For The Breast of Us has always been a platform for women of color to flex. Our #WeRunThis campaign requires that we have a place to represent how we run our lives in our own words through photographs and videos. We aim to continue to lift, support, and encourage women to live their lives! Women of color are constantly being ignored and underrepresented in all industries. Business is no different.
For the month of September, For The Breast of Us focuses on Baddies in Business.
Meet these 6 #BaddiesinBusiness that you need to know NOW.
Mimi Frazier | Founder, CEO | Business: Linkage Beauty Movement LLC
Tell us about your breast cancer diagnosis or your personal relationship with breast cancer if you weren’t diagnosed yourself?
Mimi was diagnosed in 2015 with Stage 3 Invasive Breast Cancer HER 2 Positive. Since her diagnosis, she has been in chemotherapy, radiation, had a double mastectomy, and a salpingo oophorectomy. The cancer that she developed changed her life dramatically. As a byproduct of the many procedures to dispel the cancer, she developed several different life threatening ailments that require continuous observation, infusion treatments for the next 10-20 years, and many more therapies, medications, weekly lab testing, scans, and doctor’s appointments.
How did your experience with breast cancer inspire your work?
She was inspired to create Linkage Beauty Movement LLC and Linkage Essentials to empower women going through what she was going through internally. There was a time that she hated her body and what she had to endure. Mimi never wanted any women to go through all of that too. Her work to make a difference, will to live, and the strength and support she gained from so many women around the world on her journey, gave her the motivation to start LBM.
What has been your greatest accomplishment as a #BaddieinBusiness?
Mimi’s biggest accomplishment would be that she is still alive. She was given only a 30% chance of survival at diagnosis. Also, creating a movement that has changed lives.
How do you hope your work will make a difference in the world?
Once she completes her masters degree in 2023, she will open Linkage Cancer Centers across the US that will serve to educate, assist, and support those fighting and surviving breast cancer. Linkage will be a full service center that will provide wellness products, case management, health resources and unlimited access to support throughout the cities they operate in. Being able to link and connect people and spread love and empowerment while fighting for a cure is how Mimi hopes to make a difference in the world.
Connect With Mimi
IG: @linkagebeauty IG: @linkageessentials | FB: Linkage Beauty Movement | FB: Linkage Essentials | LinkedIn: Linkage Beauty Movement | TikTok: @linkageessentials | Linktr.ee: https://linktr.ee/LinkageBeautyLLC | Website: https://linkagebeauty-worldwide.site123.me/
Vanessa Marie | Founder, CEO | Business: Lavish Voltives Candle Co
Tell us about your breast cancer diagnosis or your personal relationship with breast cancer if you weren’t diagnosed yourself?
Vanessa was diagnosed at the age of 33 in April 2020. She thought her primary focus would be protecting herself from a COVID diagnosis, but nope a cancer diagnosis decided to be the star player. She remembered discovering the lump herself, and immediately thinking to herself “What the heck is this?” A few days later she scheduled an appointment for an annual pap and figured she would just mention it at the time of the appointment. She is so grateful that her gynecologist took her concerns seriously and referred her to an imaging center for a mammogram and ultrasound.
Unfortunately, the doctor that reviewed her images did not take her concern as seriously. He told Vanessa that he was 95% sure that it was a fibroadenoma and his recommendation was to keep an eye on it for 6 months. She did not find peace in her spirit whatsoever, and he must have seen it on her face because he then offered to do a biopsy. She immediately jumped to take him up on his offer, not because she knew in her heart that it was cancer, but because she knew a biopsy would be the only way to know for certain that it wasn’t cancer.
When she received her diagnosis, she was in complete shock. She just couldn’t believe what she heard. It was Stage 2 Grade 3 ER/PR+ HER2- Invasive Ductal Carcinoma. She held it together until the doctor left the room before bawling her eyes out. Life was going so well for Vanessa; she had just moved to a new state to be closer to her boyfriend and they had begun a beautiful life together. Once she received the diagnosis, things moved really fast; between further testing, MRI’s, meeting a breast surgeon, oncologist, selecting and having surgery, chemotherapy, and then reconstruction.
