{"id":9605,"date":"2023-09-14T19:39:02","date_gmt":"2023-09-14T19:39:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/?p=9605"},"modified":"2023-09-14T19:39:02","modified_gmt":"2023-09-14T19:39:02","slug":"sisters-4-unity-focused-on-community-love-and-support","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/2023\/09\/14\/sisters-4-unity-focused-on-community-love-and-support\/","title":{"rendered":"Sisters 4 Unity Focused on Community, Love and Support"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Abena Rowland, Aviance Hill, LaShawnda Kinnebrew, Yolanda Dawn Tisdale-Waller<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By Dawn Scotland<\/strong><\/em>
\nThe Truth Reporter<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Sisters 4 Unity, a Toledo-based group of mothers whose sons have been victims of gun violence, recently held their first march Saturday, August 26 at Smith Park with an overwhelming turnout.<\/p>\n

The group first met at the Coalition for Peaceful Toledo Neighborhoods that the four former Toledo mayors organized and decided to form their own group, Sisters 4 Unity, last December. The group includes mothers Aviance Hill, LaShawnda Kinnebrew, Abena Rowland and Yolanda Dawn Tisdale-Waller.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t want our children\u2019s legacy to be politics as usual\u201d, said Rowland, member of the group, whose son Jo\u2019Von DeDe Porter was murdered March 3, 2021, \u201cWe wanted unity. That has been our focus and that will always be our focus. We just wanted it to be about community, love and support.\u201d The group led the march of hundreds of political leaders, community supporters and residents including the four mayors of Toledo and current Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz.<\/p>\n

The aim of the march last month was to bring awareness to the issue of gun violence to people of all walks of life.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one can any longer have a deaf ear or turn a blind eye,\u201d said Tisdale-Waller, advocate and liaison of the group. \u201cViolence doesn\u2019t have a preference, it comes to whomever it yields itself\u2026 we\u2019re more alike than we are not alike\u2026 it is time for us to get out and do this together.\u201d<\/p>\n

She stressed the importance of having a united front against the issue.\u201d We need to see the entire<\/em> community [white and Black] come together to make a community<\/em> effort to make a change. \u201c<\/p>\n

The work of these women isn\u2019t just confined to four walls. They cite their success in the work they have done as foot soldiers across the city. \u00a0\u201cEven though we\u2019re always in the church, we do street ministry<\/em>,\u201d said Hill, mother of Issac Michael Carpenter who was murdered on July 2, 2022. \u201cWe\u2019re speaking to their spirits and their souls. We didn\u2019t just go to churches, whatever table we were invited to [in the community] we went to… until we built our own table. \u201c<\/p>\n

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Abena Rowland, LaShawnda Kinnebrew, Yolanda Dawn Tisdale-Waller, Aviance Hill<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThere were a couple of mothers that [told us] that they won\u2019t even come out of the house and can\u2019t get out of the bed because of losing their children and they got themselves up that morning and joined us, \u201ccommented Rowland. The group believes that their efforts are the key part in the reduction of gun violence the city has experienced this year.<\/p>\n

Sisters 4 Unity has grown into a movement over the last eight months with plans to get the heart of the issue in the community. The group has future projects in the works to tackle the roots of gun violence and aid in continued healing for all those affected. \u00a0Sisters 4 Unity\u2019s next plan is to host an event for children of parents who were slain by gun violence and provide them with workshops and resources.<\/p>\n

The women also want to go to the jails to speak with perpetrators of the crimes so they can see the mothers faces.<\/p>\n

\u201cI honestly think if we go in there and we talk to them like human beings\u201d, commented Kinnebrew, whose son Christopher Kinnebrew was slain July, 3, 2021 at the age of 27 and is still unsolved. \u201cAnd they can see our hearts and the genuineness in our faces\u2026 I\u2019m not saying it will change all of them but it will change [a few].\u201d<\/p>\n

The four women lead busy lives combating gun violence individually and now have come together to further advocate on behalf of their children, their children\u2019s legacies, and the future of the city. \u00a0The leaders of Sisters 4 Unity are:<\/p>\n

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Abena Rowland<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Aviance Hill <\/strong>is a mother who started at local chapter of the NWO Parents of Murdered Children\u00a0in honor of her son Issac. She is a City of Toledo Ambassador, on the Utility Appeals Board member, Human Relations Committee City of Toledo, serving as a liaison between the City and the Stop the Violence Committee. Hill is a single mother with five surviving children. Her son, Issac Michael Carpenter was 21 when he was murdered on July 2, 2022. His murder is still unsolved.<\/p>\n

Yolanda Dawn Tisdale-Waller<\/strong> serves as an advocate and liaison for the group. Two of her sons were shot twice and survived. She also has a 12-year-old son. Tisdale-Waller recently earned her Doctor of Theology and is a motivational and public speaker using her voice in the community. She is a board member of the executive board of Favor One Studio in Maryland. She has family and friends who have lost their children to gun violence.<\/p>\n

LaShawnda Kinnebrew<\/strong> works at Chrysler and also works in the mental health field. She is in the process of starting a GED program for youth and \u201cSteps to Success for Our Youth\u201d where she works with children whose parents are dealing with substance abuse and teaches the children life-skills. She sells \u2018Community Against Gun Violence\u201d t-shirts that proceeds raise funds to assist with burials costs for victims\u2019 families. Her son Christopher Kinnebrew was slain July, 3, 2021 at the age of 27 and is still unsolved. She\u2019s a Navy mom, and her surviving son has been in the army for 11 years and she has a daughter that works in healthcare.<\/p>\n

Abena Rowland <\/strong>is a widow with two surviving children and a stepchild. She is a licensed minister, chemical dependency counselor and CEO and founder of a Unique Impact Mental Health Facility and founder or Uniquely Saving Our Sons that she started prior to her son\u2019s murder. The organizations helps with trauma and grief surrounding loss. Her son Jo\u2019Von DeDe Porter was murdered March 3, 2021 at the age of 29 and his murder is still unsolved. Her son was an organ donor and is giving life to families.<\/p>\n

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