Shakeera

My name is Shakira; I grew up in the Bronx, NY, moved to Westchester, and attended middle and high school in Yonkers, N.Y. I was raised in a single-parent household, often witnessing my mother handle everything in stride; I had a good childhood and never understood all the burdens my mother had to endure until I now had a daughter. I did not have much relationship with my father and was always independent. My upbringing was the growth of my entrepreneurial spirit.

As a child, I always wanted to own my own business and aspired to have more than an average "Job." At 18 attended Morgan State University for my undergraduate degree; also, at 18 and in my first year of college, I joined the Army National Guard to try something new and alleviate some of the bills and burdens of student loans. I graduated college with honors in 2005 and completed my 8-year term in the Army in 2009 with an honorable discharge. I later decided that teaching was my passion; I always loved helping children and always took jobs through college that gravitated towards this field, such as being an assistant teacher, mentor, tutor, etc. In 2007 I obtained my Master's Degree in Education from the University of Maryland.

I began the construction of my business in 2012, and throughout this time, I got diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer in 2013 when my daughter was two years old. I underwent chemo, radiation, and a double mastectomy and am happy to say that I am almost seven years cancer-free! I'm blessed to be surrounded by loving, caring, positive people and live every day like it's my last.