Women 2 Woman | Shanelle Boyd
Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, Shanelle Boyd turned a rocky start into an extraordinary life full of mentorship, success, and purpose. As a teenage mom, Shanelle has first-hand experience overcoming barriers and adversity, experiences she has been called to share. Throughout her journey from adolescent mom to thriving adult, people started coming to her for advice and mentorship. Shanelle feels called to support the women in her community, to offer other women the support she lacked. “Because I was a teenage mom, that has naturally come up in my work, giving back to my community because I just didn’t have that support.”
Today, Shanelle has a successful career, two grown children, three “bonus” kids, multiple degrees, is a spiritual life coach, and has created an amazing non-profit called Women 2 Woman. Women 2 Woman started in 2018 when Shanelle decided she was ready to show up for her community in a more significant, more holistic way.
“In this life journey, I have taken a step back to say, ‘Ok, Shanelle, it’s time for you to show up in the community.’ My trauma is what created my non-profit, my trauma is what led me to be a life coach, and my trauma is what allows me to support people. And so it’s like, ‘Now it’s time to really put yourself out in the community.’”
Based in Dayton, Ohio, Women 2 Woman works to prepare women of all ages, backgrounds and walks of life to show up as their most authentic selves. With many different programs and events, from preparing teenage moms for motherhood, to GED tutoring, to helping previously incarcerated women reenter the workforce, Women 2 Woman has something to offer every woman. Women 2 Woman is committed to igniting women, supporting them, showing up in the community, and bridging the gaps that divide us.
Girl Go Coach
Shanelle received a Let’s Choose Love grant to support her newest Women 2 Woman program, Girl Go Coach, a comprehensive program supporting teenage moms in the Dayton area.
“Girl Go Coach is a peer female mentorship program where women with different lived experiences, so from all different backgrounds, are paired with other women, adolescents, or teenagers that are all going through different things.”
This 40-week program will pair new or expecting teen moms with mentors from the community to support them in different areas of their lives. Some of the support includes parenting classes, resume writing workshops, setting up job interviews, and field trips to explore aspects of adult life outside of parenthood (such as buying professional clothes from a thrift store for job interviews).
“I hope people in the community will pour back into adolescent moms, so they don’t feel alone, giving them an outlet, a place, a space to talk, receive and give. Especially when it comes to parenting because it’s not easy, and when you are young, you don’t even know yourself; they need all the guidance and support they can get.”
Why is Girl Go Coach important to you?
“So many things I desire to prevent, even though I can’t do it all. Thinking of my experiences as a teenage mom, luckily, I had my mom to support me, but many young moms don’t. They go into this blind or walk into a space of depression. So much happens when you are a kid having a kid. I know I can be a support for the people coming in. I know whoever we are meant to support and mentor will find us.
“Overall, I think about the fact that I was a teenage mom, and my mom had to raise my brother and me as a single mother because my dad has been locked up my entire life. She raised us on her own. Me being a teenage girl, thinking my mom was strict, I started sneaking around and got pregnant. Those experiences in life, watching and experiencing the struggle, being a young mom, and not knowing anything, taught me that:
1. It isn’t easy.
2. You need a support system.
3. You don’t have to do it alone. You shouldn’t do it alone.
Hopefully, with support you can show up in the world less ‘scratched up.’ There are a lot of young moms taking their lives, and a lot of that has to do with the lack of support. There are many resources, but not much support for the emotional and mental part of raising children as a young person. This is one reason I wanted to create a safe space for women and provide support to show people what it can look like on the other side.”
What does success look like to you?
Shanelle has some big goals for Girl Go Coach, including creating a new foundation for young moms, helping teen moms become self-sufficient, teaching self-care strategies, and helping these new moms re-enter back into society.
From what I experienced, you sort of withdraw and detach yourself from what is normal because you have to step into a space you may not be familiar with, so helping them reintroduce themselves back into society. Success looks like creating a safe space for teen moms.
What are your plans for Girl Go Coach and Women 2 Woman in the future?
I hope to take Women 2 Woman across the world, supporting women of all ages, spaces, religions, and backgrounds, coming together to create a space for the women who come behind them, and bridging the gap for the next generation. If we can bring together balance in the world, women will be able to show up as their authentic selves.
Women 2 Woman looks at women holistically, thinking of families, trauma, and the different situations women come from. Far too often, women are expected to choose between being successful and showing up in the world with these very female-specific experiences; things that don’t affect men in the same way. Women 2 Woman uplifts these things that are often seen as hindrances to the female archetype, empowering women.
I envision a compassionate world where women are balanced in self-love, as they are secure in their divine energy while holding the power of their voice as sacred by being introspective, self-nurturing, and confident.