Vanessa was deemed cancer free on May 11, 2020 after having a double mastectomy. Due to no lymph node involvement and clear nodes, her oncologist recommended four TC chemo treatments over the course of 12 weeks. It was the longest 12 weeks ever! The physical side effects were manageable, but the mental and emotional side effects were extremely hard.
She delayed reconstruction because the plastic surgeon wanted to make sure that there wasn’t a need for radiation. During this time, she had been flat for a little over a year due to just needing a break and wanting to allow her body to heal. Vanessa had tissue expanders placed in May 2021, then swapped them for implants in September 2021. Going from having no surgery scars to having several really took a toll on her confidence. She is now at a place where she is just so grateful to still be here.
How did your experience with breast cancer inspire your work?
Vanessa had been playing around with the idea of making candles for a few months before her diagnosis, but didn’t put things into action. In the midst of going through chemo treatments, she felt inspired. She knew that what she was going through couldn’t be for nothing. Vanessa began researching the best waxes, scents, wicks, etc. She knew that it would be her responsibility to inspire other women to keep living and doing the things that they desire while still having a place in this world. Cancer lit a fire within her to do ALL of the things that she used to fear failing. Lavish Voltives is a luxury 100% soy candle line. The candles are made with fragrance oils that are free from carcinogens, organ toxins, acute toxins, reproductive toxins, and mutagens. They are hand-poured and marbled by Vanessa. Voltives is a playful fusion of the words “volts” and “votives” because the candles are sure to deliver a positive energy.
What has been your greatest accomplishment as a #BaddieinBusiness?
Vanessa’s greatest accomplishment would be that she kept going, especially on the hard days. She gave herself grace, even on the hardest days
How do you hope your work will make a difference in the world?
Vanessa’s hope is that people see her testimony through her candles. She hopes that when they see her little ol’ self (she is 4’11), they see the giants that she has slayed to get to where she is now. She hopes that her work inspires anyone going through a battle, whether it’s cancer, mental illness, etc. that they see there’s life on the other side. She hopes that her work and her story inspires others to keep going, giving themselves grace, even on the hard days.
Connect With Vanessa
IG: @lavishvoltives | Website: www.lavishvoltives.myshopify.com
Sonya Keshwani | Founder, CEO | StyleEsteem Wardrobe
Tell us about your breast cancer diagnosis or your personal relationship with breast cancer if you weren’t diagnosed yourself?
Sonya was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 29 with no family history. She discovered her lump while showering and knew that this was not normal for her body. Despite her young age and lack of familial history, her gut feeling made her persistent in getting the medical attention that she needed until she knew her prognosis. She was diagnosed with an early stage, triple positive breast cancer for which she would need a full year of active treatment and multiple surgeries. She later discovered that she carried a rare genetic mutation known as BARD1, which poses a heightened risk for breast cancer. Since her diagnosis, she has been very open about her journey with the hope to inspire patients and to educate women, especially brown women, about the importance of breast health.
How did your experience with breast cancer inspire your work?
After she was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 29, she lost her hair to chemo, and couldn’t find a comfortable and fashionable solution. She started shopping for fabrics next to her infusion center, and experimenting with her sewing machine between rounds of chemo. She ended up creating turbans that made her feel stylish and confident again, and inspired her to launch StyleEsteem Wardrobe. Today, StyleEsteem is the only label to create pre-tied headwear by season and occasion, so women can shop for head coverings the same way they shop for clothes. StyleEsteem’s designs have been presented at New York Fashion Week and have been covered by the New York Times, Good Morning America, Cancer Wellness Magazine, and others. StyleEsteem also serves as a digital community for support and empowerment, and is partnered with non-profit organizations and hospitals globally through its turban donation program for patients.
What has been your greatest accomplishment as a #BaddieinBusiness?
As a cancer survivor, she has learned to treat every single day as an accomplishment. Each day that she is blessed to get up, Sonya strives to be the best entrepreneur, advocate, wife, daughter, and cat mom that she can be. Each day that she spends showing women that they are beautiful no matter what, and that fashion can empower them through a diagnosis and hair loss, is a day that she would call an accomplishment. Going through a diagnosis gave Sonya her purpose and taught her that if she lives every day through her purpose, she is doing this life the justice it deserves.
How do you hope your work will make a difference in the world?
