Mychele Lucas
Training and Technical Assistance Consultant
Mychele encountered Be Strong Families when they were Strengthening Families Illinois. When her children were two and three, she and her husband found themselves as parents of toddlers again after 14 years. The Head start program One Hope United felt mercy on them fish out of water parents and invited them to join a Parent Café. They were not sure whether they would be interested in another parent meeting, but [the Café organizers] mentioned food and childcare and Mychele and her husband were sold. After that first night of tasty food and great conversations, she was hooked. Her children are now 17 and 18 and she still cannot get enough of Parent Cafés. Mychele currently work with Be Strong Families as a Training and Technical Assistance Consultant hosting community Cafés, with an open forum that allows parents to feel comfortable sharing their truths and their journeys in a judgement-free zone.
“To me, family is not determined by DNA, but are those who love you when you are at your most unlovable.”