DE NICHOLS14 Moments I Won’t Forget from 2014

FERGUSONThe shooting death of Michael Brown on August 9 in Ferguson, MO, sent a radical shift in the hearts, life missions, and social constructs of so many facets of my life and community. So much has happened that I can’t fully articulate in this small space, but this movement has been at the forefront of my life--our lives-- in 2014. I’ve attempted to share thoughts, stories, actions, and more through my efforts with ConnectedforJustice.com and across my social media. As we enter 2015, the #YearofResistance, I stay committed to our fight for justice and value as a people.

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CLINTON GLOBAL INITIATIVEThe Clinton Global Initiative University has been a transformative experience in my life since I started graduate school in 2012. This year, in addition to having another initiative featured at the conference, I also got to speak during its opening plenary with President Bill Clinton. The Clinton Foundation named me one of its 3 young leaders to watch this year, and I ended the year by being selected as a 2015 Commitment Mentor for incoming commitment makers.

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KEYNOTES + PUBLIC SPEECHES2014 allowed me to speak at 12 conferences and events across the nation, from the Clinton Global Initiative University in Arizona, to Monumental in Washington, DC, and even my hometown of Memphis, TN. I also gave my first two keynote speeches in 2014.

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SOCIAL INITIATIVES I LEDI may have started and been a part of quantifiably the most socially-driven projects of my life in 2014. From incorporating Catalysts by Design, actualizing 1 Design Serves in Pagedale, co-organizing 4 United Story projects, hosting 9 FoodSparks, and launching ConnectedforJustice (Ferguson Beyond Today), some may say my co-conspirators and I have “done the most” in 2014. These will definitely be consolidated more in 2015. 4

CIVIC X + ECHOING GREENIn 2014, I continued to pursue fellowships and learning opportunities in social entrepreneurship with my team at Catalysts by Design. We we selected into Points of Light’s Civic Accelerator, and I was selected as a Finalist for the Echoing Green fellowship.

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COMPLETING GRAD SCHOOLIn December 2014, I finally matriculated from the Brown School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis. In addition to an individualized concentration in youth and economic development, I also specialized in social entrepreneurship. I aim to put this education into even more use in 2015.

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FULL TIME, FULL CIRCLEOn September 1, 2014, I was promoted to a full time role at the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis as its Community Engagement Manager. CAM is one of the funnest and creatively intriguing places in the region, so it is an honor to bridge my love of art, youth, community, and social issues while there. This opportunity comes with support from the Crawford-Taylor family who also had a hand in funding my undergraduate education when I was an Enterprise-Rent-a-Car Scholar at Washington University in St. Louis.

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COAST TO COAST FUNIn 2014, I visited 11 major cities and traveled a total of 46 days. Much of it was for work, public speaking, and social initiatives, but I also got to take three vacation trips with my family throughout the year.

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LEARNING, FAILING, & GROWINGIn many respects, 2014 was awesome. However, numerous of the goals that I started the year with entrepreneurially were not met with the quality, consistency, or tenacity in which I’d planned. These moments taught me much about myself and set a new standard to learn better leadership and innovation strategies.

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STOLEN + NEW CARSOn June 25, 2014 (the anniversary of Michael Jackson’s death btw), my car was stolen from downtown St. Louis near my new place. It was found 5 days later in Florrissant, MO, and spent a month in repair shops. On August 9, 2014 (the day that Michael Brown was shot in Ferguson, MO), I was home in Memphis, TN, buying a new Ford Fusion.

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NEW APARTMENTIn May 2014, I moved into my own loft in downtown St. Louis, MO. This marked my first time living by myself in a rented space for the first time (that one year of college doesn’t really count since I didn’t pay rent). This has taught me greatly about financial discipline, paying bills, frugality, and more. Moreso, it has provided a sense of calm and escape from the highly social life that I live.

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HOSPITALS + HEALTHDuring the weekend of Ferguson October, I found myself unexpectedly in the hospital for the second time to deal with anemia-related illness. I received my third and fourth blood transfusions in life and made a commitment to not let this be a continued trend in my life. With the support of my health-crazed friends and family members, I look forward to whipping my body back into shape and good health in 2015.

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FAMILY LOVE AS PRIORITY2014 was a big year for my family. My grandparents remarried after almost 4 decades of divorce, and this healed a huge void in our family structure. My big brother proposed to marry his girlfriend and high school sweetheart. And, I learned parts of my family history during a Mothers+Daughters Weekend with my mom, grandma, and cousins during winter break. Because of family, I feel like I’m learning more dimensions of what “LOVE” entails.

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FRIENDSHIPS+2014 was a hard year for me when it came to friendships. Much like 2010 when I graduated from college, 2014 was a big year of transition for me and many people I’d known as friends, so even though I met and loved tons of awesome friends, I lost touch with many. This ultimately left me sad, jaded, (perhaps overly) guarded, and unwilling to give my all to a lot of old and new relationships, which is a mentality I want to change moving ahead in 2015. Much love to all of the friends (like Jay to the left!!!) who continue to make my life such a blast regardless of how I’ve made it this year.

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CHEERS TO

MORE AWESOMENESS IN 2015