A Message from Achea: #FreeYourVoice and the YWCA Activists & Agitators Event
Good morning everyone!
First and foremost, I want to take some time to say hello and introduce myself. My name is Achea Redd (but you can call me Keys), and I am the founder of Real Girls F.A.R.T., which stands for fearless, authentic, rescuer and trailblazer. I encourage women to be free, to be themselves, to find their voices and to let it out. When I first came up with the acronym, I wasn't trying to be clever. It just fit.
Meanwhile, in the process of naming Real Girls F.A.R.T., I also had a mental health scare.
About three and a half years ago, I had a nervous breakdown, which furthered my mission to create a mental health advocacy platform—a safe haven, if you will—through social media, events and speaking to women all over (you can read my full story here).
In addition, I just released a book in June called Be Free. Be You. In a nutshell, I'm a new indie published author, which means I’m an independent published author. So, please support by purchasing your very own copy on Amazon or my website!
#FreeYourVoice + Activists and Agitators
Over the last couple of weeks, we did our Real Girls F.A.R.T. #FreeYourVoice Campaign—and it was a huge success. Then, we capped it off with our Activists and Agitators event with the YWCA Columbus, where I was chosen as the keynote speaker. Due to the success of both, I’m excited to report that we've gained over 1,200 new followers!
To all the new followers, I can’t thank you enough for joining us. I hope that you find the encouragement, the strength, and the empowerment that you need through your mental health journey—whether it’s for yourself or your loved ones. I hope that we can continue to be a source of inspiration for you.
Also, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the Activists and Agitators event last week with the YWCA Columbus. What an amazing night, and possibly one of the best nights of my life. The energy in the room, the women on stage who spoke and performed for the show was just incredible. The YWCA—these ladies here in Columbus—are killing it. And their programs and mission for older and younger women are amazing. If you have a YWCA in your town, try to get plugged in and see what they're doing. The one here in C-Bus is just amazing.
My gratitude for being chosen as this year's keynote is off the charts. And I think all the Instagram stuff is great. All of the standing ovations. All of those things that we were able to capture on social was amazing. But the best part was being pulled to the side after the event and hearing all of your stories—personal stories about how you were impacted or inspired or touched by something that I said or how you can relate. Whether it was being encouraged to continue to take your medicine, feeling like you weren't alone with a mental health diagnosis or learning that you don't have to just survive, but you can thrive and still live your life in its fullness.
I love to share my story, but I'll also carry the stories of all the other women with me, whether it's them or their daughter or their mother or their sisters or their friends. I carry all of that in my heart every time I speak.
So again, thank you YWCA Columbus and thank you to all of my new followers!
What’s Coming Up Next...
Before I go, there’s one last thing I want to leave you with…
If you are local to Columbus or the central Ohio area, I am so excited to announce that I’ll be partnering up with Zora’s House for a special upcoming event! This will be a question-and-answer discussion platform. The panel will feature myself, the founder of Zora’s House and a couple of other bad-to-the-bone females. Together, we’ll be discussing how we created platforms and businesses based on our experiences and what we were needing at that particular time in our lives. We're going to be having some food, drinks and time to share and enjoy each other’s fellowship. If you’d like to learn more, you can grab your tickets here! It's going to be a great event for the community.
So, with all of that being said, I look forward to connecting with you guys in the very near future! As always, keeping it real with Keys. Talk soon!