The Voices of the Middle Branch interview series aims to celebrate the communities around the Middle Branch through visual storytelling.
Mandy, Founder and Executive Director of The Well and Hon's Honey
“I was born in Baltimore, have worked in Baltimore, and have been a resident of Maryland all my life, so I love Baltimore. Over time, I began to see some of the challenges of women in the community who were stuck in generational poverty and lacking a ton of resources. I wanted to be present, be a part of their world, and allow them to be a part of mine. We would get together and talk about life, dreams, challenges, and things that were going well. I helped them to create goals and connected them with resources. My relationship with the women here in Curtis Bay really blossomed and I realized I would love to start an organization to allow resources to come into this community. A place where we could have workshops and learn about life, finances, relationships, self-esteem, and confidence.
Community is an avenue for healing, and I wanted to provide a safe haven for women to not feel judged and feel like they had a space in the world and in our city. We try to help these women grow to attain their own goals and plans for themselves.
I’m 5-10 minutes away from the Middle Branch but you have to drive to get there. The challenge in our community is that a lot of people don’t drive or don't have cars and therefore rely on public transportation. It really is a wonderful space and I'm glad that we're bringing attention to it. It's a very special place in Baltimore that needs to be properly utilized. We need to bring in some safety factors, so people feel safe about going there. I know lots of community members who have an interest in going to Middle Branch Park. We like to take our mentees on field trips, and it would be great to take them kayaking. Many of them have never even been on boats out on the water, so that's an incredible opportunity for our community.”
“Community is an avenue for healing, and I wanted to provide a safe haven for women to not feel judged and feel like they had a space in the world and in our city.”