The DDQ Podcast: Where conversation meets examination, and sparks transformation!

**Before listening to this episode, you may want to listen to Episode 18: Holding Space - Honoring, Loss, Longing, and all Forms of Mothering**

Mother's Day Special - revisiting the 2025 Mother-Daughter Series.

Hey QueenSiS, before we step into our next season of the Dayclean Devotion Queen Podcast, I want us to take a moment and look back. Because what we experienced together during our Conversion Conversations season… wasn’t just a series of interviews. It was a remarkable, beautiful pattern being revealed. We heard from dynamic women at different stages in their life journeys, who left, learned, and returned to re-imagine, redesign, and remake the systems around them.

While the featured guests were truly unique, across every conversation I feel like we moved through the same powerful journey in many...

Dr. Keonda Grant-Taylor is an intergenerational financial trauma advocate dedicated to helping Gullah Geechee communities and people of color heal their relationship with money, power, and legacy. With over 25 years of experience in finance and accounting, dual bachelor’s degrees in finance, an MBA, and a doctorate in organizational leadership, she blends technical expertise with trauma-informed financial insight.

As the founder of Granting Gullah and visionary behind Gullahnomics, Keonda focuses on breaking cycles of generational financial trauma—particularly within the Gullah Geechee corridor—by merging economic strategy, cultural awareness, and emotional healing. Her work sits at the inters...

Sea Islands Heritage Academy Founder & Executive Director, Alana finds her heritage in Gullah culture. The proverb "mus tek cyear a de root fa heal de tree,” roughly translates to “you must take care of the root in order to heal the tree.” As an experienced educator, Alana knows that students’ “roots” must be firmly planted in order for them to exercise agency and access the opportunities available to them. Alana holds fast to the belief that community-centered schools are the cornerstone to achieving educational equity.

Previously, Alana worked at Coney Island Prep in Brooklyn, NY, where she served as de...

In this deeply thoughtful and powerful conversation, I sit down with Attorney Ajua Hawkins — private attorney, public defender, educator, and truth-teller — to explore what it means to live and practice law with integration, integrity, and courage.

We talk about leaving home and returning transformed, about navigating multiple legal spaces, and about who the law is truly meant to serve. Ajua reflects on reclaiming her voice, intentionally using social media to demystify justice, and choosing honesty in spaces where silence is often expected.

This episode is a meditation on purpose, truth-telling, womanhood, and coming home to your...

The theme for our first season of 2026 is Conversion Conversations. Not conversion like somebody trying to recruit you to a new religion QueenSiS! But conversion like a soul changing directions. This season is for the women who left old versions of themselves and walked straight into who they are meant to be for such a time as this.

Today’s featured guest is an amazing change agent in the field – literally! Keisha Rainey is a food systems leader and the owner of Roots & Rain, LLC., a firm dedicated to supporting organizations, women, and historically impacted farmers through trai...

This episode is the opening in our first series for 2026: Conversion Conversations.

Not conversion like somebody trying to recruit you to a new religion QueenSiS! But conversion like a soul changing directions. Like womanifesting a way of burnout, when the spirit finally says, “this part of life no longer fits me.”

This season is for the women who left old versions of themselves and walked straight into who they are meant to be of such a time as this. 

Our first season guest is not new to us, but she is new to now...

We catch up with one of our favs in this episode about celebrating the season! Get connected with Donellia Chives and her boutique NGOME Lifestyle at the links below.

  / donelliachives  

https://ngomelifestyle.com/

In this episode, I want to celebrate Giving Tuesday by highlighting some of my favorite community-centered, culture-rooted, and purpose-driven nonprofit organizations. These groups are doing transformative work, from empowering young women, to preserving the Gullah Geechee story, to protecting our land, our farmers, and our future:

We are catching up with Kersha Burton - a woman whose story and spirit embody so much of what Dayclean Devotion Queen stands for!

Find her products and more details at: https://www.kershastouch.com/shop

Welcome back to The Dayclean Devotion Queen Podcast — where we celebrate creativity, culture, and conscious living. Today, I’m starting something for the holiday season — The DDQ’s Favorite Things List! These are craftswomen and artisans whose products I’ve personally experienced and absolutely adore. They represent healing and heritage, legacy and generational wealth building:

Skin Care & Self-Care

Fashion, Artistry & Everyday Elegance

Happy Ancestors Day QueenSiS! We had the pleasure of visiting with Kathryn Thompson in her beautiful Reiki Room to discuss energy and spirits and healing.

You can purchase some of Kathryn's candles at this link: https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheUCLife?dd_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F

Check out the full episode for this week on Ancestor Day!

Now, I know some of y’all are like, “Najmah, how is using a dayplanner a celebration?” Butstick with me okay? Because I’ve learned the hard way that planning is not just a work task or management strategy – planning is an act of self-love. It’s a way of honoring your time, your peace, and your purpose. Listen for more details!

In this episode, I’m reflecting on two incredible women in my family who shaped me, inspired me, and continue to guide me in ways I’m still discovering.

