EverythingShaquana & Co.

Trials & Triumphs Of A Creative Black Business Woman

Posted on February 25, 2015July 19, 2018 by EverythingShaquana & Co.

It has been a long while, since our last article in the GC Inc. Newsletter. Without much ado, we’re back!!

The latest and greatest in GC Inc. news is our developments toward investment and building new clientele. Most recently, Gardner Creative Inc. applied to be one the future three residents of Google’s Entrepreneur’s Code2040 Program. Serving as an EIR (Entrepreneur in Residence) at one of Google’s three designated hubs, if selected, GC Inc. could be one of the leading members for Black/ Latino entrepreneurial advancement.

Purposed as a position to empower Black & Latino entrepreneurs to propel not only their businesses, but also their communities, the EIR program is everything equivalent to the mission and purpose of GC Inc.

As the mission states, our goal at Gardner Creative Inc. is to truly and fully help people make their dreams a reality. The entire purpose of this business is to function as stepping stone of sorts, for everyone seeking to advance their purpose in life, but who lack time, vision or clarity.

As the founder of GC Inc., still working hard to make a living off of my ambitions and life purpose, I fully understand the often necessary trade-off of making money versus doing what you feel you’re born to do. As you can see, I have chosen to temporarily sacrifice my ability to make money, to instead focus on fulfilling my life purpose.

In doing so, I have learned a thing or two about being an entrepreneur. For one, it is not for the faint of heart. You have to be determined, beyond determination. Resilient beyond resilience. Strong beyond strength. And the faint of heart aren’t built out for that. Another thing is, you have to believe in yourself, beyond belief.

Cockiness and conceit won’t cut it. Especially once you find yourself so broke, Ramen noodle dinners seem like a luxury, as it’s better than the coffee and water used to quiet the distraction of frequent tummy grumblings. Ten months into the birth and life of this business, I am still hungry, broke and struggling, and yet, more focused, unwavering and perseverant, than ever imaginable.

Most importantly, I have learned that all of the expected trials, tribulations and obstacles faced by a budding entrepreneur, are tenfold for people like me. People who come from places where very few grow up dreaming to be an entrepreneur, and even fewer actually make it a reality.

People from families where survival trumps education, as survival is necessary and education is a luxury. People from communities that have the most limited, if even existent of access to adequate life (whether food, housing, education, medical care or even personal and physical safety).

“Whether through this amazing sounding program at Google, or through one of the many channels the universe has provided for us, GC Inc. will make a mark for all.”

As both, a Black and poor woman, in addition to a lover of all people despite gender identity, I have been closed out of many circles, corners and boxes. Yet, here I still stand. In such, much of my success is tied directly into the success of people like me, first and foremost.

The people whose voices are silenced, whose goals are trampled and livelihoods degraded, if not conciliatory toward dominant culture. I am here to make a path for us all. I am dedicated toward making my own struggles, sacrifices and inherent triumphs, worth more than just to me and my blood relatives. This struggle is for everyone.

The most exciting thing about where Gardner Creative Inc. currently stands is that, once we prove the magic in the potion is real, that visionaries still reign above all and dreams are meant to lived out loud, in real life, we will be prepared to do the same for everyone else.

Inherently, this company functions as a direct and guaranteed return for anyone who invests in it. In order for GC Inc. to succeed, our clients must succeed. That’s the magic in the potion. Thus, creating instantaneous success for everyone involved. It’s the definition of the illusive, “win, win” situation.

Our application to the Code2040 program is exemplary of the continued fight. The existence of the program in and of itself, tells GC Inc. and the world, that people still believe in the plight of the visionary entrepreneur. That this is all for a reason. And something will come of our purpose here.

There are more than a couple of people in society, still interested in alleviating the inequity in the world. Still curious about how to balance out the disproportionate reality of our existence. In creating and paving new roads to redemption and glory for people who have been locked out of too many of the material and physical blessings of life, for far too long.

I have met so many amazing creative independents, from artists and performers, to freelancers and consultants, and it has been so humbling. For me to see, in particular, Black and Brown women and men working hard for their slice of the American pie, so often denied to us, is beyond encouraging and inspirational.

Side by side, we’re breaking down barriers and creating new tomorrows for our children and youth, while fortifying the sacrifices of our ancestors and elders. And the world is watching. So, let’s make sure this show is the best one yet.