After she lost her hair to chemo, she realized that there is a gap in the fashion industry: chemo patients –women who are facing cancer and hair loss – have been overlooked. What was available to her – uncomfortable wigs and drab chemo beanies – was created for the patient in her, not the woman. Sonya launched StyleEsteem so women can have the opportunity to explore the fluidity of their beauty throughout their hair journey, through fashion. Through her designs, she hopes each of our hair journeys is celebrated and that hair loss is not simply treated as a by-product of chemotherapy, but as a quality of life issue. When a woman puts on one of her turbans – whether it’s a runway couture style or a loungewear design – Sonya wants her to feel like she is wearing a superhero cape and that nothing can stop her!
Connect With Sonya
IG: @styleesteem | IG: @nymannequin | FB: styleesteemshop FB: nymannequin | TW: @styleesteem | LinkedIn: sonyakeshwani | TikTok: @styleesteem | TikTok: @ny.mannequin | Website: www.styleesteem.com
Shar Schmidt | Owner | High Vibrations by Shar Schmidt
Tell us about your breast cancer diagnosis or your personal relationship with breast cancer if you weren’t diagnosed yourself?
Shar was diagnosed with Stage III Triple Negative Breast Cancer, & she is BRCA1+
How did your experience with breast cancer inspire your work?
Shar was inspired to incorporate crystals into her life when she was struggling to cope with the side effects of cancer treatment & other illnesses. It’s helped her tremendously.
What has been your greatest accomplishment as a #BaddieinBusiness?
Her greatest accomplishment was having her pieces sent out to celebrity women of color; and it’s worn & loved by her good friends, Selma Blair & Liz Carey.
How do you hope your work will make a difference in the world?
Shar hopes that people will come to appreciate the healing properties & beauty of crystals. We put our bodies through so much on a daily basis – stress, environmental pollution, negative energy/vibes, & chronic pains. Even if you don’t feel the vibes, they look great when worn. You can coordinate crystals with just about any outfit or occasion!
Connect With Shar
IG: @highvibrationsbysharschmidt | FB: high vibrations by shar schmidt | TikTok: HighVibesbySharSchmidt | Website: http://Highvibrationsbysharschmidt.com
Lauren Candies Tarpley | Author | Book: Type A Guide to Cancer
Tell us about your breast cancer diagnosis or your personal relationship with breast cancer if you weren’t diagnosed yourself?
Lauren was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer September 2020 at the age of 34. Her son was 17 months old and the pandemic was in full swing. She had to go through treatment alone, but that taught her the levels of strength that she would have never known.
How did your experience with breast cancer inspire your work?
She started journaling during treatment and the rest is history. Lauren never thought that she would write a book. But she never really thought that she would get cancer either. Her book was written out of love and to assist in the difficult conversations that cancer patients find themselves having days after being diagnosed.
Type A Guide to Cancer is a story about Lauren’s experience with cancer and her journey. She shared the things that she learned about racial disparities in medicine, applying for grants, and the helpful information for the different parts of treatment.
Too Many Cells (available in both English and Spanish) was written to explain to children what their family members are going through with a cancer diagnosis and active treatment.
What has been your greatest accomplishment as a #BaddieinBusiness?
Publishing her books and getting the information out there is Lauren’s second greatest achievement. “I want my pen to have a purpose.” Raising her son with her husband is her greatest achievement.
How do you hope your work will make a difference in the world?
Lauren hopes that her books empower people who don’t know where to start after a diagnosis. Also, she hopes that her books help them have the difficult conversations, whether it’s with their doctor or a member of their family
Connect With Lauren
IG: @typeaguidetocancer | FB: type A guide to cancer | TW: @typeaguide2cncr | LinkedIn: Lauren Tarpley | TikTok: @typeaguidetocancer | Website: www.typeaguidetocancer.com
Jamil Rivers | Founder, CEO | Business: The Chrysalis Initiative
Tell us about your breast cancer diagnosis or your personal relationship with breast cancer if you weren’t diagnosed yourself?
In 2018, at age 39, Jamil was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer de novo (meaning that the cancer had already spread throughout her body at the time it was discovered). It was only found because she was not taking no for an answer with her doctors about a persistent cough that she developed. A chest x-ray showed a shadow on her lung. More imaging identified cancer in her liver and other organs sites in her body.
