker 1:It right in such a time as this in such a time as this, and that's what I love that we're not hand wringing you know we can do something you guys have been wonderful. Thank you so much thank you. I appreciate your work.
Speaker 2:We heart you is it going to do it? It didn't do it. Did it do it? I didn't even look. There they go. Oh God, Thank you for being with us. We appreciate you. We will support your work and anything that the Black Boomer Besties from Brooklyn can do to help your organization. Please let us know, we're in.
Speaker 1:Thank you, we're in. Thank you so much. We can be the honorary aunties too.
Speaker 3:Oh, we appreciate that. Yes, you can be the aunties.
Speaker 2:And yes, especially when we move to Panama, they'll just come over.
Speaker 3:that's right, like you said, costa Rica is just the beginning, that's right, alright.
Speaker 1:Well, everybody, this has been another episode of Black Boomer Besties from Brooklyn.
Speaker 2:Brooklyn.