Whether through this amazing sounding program at Google, or through one of the many channels the universe has provided for us, Gardner Creative Inc. will make a mark for all. In particular, our success will guarantee the success of all of the Black and Brown creative independents, nationwide and worldwide. And that’s what makes this all worth it. Stay tuned folks!

#GCIncInvestorSpotlight: My Momma!

Posted on September 15, 2014June 17, 2018 by EverythingShaquana & Co.

In effort to spotlight the first ever investor in my business, Gardner Creative Inc, I would like to honor my mother, Verlondia Gardner- Patterson.

Verlondia was born in Brooklyn, NY and raised in Saint Albans, Queens. Her greatest accomplishments and sacrificial offerings to this world were her remarkable offspring, Shawana Gardner, Keith Gardner, myself and Kharlique Gardner. At the age of 20, she moved to Harlem, NY in December of 1983, with her first child, her 11 month old daughter, Shawana. She remained in Harlem until 1988, giving birth to her oldest son, Keith, in October of ‘84 and meeting the man who would help create me, in ‘85.

In December of ‘88, one month after the passing of my aunt, Tyra Gardner, one of the world’s greatest souls, Verlondia moved to the Lower East Side of Manhattan, inheriting the apartment of her late sister. All the while, a growing seedling was maturing in her womb that would become the Shaquana Gardner, born in August of ‘89.

Givng birth to her last child and youngest son, Kharlique, in July of ‘92, Verlondia soon after decided to end her child bearing abilities, opting to undergo a tubal ligation. A product of the government funded sterilization campaign of the late 20th century, targeting Black, Latino, and poor women, Verlondia’s intent to forgo childbearing appeared only possible, as taught to her and all of her peers, in the form of female sterilization. It was from then on that she dedicated the rest of the next 22 years to raising, nuturing and fulfilling her role as a mother, as best she knew possible.

Raised by her oldest living sister, Verlondia grew up without a mother, as hers passed from psorosis of the liver in 1969, when she was just 6 years old. Conceived in part by a married man, whom clearly held no formal interest in adding to her upbringing, Verlondia never knew a wholehearted father figure. She was brought up in an often, very callous and unloving environment, perpetually reminded of her inadequacies as a motherless child and insufficiencies as an unwanted mouth to feed.

Though, filled with many forms of love and appreciation, Verlondia’s childhood was in many ways, severely devoid of the truest form of love, most often found in a mother’s touch, smile and kiss. Her phenomena of growing up feeling severely unloved, unwanted and desparately uneeded, and still, in spite of it all, finding and projecting the most substantial form of love I’ve ever known, still ceases to amaze me.

As such, it is my greatest and most esteemed honor to spotlight my first love, my first friend, my first mentor, my first cheerleader and champion, and now, my first business investor.

There would be no Gardner Creative Inc., no dream, no vision, no Shaquana Gardner, if it were not for the most beautiful woman I know, Verlondia Gardner- Patterson, my mother.

Thank you for always believing in me and my dreams. And thank you for putting your money where my mind is! You won’t regret it!

EverythingShaquana: 5 Months Going Stronger

Posted on September 14, 2014February 23, 2015 by EverythingShaquana & Co.

The launch of EverythingShaquana.com, just 5 months ago, in many ways feels like it was just yesterday and in many ways, feels like 5 lifetimes ago. It has been what I will personally singlehandedly call my greatest and most profound achievement. And yes, it is not only a, but MY greatest achievement.

And whether you know it or not, I do have a lot of amazing achievements from my short lifetime here on earth. In many ways, I am possibly more achieved than most adults, at any age, in my current lifetime. And I suppose as I reflect now, I do most definitely mean much more than on paper. I have come, saw and conquered ten times over.

Earlier this year when I was packing up my things to head west, I came across my proclamation, received from the New York State Assembly by Speaker Sheldon Silver himself. I started crying. As I read it, in which I realized I’d never done in its entirety prior to, I sat in awe at the words it spoke to my existence. I wish I had with me right now, so I could quote some lines (though it is possible some of it is quoted in the NY Daily News article, in which you can do the researching for, as I’m just too lazy, sorry).

In any regard, as I read each line, slowly and for possibly the first time, appreciatively, I began to, for the realist time in all my life, take great pride in all of the work and love I’d given to my community and world. I had never put it all in perspective together.