I share that my Aunt Josephine had a podcast before podcasts were cool - here is a link to the channel she started in 2014 at youtube.com/@josieb4460 (“Enjoy and Love Your Life’s Journey").

Hermina Glass-Hill is a writer, historian, preservationist and sustainability advocate who has worked for more than two decades on environmental justice and human rights.  She is the founder and executive director of the Susie King Taylor Women’s Institute & Ecology Center in Midway, Georgia, having moved there in 2018 from Atlanta to anchor its work in Susie King Taylor’s birthplace. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in History (with a minor in African American Studies) from Spelman College, and a Master of Arts in Heritage Conservation / Heritage Preservation from Georgia State University. 

Hermina is widely recognized as the fo...

Hey QueenSiS, its Najmah, your Dayclean Devotion Queen, welcoming you back to autumn and back to the DDQ Podcast. We’ve just about wrapped up powerful third season, all centered on Creativity and today, I want to take a little time to reflect on the wisdom our guests have shared, and the practices that I personally have carried with me.

This season was all about creation, not the hustle kind, but the soul kind. About re-imagining, resting, resetting, and allowing our creative selves to breathe. Listen for some of my highlights from each episode of season 3.

Richmond, VA office for The Bair Foundation. She has been employed with numerous companies but when she sawthe opportunity with this organization, she knew that this is where God wanted and needed her to be. She has been with The Bair Foundation for a year and a half and is working to bring more awareness to fostering.

Learn more about her work at ⁠https://www.bair.org/services/family-services/

In this solo session, I recap my "day away from adulting" at Disney World!

Basu Blaksis Nefertem aka Eboni Holmes was born in Boston, Ma and moved to Atlanta in 1998. Always an avid reader, and writer she began writing with the intent to perform, after a friend took her to Yin Yang Cafe, more recently known as Apache Cafe. Blaksis is an active member of her community and works and writes to free the minds of African people throughout the Diaspora. She has shared the stage with renowned artists such as Muta Baruka, Janelle Monae, and performed on the T.V. series Spoken. She has a powerful voice that penetrates souls and minds...

Clarenda "Farmer Cee" Stanley is a visionary entrepreneur, farmer, herbalist, and advocate for ethical business and sustainable living. Known affectionately as "Farmer Cee," she is the founding CEO of Green Heffa Farms, a wellness brand and herb farm that celebrates the power of nature to heal and nourish. Raised on her maternal grandparents' farm, with an awarded professional background in marketing and environmental fundraising and a deep and profound respect for the Earth, Farmer Cee dedicates her life to promoting holistic health and wellness practices that honor the interconnectedness of all living things.

Beyond her work as...

Moment of transparency: I almost didn't get to post this episode...I'm feeling tapped-out-tyyyed QueenSiS! But I'm also giving thanks for the time and space to share a few of my creativity course-correction steps for this season. Drop your thoughts on our Daily DDQ Blog, IG or Substack page - let me know what you do to keep the creative energies flowing!

Kathryn Thompson is the Development Director for the Partnership for Housing Affordability in Richmond, VA.  She has a BS degree in Public Relations from Virginia Commonwealth University. She is passionate about bringing creative and cultural arts opportunities to low-income youth.  She wrote her first film screenplay in Summer 2020, The Return To Me.  The short film was a feature in the Afrikana Film Festival (Richmond, VA), San Diego Black Film Festival (San Diego, CA) and the S.E. Manly Short Film Showcase (Los Angeles, CA).  She was awarded an individual artist grant from CultureWorks in 2022 to develop the short film into...

We took a hiatus from the DDQ Podcast for a summer of romance & rest! After some much needed time to reflect, reset, revised approach…now it is time to relaunch! Listen for Q3 Season themes, and be sure to connect with the #DDQmmunity on these platforms:

We took a hiatus from the DDQ Podcast for a summer of romance & rest! After some much needed time to reflect, reset, revised approach…now it is time to relaunch! Listen for Q3 Season themes, and be sure to connect with the #DDQmmunity on these platforms:

**Before listening to this episode, you may want to listen to Episode 18: Holding Space - Honoring, Loss, Longing, and all Forms of Mothering**

The DDQ Podcast: Mothers & Daughters series is a special collection of powerful conversations celebrating the unique bond between mothers and daughters across generations. In each episode, we share authentic stories, laughter, lessons, and love as we explore how these relationships shape identity, resilience, and purpose. Whether you're a mother, daughter, or simply someone who cherishes deep connections, this series offers inspiration, reflection, and a reminder of the strength we carry through one another.

**Before listening to this episode, you may want to listen to Episode 18: Holding Space - Honoring, Loss, Longing, and all Forms of Mothering**

The DDQ Podcast: Mothers & Daughters series is a special collection of powerful conversations celebrating the unique bond between mothers and daughters across generations. In each episode, we share authentic stories, laughter, lessons, and love as we explore how these relationships shape identity, resilience, and purpose. Whether you're a mother, daughter, or simply someone who cherishes deep connections, this series offers inspiration, reflection, and a reminder of the strength we carry through one another.

