February may have ended, but Myjahlove is just getting started. The nonprofit started by beauty industry veteran, Reese Samuel, is an organization that focuses on developing professional artists in the Brooklyn community. The community center will serve Bushwick by providing workshops for career development, beauty, health and wellness, as well as art and culture.
“I worked for a luxury natural hair salon and lost the job in July,” said Samuel. “I worked in the beauty industry for almost 20 years and thought – ‘what next?’” It was then that the CEO and single mother of three came up with Myjahlove.
“I’m a mother to three young women who are all artists, my husband is also an artist and I started this with them in mind. At first, I thought ‘vintage boutique,’ but I didn’t think Bushwick needed more of that,” said Samuel. “I wanted to give back to Brooklyn by helping cultivate success and encourage artists no matter what the medium.”
With the help of a dedicated team of directors, Myjahlove aims to maximize the potential of local artists, by providing essential artistic training and mentoring services.
All of the organization’s services are currently free and open to the public. Anyone can walk in and express their concerns and goals. From there the team will try to place the individual with someone on their board that may have exposure in that area.
“Everyone on the board has a background that supports our efforts,” explained Samuel. “If you’re in the arts and want to do corporate, we have experts on our team who have been in that industry for well over 20 years who can help connect people. If you want to be in non-profit work, we have veterans in that industry that will help you navigate that space as well.”
Overall, participants can expect to be linked with mentors who can coach them on everything from to finance, to resumes, to career training and more.
“I think in the end our team has a goal. We want to spread awareness and build our native members of the community up. Gentrification is real and it’s not all bad if we get to know each other and work with each other. I want to help people bond and let them know that we are in Brooklyn for the same reason–for love and this is our movement to unify,” said Samuel.
On Feb. 15, Myjahlove made its debut at Father Knows Best on Wilson Ave. in Bushwick. The event included a silent auction with art donated by Unruly Collective. Guests also had the opportunity to bid on other goods like a hair makeover with a celebrity hair stylist.
If you weren’t able to attend their debut, no worries! Myjahlove plans to treat the Bushwick community to a Spa Day! That’s right keep your eyes peeled this spring for details.
For more information about Myjahlove, follow them on Facebook and Instagram.
Edited March 10: Bushwick Daily originally misstated that Samuel was a single mother. This information has now been updated, as she recently got married to her partner.
Cover photo courtesy of Myjahlove.