WS Chronicle

By Busta Brown

Postpartum depression is extremely hard to cope with. It creates a disconnect between a mother and her newborn baby. A good friend of mine shared with me that she suffered from postpartum depression up until her daughter was three years old. Another good friend shared, “The depression is real, Busta. I pushed everyone away, so I had no one to talk to or lean on.” 

I can only imagine how much more difficult postpartum depression must be when a mother has no money for all the essentials needed for her newborn baby. 

“What I’m finding in the Piedmont Triad area is mothers have to qualify for certain programs, and a lot of the women I’ve met said it’s hard for them because they’re either over the income (level) or under. So, I decided to do something about it,” said Taleeka Jones. 

Taleeka is the CEO, founder and executive director of Kinsley, Me and Company. It’s a nonprofit organization that does what Taleeka calls a “Community Baby Shower.” Twice a year the single mother of one collects donations from local businesses and then creates diaper bags with all the essentials needed for newborns, including formula. 

“There are no qualifications needed to receive one of our diaper bags. The only thing I ask is that they spread the word so we can receive donations to help as many mothers as possible. 

“If a mother is struggling to provide for her newborn, that takes her postpartum depression to the next level. This summer we’ll have a mothers and babies postpartum depression and stress management support group,” shared an excited Taleeka. She’s earned a certification from Northwestern University’s Mothers and Babies course. 

“We talked about coping skills when dealing with postpartum depression or just life in general. We talked about strategies to manage our everyday routine habits, our thought process and how to change them and keep it positive and productive.”

The seed for Kinsley, Me and Company was planted while Taleeka was pregnant with her daughter Kinsley. She began journaling about opening a center and daycare for low-income families. In 2019, shortly after the young CEO’s daughter was born, she attended an event that inspired the vision to start a nonprofit. After the event, Taleeka and a good friend were on a mission. “We did some extensive research, a lot of hard work and then created a website to get the word out.” In 2020, Kinsley, Me and Company was born. 

In 2013, Taleeka moved from Coatesville, Pennsylvania, to Greensboro to attend NC A&T. She reflected on her experience of not having support and feeling alone. “It was very challenging because I was used to family support. When I moved to Greensboro, I didn’t know anyone, so I had no choice but to figure it all out.” 

The Pennsylvania native can easily relate to the mothers who share with her their testimonies of feeling alone and not having support. “My goal with Kinsley, Me and Company is to unify mothers from all walks of life, because we all have something in common and we all need support. 

“My next step is to open a maternity home and a family center. I plan to keep my businesses very intimate so I’m always connected and accessible to my clients and employees. I will never allow myself to be untouchable,” shared Taleeka. 

I asked why she named her organization after her daughter. “I want to leave a legacy for Kinsley. She helps me stock items in the diaper bags and also helps pass the bags to the mothers. Seeing me help so many mothers and babies, she’s already developed a sense of humility, integrity and an open and kind heart. That’s very important to me.” 

One of Taleeka’s personality traits that I love is how she laughed and smiled during the entire interview. During our brief conversation about the strained relationship she had with her mother, she kept that positive spirit. “It was tough at one point. But now she’s become one of my biggest supporters. She loves to share how proud she is of the woman I’ve become, and I do the same with my daughter.” 

As a child who grew up in a low-income community in San Francisco, I’ve witnessed firsthand how mothers with newborns struggled to provide the necessary essentials needed to keep their babies healthy and strong. This is undoubtedly one of the most important and much needed organizations in the Triad area. I’d love to see Kinsley, Me and Company receive enough donations to have a Community Baby Shower each month. 

The impact is growing. Since 2020, they’ve served nearly 100 families in the Triad area. For more information or to make a donation, visit www.kinsleymeandco.org, send an email to kinsleymeandco@gmail.com, and follow them on social media @Kinsley, Me and Company.

 “My favorite scripture is “Write the vision; make it plain.” That’s what I live by. I wrote that I will have a nonprofit and it came into fruition.” 

My phenomenal Person of the Week is Taleeka Jones.