**Before listening to this episode, you may want to listen to Episode 18: Holding Space - Honoring, Loss, Longing, and all Forms of Mothering**

The DDQ Podcast: Mothers & Daughters series is a special collection of powerful conversations celebrating the unique bond between mothers and daughters across generations. In each episode, we share authentic stories, laughter, lessons, and love as we explore how these relationships shape identity, resilience, and purpose. Whether you're a mother, daughter, or simply someone who cherishes deep connections, this series offers inspiration, reflection, and a reminder of the strength we carry through one another.

Hey QueenSiS, this is a brief episode of sacred pause.

Next month, in honor of Mother’s Day, we are featuring special conversations between mothers and daughters. But first, we want to take the time to acknowledge that Mother’s Day can be a time of joy and pain for many. This episode is our way of showing honor and understanding for all paths of ‘mothering’.

Dorneisha M. Batson was born in Upper Marlboro, MD in 1981. She moved to Beaufort, SC in 1988. Coming from two different areas molded her creativity. She is predominately an abstract artist in the area of painting and drawing.  Her pieces are bold and colorful and meant to make the viewer escape the world around them. Dorneisha completed a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management at Park University in 2006 and Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Fashion Design at the Savannah College of Art and Design in 2010.  She had her first solo art show in Beaufort in 2013 and showcased her wo...

Angela Simmons has worked in higher education for 30 years at various mid-sized and large universities in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic states and currently serves as the Vice Chancellor for Student Development at the University of South Carolina Beaufort.  She has her B.S. and M.S. degrees from Mississippi State University and an Ed.D. from Florida State University. Angela’s previous roles include Assistant Vice President of Student Affairs at Virginia Tech and Assistant Dean of Students at Florida State. Angela lives in Beaufort with her husband Dave and their very spoiled cat. In her spare time, Angela can...

This episode is extra special. I have the honor of sitting down with someone who has shaped my life in more ways than I can count — my Aunt Ruthie Mae Johnson, who is 83 years blessed, and full of grace, joy, and wisdom. She is my mother's oldest sister, and a mother to me in so many ways!

In this conversation, we talk about friendships, her years spent living and working in New York, how to prepare for what you prayed for, and why it matters to give people their flowers while they’re still here.

I ho...

Part II of our special #Herstory month edition of the DDQ Podcast! Featured Guests from January - March 2025 share their feedback and favorite lessons from other guests.

This is a special #Herstory month edition of the DDQ Podcast! Featured Guests from January - March 2025 share their feedback and favorite lessons from other guests.

Radiant – as in beautiful on the inside and outside. Real – as in 100%, straight with no chaser. Righteous - not only in terms of her faith walk, but in terms of her stance on the side of justice and equity. That’s Rhonda Greene. She is the amazing mom of an amazing 15-year-old young man. Her previous role was as a Senior United States probation officer for the eastern District of Virginia Richmond division where she was responsible for the daily operations of a United States federal drug court program. She is a certified substance therapist and has worked in the pr...

In this episode, we are diving deep into a topic that has been a game-changer for me and so many others: personal vision planning! I break down my 10-step process to womanifesting the life you deserve. Because you and I are worth it QueenSiS! Taking the time to visualize and plan will pay off in ways you can’t even imagine. So grab your tea, your DDQ journal and your DDQ day planner - be prepared to hit pause, write some notes, rewind, and get it again. You might even want to listen to this podcast with your BFFs an...

Hey QueenSiS! I’m putting my professor tam on for a few moments, but don’t worry, there is no final exam at the end! Today’s episode is about Womanism  - I use it in the title of the DDQ Journal, and tag our episodes with #WomanistWinsDay so I thought it only fair to dedicate an episode of the podcast sharing some more information about the concept. Here I define womanism and discuss just a few luminaries in the field; I talk about why this discussion matters today, by examining womanism's relevance from perspectives of the academy, environmental sustain...

A child of many names, the daughter of many “mothers,” and a woman rising from the destruction she was left to navigate, Mrs. La Fonda Elizabeth McWilliams-Wyatt has turned survival into strength. By day, she serves as an educational conference coordinator for Virginia’s Community Colleges, a role she has passionately held for over 20 years. She lends her time as a walk coach for The Downtown Monument Ave 10K, affectionately known as “Coach La, the Pear Diva, Queen of the Turtles,” and is an active member of Black Girls Do Bike RVA.

Committed to keeping children out of the fos...

Gaynelle has been in the healthcare field for over 27 years. Including leadership roles at the Beaufort Jasper Hampton Comprehensive Health Services, the Naval Hospital in Beaufort, and the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Service. In 2024 Gaynelle founded Empower Her2Be (EH2B), a nonprofit organization in Northern Beaufort County. EH2B was formed to prepare young women, ages 12-18, to meet the challenges of adolescence and young adulthood through a coordinated, progressive series of high-quality activities and learning experiences that help them to achieve social, emotional, spiritual, and physical well-being. Get connected with Gaynelle and her work...