Every job. Every internship. Every volunteer experience. Every side gig. Every hangout session. Every class. Every training. Every test. Every score. Every award. Every graduation.

Every tear. Every heartache. Every abuse. Every pain. Every attack. Every broken moment. Every bit of self-hatred. Every ounce of sorrow. Every drop of self-doubt.

And each and every point of perseverance, pushing through despite and never dropping out until I was forced out.

It all came together at once and suddenly it made sense. I had done it all for a reason. A much larger reason than I’d ever conceived. It wasn’t just chance, opportunity and a little determination. It was a special concoction being paired, mixed and developed all along to create something really amazing. Remarkable even. And this proclamation was my penance of that truth.

It takes decades, literally decades, of hard work and commitment to the community, for organizations and businesses in New York to be honored with a proclamation. And only the best have them. Seriously. Henry Street Settlement. The Protestant Welfare Agencies. The Mayor’s Office. And Shaquana Gardner. At just 19 years, there was someone, many people in fact, that saw my heart and committment to the, my, people.

And it’s written in stone. Archived. Done. Achieved.

Up until EverythingShaquana, my proclamation and my college graduation were the two top achievements of my life. It was beyond hell and back to achieve a graduation from Syracuse University, being the essence of a true poor Black American girl from the projects of Manhattan’s Lower East Side.

For every intangible thing I had in excess of my college peers, be it intelligence, drive, ambition, creativity, mental agility, determination and unapologetic relentlessness, I lacked materially. I lacked money, legacy, familial stability, any formal social status, national identity (being from America doesn’t count in the Black community) and access.

My mom had no bank account, let alone savings. I had no access to any sort of credit. And no long-term or fundamental formal support from anyone in my family. Those that wanted to help often couldn’t and those who could, never would.

So, in more ways than one, I came from everything and yet, still so, I came from nothing. From the cracked concrete of New York. Raised by the Lower East Side. From the crack pipes and needles that lined the streets in my youth, to the gentrified modern landscapes that own the streets of my current day.

The Lower East Side sponsored all of my most significant early life experiences. Every school I attended, until 11th grade. Every doctor I ever saw until college. Every mentor and role model. My first job. My first crushes and kisses. My first boyfriends and first love. My first heartbreaks and first mistakes. My first disappointments and first dream killers. My first moments of hope and perspective. My first decisions to be something more, something better, something amazing!

I decided I was going into politics because I decided/ realized I had to be City Council Member of the Lower East Side to make it better for my people. I met Margarita Lopez when I was in the tenth grade and I saw (back then at least), a strong Latina woman working hard and dedicatedly to alleviate insufficient living and economic opportunities in our community, very uniquely in a position of more power than any non entertainer. And I was inspired. My tomorrow was born.

For the first time in my life, I felt more than a sense of responsibility to do something for my people, but also a clear understanding of a tangible and powerful way to act on that responsibility. A way that possessed a role that was now translatable, as someone who looked and once lived like me, stood in my face in that same role. Even in the tenth grade, I knew Latinos and Blacks, particularly in the Lower East Side, were in the same boat on paper and in person, whether they saw it or not (though it was still unbeknownst to me that we had in fact, once before, knew and lived in unison).

Anyway, my trail back in time with you is purposed on focusing, not on the past five months, though significant in my life, but instead on the past 25 years of my life. The steps, hills and mountains that led to where I stand now. That layered the cake that baked my genius. The engineer of the wires operating my vision. Because this in fact, so much more than the past 5 months, has developed the thing in which you see before your eyes every time you read my words.

It developed the story you watch unfold every time you click on a link or type in the words to see and experience my EverythingShaquana.com. A story that came from long ago and yet, not so long ago. From a not so far away place, in a not so unknown place. But within an unknown and yet, very real and frequent reality of the most known place. New York. This is the recipe to my perfect storm.

So, in honor of my struggle, my sacrifice, my strength and success in conceiving, creating, popularizing and propelling my greatest unknown dream and most ambitious achievement yet, hats off to 5 months going stronger!

Thank you for visiting. Thank you for sharing in the experience, whether just for one day or for everyday, faithfully. Thank you for adding to this journey. For bearing witness to this path building. And thank you for believing. In my dream. My vision. My truth. My knowing. My love. My being. My existence. And my life. Thank you.

As always, I love you all and I always will.

A’se.

Gardner Creative Inc.

Where Dreams Are Reality

Author: EverythingShaquana & Co.