Episode 45 is the season finale for Season 2 for That Social Work Lady Podcast. Recorded on November 12, 2022, this episode pays homage to my sorority Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. I am so grateful to the two women who joined me to celebrate our sorority's centennial celebration: Dr. Araba Afenyi-Annan and Educator Leola Banks.  We pledged together at the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor (Iota Psi Chapter) and have each done the work to live out our sorority mission - Greater Service, Greater Progress!

Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. was organized on November 12, 1922, in Indianapolis, Indiana, by seven young educators: Mary Lou Allison Gardner Little, Dorothy Hanley Whiteside, Vivian Irene White Marbury, Nannie Mae Gahn Johnson, Hattie Mae Annette Dulin Redford, Bessie Mae Downey Rhoades Martin, and Cubena McClure. The group became an incorporated national collegiate sorority on December 30, 1929, when a charter was granted to the Alpha chapter at Butler University. Since its inception, the dynamic women of Sigma Gamma Rho have built and sustained a well-known and well-respected reputation for leading positive change to help uplift the community through sisterhood, leadership, and service.

LEOLA BANKS, known as Tee to her family and close friends, is a proud native Detroiter and product of the Detroit Public School District; graduating 2nd in her class from Central High School. She currently works as an Assistant Principal with Detroit Public Schools Community District.  Ms. Banks has taught elementary as well as middle school reading, language arts and mathematics.  She also served in various roles (Lead Teacher, Title I Intervention Teacher and Instructional Specialist) prior to her current role in administration. She received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communications from The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and has earned two Master’s degrees in Curriculum & Instruction and Educational Leadership from the University of Detroit Mercy.  Leola is a committed advocate for equity and quality education for under-represented and underprivileged children which has been her motivation for remaining in public education.  Ms. Banks has a close-knit family; two sisters and a very loving mother, her greatest supporter, who raised three girls as a single parent. Additionally, she is a proud member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc., enjoys attending and serving in her church, spending time with family, friends and traveling.  Ms. Banks is honored to be an educator.  She wholeheartedly believes it is her “ministry.” Most importantly, God has had His hands on her for a very long time.  Since her baptism, at the age of 14, she has enjoyed gospel music, reading, and studying the Word of God.  She loves the Lord!

Dr. Araba Afenyi-Annan is a retired academic physician, researcher, and educator. After a life changing injury left her permanently disabled in chronic pain, she was led on a new life path and understanding of healing. As a student and practitioner of A Course In Miracles, she believes her true purpose is to be truly helpful and live a life of Love. Her life is a testament to the power of grace. Now a certified spiritual counselor, facilitator, author and speaker, it is her joy and honor to support others on their journey of spiritual growth and awakening. A mother and co-parent of two teenagers, she believes parenting is an untapped yet vital vehicle for individual and collective transformation. 

To learn more about the illustrious organization, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc.:
https://www.sgrho1922.org/
https://www.instagram.com/sgrhoupdates/
https://www.facebook.com/sgrhoupdates

Comediennes are community griots. They make spaces for the stories that we all need to know and tell them with flare and honesty while making us laugh.

enoje (EN-oh-jay) is a community griot. In episode 44, she graces me with her brilliance, and goals for creating space for women to explore comedy for our mental health and well being. She takes her cue from her own mother's laughter. Remembering stories from her childhood of her mother and the aunties being in the kitchen telling each other stories from their day and laughing uncontrollably. Their joy is the focus of her mission. More specifically, extending that joy to as many women who are willing to join in.

enoje is the founder and director of Bish Funny, a comedy project that creates opportunities for women+. She's the host of Let 'Em Eat Laughs, a conversation series about comedians, food, and culture. enoje is an Executive Board member of the Black Women in Comedy Laff Fest in New York. And she is the host and producer of Toronto's recently launched popular comedy series, Ladies Love Cool Jokes.

Follow enoje on
Instagram @funnybishness or
Ladies Love Cool Jokes
The Black Women in Comedy Laff Fest

Abortion is a medical procedure that ends a pregnancy.  Why then is something so basic at the heart of so many toxic conversations?

Episode 43 brings a topic that is very dear to my heart - bodily autonomy. It’s time we reframe the abortion conversation as a discussion about right to privacy and bodily autonomy.  Any other approach to this conversation is problematic and grounded in patriarchal toxicity. American citizens with the capacity for pregnancy deserve to be able to make medical decisions about their bodies with the guidance of medical care professions of their choosing without the interference of people who are ignorant to the actual functions of the female reproduction system. 

Learn more about the facts on abortion and reproductive health:
https://usafacts.org/data/topics/security-safety/child-care-and-safety/foster-care/children-in-foster-care/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=ND-StatsData&gclid=Cj0KCQjwqc6aBhC4ARIsAN06NmMfs-NCPJ8aVdLIo10CN5q44b-yhnuANNN0POT1umbfjGf9yo3ainsaAvcaEALw_wcB

https://www.statista.com/statistics/191226/reported-forcible-rape-rate-in-the-us-since-1990/

https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/abortion/in-clinic-abortion-procedures

https://www.amnesty.org/en/what-we-do/sexual-and-reproductive-rights/abortion-facts/

https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/dilation-and-curettage/about/pac-20384910