WS Chronicle

Alice D. Roseboro, president and founder of Unity in the Heart Ministries Movement, sponsored her second annual business fair at the NAACP office on the corner of Oak Ridge Drive and Butterfield Drive on Saturday, May 21. LaKisha King, community outreach coordinator of the Movement, reached out to several local African American business owners who showcased their products and services to the community: Reynita Blake of Queen of Sheba Naturals, LLC;  Andrea Bristow-Addison, Paparazzi Consultant; Aswad Muntajat, LLC of Natural Haircare and Skincare; Arty and Benita Rose of Wedding Photography by Nita’graphy; and Ellen Leak Forbes of One Love Strong Foundation.

Roseboro sponsored the first business fair in 2020, and she plans to keep this event going strong in the community.

“This gathering is not all about me. It is about empowering one another to help and contribute with this nonprofit organization,” said Roseboro. “When I retired as a teacher, I decided to continue to reach out to special needs children, teach them how to sew, how to focus on their strengths. Children’s skills are lost when they just sit around and play video games all day. I put God first through prayer and meditation daily.”

Roseboro likes to take the children to the library, to recreation centers, to natural environments such as parks, and special art programs.

The mission statement of the organization is “to Cultivate, Inspire and Equip those in our community, including those with special needs, such as elderly and youth, through positive influence and direction.” The vision statement includes these goals: “to seek to empower and strengthen our Winston-Salem, N.C. community using long-term self-reliance training with a focus on entrepreneurship and constant self-improvement.”

LaKisha King, the outreach coordinator of Unity in the Heart Ministries, believes that supporting this nonprofit organization is important work for volunteers in the group.

“I think the Black business fair is important because we are losing touch with the African American community as business owners. So many people are unaware of the many African American business owners who live right in their own neighborhoods,” said Roseboro.

“Marcus Garvey led the largest movement of African Americans toward unity. He taught us to “Think Black” and to “Buy Black” by supporting the businesses in our own communities. This is how we give back to the community. Today we have pulled together some of the volunteers for Unity in the Heart Ministries. We have a connection to sustain.”

Benita P. Rose, the sister of Alice Roseboro, started her business, Nita’Graphy, in 2019 when her husband Arty purchased a camera for her. She enjoys participating in the business fair because it is a way to foster economic growth in the community.

“Generational wealth needs to be revived. We need to teach our children about this concept. We have all of the resources we need,” said Rose.

“We have to come out of our houses to reach out and network with one another. We can also find better quality products when we network.”

Corey Roseboro, 21, president, and Ladarius Barren, 24, vice president of the youth department of Unity in the Heart Ministries, work together to promote the Youth Leadership  Academy. Roseboro is a student at North Carolina A & T State in the area of social work, and Barren is a biology major at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. They volunteer to teach the students African drumming lessons and guitar lessons, in addition to supporting their interests in entrepreneurship.

“Offering community service in the youth department brings us insight into the youth of the community. They love music, and we show them how to play the djembe drums and the steel drums. It is enjoyable to watch them learn.”

Reynita Blake is another volunteer in the organization. She completed her master’s degree in English/Afro-American Literature at North Carolina A & T State University. She encourages the youth to investigate entrepreneurship and was honored to be invited to participate in the Black business fair.

“A business fair allows owners to have more exposure to the community and allows us to network with other Black women in business,” said Blake. “It is a way to encourage the self-confidence of entrepreneurs as we use our creativity to create new products. Although Black Wall Street was destroyed, participating in a Black business fair allows us to reclaim Black Wall Street.”