Shanelle Perry

I’m the girl who was stamped and approved by society. I lived up to the stereotypes of a “black girl”; the way I behaved, the way I talked, even the way I dressed. I’m counted in the statistics of the average girl who will become pregnant, have an abortion, and/or contract a STD by the time she’s 25. It’s true, I am the girl who grew up in the “hood”, and went to public schools; the girl with an attitude. The one who hung out with the “in crowd”, and did things my parents wouldn’t imagine I could do. I was attracted to everything that was not good for me. I was exposed to everything that I wasn’t supposed to see. I engaged in activities that could have had me thrown in jail, carrying a record that would have made it hard to accomplish my dreams. That is when I begin to have “real’ dreams. As a kid everyone said they wanted to be a teacher, a doctor, or a lawyer. But I never imagine those things were possible. Before, I had an average mindset. I didn’t want much out of life but to survive and live comfortably. But God! My purpose is to live above average, thrive at life, and live courageously according to God’s will.

Who am I?

I am Shanelle Perry; I’m a survivor; an overcomer; an ambitious queen who will settle for nothing less than what God has for me.