Jamil was stage IV from the start. She was devastated, thinking first of her children –– three boys, the youngest of which was in kindergarten at the time. Her husband had already gone through colon cancer, and now it was up to Jamil to figure out how to work full-time, undergo treatment, take care of herself and her family, and not overwhelm her husband.
She knew that she had to take advantage of support and survive. She connected with many advocacy organizations to learn as much as she could.
At the same time, she was new to her job, so she did not reveal to her colleagues that she was going through chemotherapy and was about to accept a new body image. But her husband said, “Babe, you are not your hair.” Using those kind words, he reassured Jamil that losing her hair and other physical changes that came with beginning breast cancer treatment were not going to define who she was. And with that, he took his clippers and promptly helped her shave her hair off. Jamil found a wig that she liked and just kept working like nothing was going on.
For more, see these links:
Jamil’s Story | Health Equity | American Cancer Society – YouTube
Rick’s Story | Colon Cancer Screening – YouTube
How did your experience with breast cancer inspire your work?
Jamil dug deep for the information that might help ensure that she got the best care possible. Soon, other women — especially women of color —began to come to her, saying that Jamil looked like she was finding her way through and asking if she could share what she was learning and doing. She saw that Black women were running into challenges, in some cases just to know what questions to ask and/or to get a standard level of care.
Data shows that a Black woman diagnosed with breast cancer is 71% more likely to die from the disease than a white woman, thus contributing to an overall 40% higher mortality rate for Black women from breast cancer. Black women tend to be diagnosed at a younger age and with more progressed breast cancer, and yet they also tend to experience delays in care and are often not offered the same level of evaluation and options. For example, they are less likely to undergo tumor genomic testing or adjuvant treatment, or to be directed to clinical trials. And this appears to be independent of social determinants of health such as literacy, income, and education level.
Taken together, these conditions are life endangering and psychosocially traumatic to women. They are the results of both explicit (conscious) bias and, more importantly, implicit (unconscious) bias within the care delivery system. Jamil decided that she needed to do something to help these women.
What has been your greatest accomplishment as a #BaddieinBusiness?
On a wish and a promise, Jamil launched The Chrysalis Initiative, and this growing nonprofit organization has caught on. The initiative was based on her knowledge of how to coach and guide women of color who were going through the same journey that she went through. And it was motivated by the structural racism within the healthcare system that has been well documented, but not well addressed.
The Chrysalis Initiative now has approximately 150 trained and experienced patient navigators, who are mostly women of color who have also gone through their breast cancer journey. THeir organization works with top cancer centers, counseling and helping to direct their patients who are women of color along the breast cancer pathway. And an increasing number of their partners welcome the equity assessment/audit aspect of the program, a highly data-driven consult in which we identify racially related gaps in the care at cancer centers. Using patient and provider interviews, surveys, focus groups, and analysis of data extracted from the electronic health record, they point out shortcomings that can be closed to make care equivalent across white and minority patients, as they work collaboratively and cooperatively with clinician providers and managers and administrators in hospital/health systems.
And now their platform has created a mobile app to enhance their ability to track and support patients.
All of this is new and innovative in the field and is garnering exploding interest and support from funders and research partners.
How do you hope your work will make a difference in the world?
Our goal is to promote our intervention approach as a model for breast cancer services, as well as for cancer programs in general—and for achieving equity in a wide array of disease areas where disparities exist. Patient navigation (with mobile support) and equity audits in care programs can help erase discriminatory inequities in care for patients of color. We can drive today’s new level of awareness into action to make these features and concerns standard in the medical field so that care for breast cancer and other diseases becomes color blind and all patients receive the same standards of care regardless of race.
Our growing successes with providers and patients feed into our national campaign to disrupt disparities in breast cancer.
For more, see these links:
Connect With Jamil
FB: chrysalisinitiative | TW: @chrysalisinit | LinkedIn: The Chrysalis Initiative | Website: https://thechrysalisinitiative.org
For The Breast of Us will continue to use our platform to celebrate the depths and diversity of women of color daily. In this space, we will continue to accompany those affected by breast cancer with support, information, and connections to the breast cancer community. We strive to showcase real-life stories celebrating their triumphs, creations, and advocacy like the six #BaddieinBusiness that we featured here.
