From Blight to Beauty: A Conversation with Mama Shu

Content note: This episode discusses the loss of children, a fatal hit-and-run, gun violence, and suicide. Take what serves you, and leave the rest.

What happens when grief refuses to stay quiet — and starts demanding a reason?

This week, Dionne and Yvette pull a remarkable woman up to the kitchen table: Shamayim "Mama Shu" Harris — mother, educator, community activist, and founder of Avalon Village, the urban oasis she built from reclaimed land in Highland Park, Michigan. A CNN Hero finalist and USA Today Woman of the Year, Mama Shu has turned blight into gardens, homes, and learning spaces — and turned profound loss into purpose.

Mama Shu opens up about the losses that shaped her path: her mother, Mama Christine, whose mantra "keep it moving" still drives her; her son Jacobi Ra — her "star" — killed by a hit-and-run driver at just two years old; and her son Chinyelu, "the Invincible One." Rather than let grief bury her, she let it build something. As she tells Dionne and Yvette, the morning after the unimaginable, she woke and realized: this is bearable. I'm still here.

May your pain find purpose, and may purpose invite joy. Join the conversation on Instagram.