Brilliant Detroit MorningSide Welcomes New Team Member

Brilliant Detroit Community Engagement Manager of MorningSide, Kahtara Richardson.

Kahtara Richardsen, new Community Engagement Manager at MorningSide’s Brilliant Detroit house on Balfour, was first introduced to Brilliant Detroit a few years ago as a participant in its parenting programs. “I’m a single parent raising a son and daughter,” she says. “We participated in different programs, and it really added to my life. Now I see myself helping others benefit from them as well.”

Before coming to Brilliant Detroit, Kahtara had worked at Henry Ford Health System overseeing the medical residents. She quickly noticed a difference in the cultures of the two organizations when she started her new job here in early November. At Henry Ford, she says, there was a clear hierarchy, with goals and expectations set by those higher in the chain of command. At Brilliant Detroit, programs and policies are created with a great deal of input from the residents being served. “Here the emphasis is on sharing the power to make programs for, with, and by the people.”

As Community Engagement Manager, Kahtara is responsible for supervising outreach to the MorningSide community, working closely with Windee Brown, Community Engagement Coordinator.She is also in charge of the logistics of the MorningSide house, keeping everything running as smoothly as possible. The pandemic, of course, has made all that more difficult for everyone. She’s frustrated, she says, by the fact that participants aren’t able to meet face-to-face as she and her own children were able to do -“So much is relationship based.” But she’s looking forward to spring, when they can do outdoor programming safely.

Kahtara’s special passion is health - both mental and physical - and she’s currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Health Education at the Wayne State School of Education. “I’m really big on parenting,” she says, and finds the programs that emphasize developing healthy eating habits in children especially close to her heart. “A lot of what we put into us contributes to who we are,” she says.

They recently finished the Two Bites Club, a health education program funded by Wayne State for young children. It’s based on a book about a mother encouraging kids to “take two bites” of new foods. “The kids were very engaged,” she says. “I love this slogan that the community came up with: Eat the best to beat the rest, and take it one day at a time.”

Kahtara and the rest of the staff are assisted by the Community Advisory Committee, made up of community members with children 0-8 years old representing the families they serve. They also partner with other community organizations in or serving the neighborhood. Their newest community partner is the Junior League of Detroit.

Kahtara is replacing Rakisha Odom, who has been promoted to a new role with Brilliant Detroit as a Community Engagement Outreach Manager. Congratulations Rakisha, and welcome Kahtara!