Search
Generational Healing
I wrote this piece to highlight the urgency and importance of generational healing. It speaks to the reality that trauma does not always end with one person—it can be passed down quietly through behaviors, beliefs, emotional patterns, and survival habits. When wounds go unaddressed, they often reappear in future generations in different forms, such as unhealthy attachments, toxic relationships, fear of vulnerability, or distorted views of education, success
Delphia Simmons (Founder of Thrive Detroit)
17 hours ago2 min read
Confessions of a Lonely Girl - Victory Boyd
I saw Victory Boyd perform with her siblings at Detroit’s Majestic Theatre in November 2018. The Broken Instrument album had just dropped. Her performance alone was captivating and left me wanting to know more about the artist I had just seen in my Facebook feed earlier that
Martti Peeples
19 hours ago5 min read
Mom: Her Courage Still Speaks
I was about eight years old when my mom gathered her six girls on the living-room sofa in our Arkansas home to tell us some “very important news.” My oldest sister and I listened intently while my four little sisters were squirming and uninterested.
Mom sounded excited. “We’re moving North! We’ll live there from now on,” she told us. “Your father
Delphia Simmons (Founder of Thrive Detroit)
May 266 min read
A Mother’s Bond: A Tribute to Thelma Mason
The bond I shared with my mother was truly unmatchable. We had a unique and special relationship that I will forever cherish. My mother was the real deal—she spoke with wisdom, honesty, and truth. That is what I loved most about her, and it’s what so many others admired as well. She had a genuine spirit, always loving and caring for others, often going above and
Dawn Sadler
May 262 min read
The Blueprint
My mother has been one of the most defining forces in my life—not simply because she gave me life, but because she taught me how to live it.
To know me is to know that my mother’s voice lives in my head daily. In fact, anyone who knows me well has probably heard me stop mid-conversation and say, “My mother always says…” before repeating one of the many practical truths, warnings,
Mardi Woods
May 194 min read
Mother's Day
My mother, Dawn, is a woman who gives love freely—but too often forgets to give that same love back to herself. For 37 years, she has been a hairstylist, blessing others through her gifted hands. But her work has never been limited to the salon. Her life’s greatest artistry has been in how she loves.
She has been the best mom—caring, present
Aliyah Sadler-Brown
May 192 min read
Car Persons
I am not a car person. I still stand by that, even though I shed tears over mine recently.
In October 2004, I purchased my first vehicle, a 2004 Hyundai Sonata. Although my husband and I had purchased several vehicles together by then, this was the only car that was truly mine. There was no
Delphia Simmons (Founder of Thrive Detroit)
Mar 113 min read
In the Right Place at the Right Time: How Isaiah Bridgeman’s Traffic-Light Duet with Oprah Went Viral
For Isaiah Anthony Bridgeman, it was just another day embracing his newest passion: car karaoke.
He was driving through Times Square, windows down, blasting the classic McFadden & Whitehead anthem, “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now.” At a red
Martti Peeples
Feb 244 min read
Detroit’s Black Reading Month
I remember watching movies like Roots in my youth and being so moved by the passion and desire our ancestors—enslaved people—had for reading. While I thought I loved reading, I realized their longing was much deeper.
The risk of being caught learning to read could have been enough to stop many, but it didn’t. They knew
Delphia Simmons (Founder of Thrive Detroit)
Sep 25, 20252 min read
The Blueprint: Mindfulness to Mind-FULL-ness
“The mind is the architect of your destiny. To change your life, you must first change your thoughts.” -Dr. Joe Dispenza
Hello, THRIVE Detroit Family!
I am Sajjiah Bahia Parker, a spiritual seeker, guide, and fellow traveler on the Journey of Self: the sacred path to Self
Sajjiah Bahia Parker
Aug 14, 20253 min read
Are We There Yet?
The rides from Detroit down South didn’t seem long to me as a child. Five of us would be in the back seat of our Cousin John’s Cadillac. We were small and the car was big. One of us would get to sit in the middle up front with Cousin John and Mom. We wouldn’t stop for food, only for gas and the restroom. Mom would pack plenty of food, including
Delphia Simmons (Founder of Thrive Detroit)
Jul 24, 20255 min read
Book Review: Entitlement by Rumaan Alam
Published late last year, Entitlement by Rumaan Alam has been on a few “best of” lists this year--earning praise from authors such as Roxane Gay and Rebecca Makkai--and it’s very well done, if
Laurie Fundukian
Jun 17, 20253 min read
Amen
I think I was about seven when I peeked into Mama Henrietta’s bedroom early one morning. Uncle Bush had already left to do some work on their large farm down South. Mom Henrietta was on her
Delphia Simmons (Founder of Thrive Detroit)
May 19, 20253 min read
Book Review: The Women by Kristen Hannah
I don’t remember being taught much in school about Vietnam. The Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and World Wars I and II were covered, but
Laurie Fundukian
Mar 18, 20255 min read
SANKOFA: Time Travel
Sankofa is an Akan Twi word from Ghana that means “to go back and fetch it.” It’s a concept that encourages people to learn from their past
Delphia Simmons (Founder of Thrive Detroit)
Feb 18, 20254 min read
Book Review: Wellness by Nathan Hill
Wellness is a beautiful book, with so many themes I had to slow down my pace while reading in order to take it all in. At its heart, it seem
Laurie Fundukian
Jan 7, 20253 min read
My Parade
Some years ago, I read a headline that made me smile: “Detroit Wins—America’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Named No. 1 in America.” It had been
Delphia Simmons (Founder of Thrive Detroit)
Jan 3, 20254 min read
A Tale of Bell
“I do daywork” is what I remember hearing her say. It would be a few years before I knew what that was and more than a few decades before I
Delphia Simmons (Founder of Thrive Detroit)
Dec 30, 20244 min read
A Galaxy Far, Far Away
The news the other day featured a picture that had been captured of a galaxy far, far, far away that looked like a huge question mark. I’m s
Diana Creel Elarde
Oct 7, 20243 min read
Book Review: True Gretch by Gretchen Whitmer
This September, with construction all around metro Detroit and the election looming, it was a good time for me to read Governor Gretchen Whi
Laurie Fundukian
Oct 7, 20244 min read