F or those of you who have never gotten a chance to meet with Brandi Miller, here are some things to know about her. For starters, she is a mother and a grandmother who is also working at Drake University at the office of financial aid. In recent times, she has become a leader within the community as she is the co-founder and president of Black Women 4 Healthy Living, a nonprofit dedicated to helping black women achieve a healthy physical, mental and spiritual lifestyle. Black Women 4 Healthy Living (BW4HL) had its 1-year anniversary back in September of this year, and have been growing strong since its introduction last year. I was able to meet with Brandi Miller to talk about BW4HL, its creation, it’s goals among other things. Q: What is Black Women 4 Healthy Living? What is the goal of this organization? A: “We are a Christ centered wellness movement in the greater Des Moines area. We have a focus of God, community and justice. Our ultimate goal is to see Black women well in their mind, healthy in their body, and strong in their spirit. So, we do that through various initiatives such as educating, outreach, as well as providing opportunities for physical activities such as walks.” Q: What was the driving force to create BW4HL? A: “Well, first of all, I am a Black woman. There is a lot of disparities with Black women as far as health and wellness. Black women are dying at a higher rate than any other group of women in the United States. We’re dying from preventable diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. We also have higher instances of depression. A lot of these preventable things are stress or trauma induced. In almost every category, we are at the top, or at the bottom. There are a lot of issues within our community that are affecting our health and wellness such as our environments and communities where we live, racism… there’s a lot of different things. We’re dealing with interesting dynamics. Our men, our sons and even our daughters are in jail. Who’s raising their kids? Who’s making the income? I wanted to come in to support black women in a way that is not being done. We tend to be the caretakers in our families, communities, churches or places of worship. We feel like we have to work harder than anybody else. We do a great job of taking care of other people but we don’t do a great job of taking car of ourselves, and that is killing us.. And so, I want to change that. I want us to have a better quality of life. I don’t want us to struggle. I don’t want us to die. We’re too important to our families, to the community, and to this world. We’re Black Women 4 Healthy Living. We’re coming back for Black women. Even if they don’t know they need us, I know they need us because I need us. Getting on this journey for started back in 2017 when I rode my first RAGBRAI (Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa). RAGBRAI is a bike ride across the state of Iowa. It was something I challenged myself on. It was actually a faith challenge to trust god for something that felt impossible. At the time, I was not a cyclist. I knew how to ride a bicycle, but not a bike with gears. I never wore a helmet. A friend of mine mentioned that she was training for RAGBRAI and she happened to be a black woman. So, I had decided to try and do this. So, I learned how to ride my bike, started wearing a helmet, and I learned how to ride a lot of miles. In that, I fell in love with biking, which is an area where Black women are underrepresented. It’s a highly white-male dominated sport. While on RAGBRAI, a white man asked me why Picture of Brandi Miller 7
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