“There’s a leader in all of us. Sometimes it takes unity to remind us how powerful we truly are.”

Meet Sherita! She’s a mother and caregiver of six children, though two are grown and out of the house already. During COVID-19, someone knocked on her door, and it left a lasting impression on her. 

“I know now it was Rosalia who came to my door, but she was doing outreach to bring more people into a COFI training. She was talking so fast, and her energy was a 10, so I was like whatever makes you this excited, I want to sign up,” Sherita said.

At the time, Sherita was a full-time parent and figuring out her own business goals. The idea of a parent leadership training focused on yourself as a parent, your family, and your goals was energizing. And it turned out to be a great fit!

Through COFI’s Phase 1: Self, Family and Team training, Sherita learned the role others around her play in her goals – who really shows up for her and who perhaps isn’t as supportive as one might think. The training moved her, and as someone who once hated speaking in public, she now volunteers to take the microphone.

“The training taught me so much about myself and what’s next for me,” she said. 

But, it also brought her into a strong and inspiring community, The West Side branch of COFI’s parent-led membership organization, POWER-PAC IL. As the first branch established by parents, the West Side continues to be home to longtime leaders like Lynn, Co-Chair Emeritus of POWER-PAC IL. Sherita watches how Lynn and the other leaders walk into a room, how they lead, and she learns from them. 

Even before she became a delegate for the branch, Sherita cared deeply for the parents in her branch. She helped create a care team and would help reach out to West Side parents on their birthdays, holidays, or to check in. Because to her, it’s more than a branch. It’s a family.

Now, as one of the delegates who helps to lead the branch, she has channeled her energy into building the branch, bringing in new parent leaders to learn The COFI Way, and focusing on a resource guide that the branch wants to build for the community to help navigate free healthcare and mental health options – not just for their members but for the entire community.

“I want to see my branch go to the next level,” she said. “I make it my business to build a relationship with them and encourage them to keep coming back.”

Her dream is simple: more COFI-trained parents and more POWER-PAC IL branches in more states. She wants more people to understand that they were already leaders before anyone told them.

“There’s a leader in all of us. Sometimes it takes unity to remind us how powerful we truly are.”