We had the good fortune of connecting with Jeshiqua (J.) White and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jeshiqua (J.), what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
The vision for Project Love Strong is to show continuous selfless love and support to the unhoused (homeless) community without judgment. We want to create a community movement of change to support vulnerable populations. The goal is to create awareness about the underprivileged and unhoused communities that are in our neighborhoods while creating new resources and long-term hope and hands-on help.

Project Love Strong (PLS) is a woman ran 501(c)3 community entity that meets the unhoused where they are in the community to fulfill their immediate needs. As a result, PLS hosts community outreach events where they bridge together similar organizations and community partners for a fun, safe, afternoon of giving and serving the unhoused community.

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jeshiqua (J.) White. Them and their team share their story with us below:

Jeshiqua White, a Brooklyn, NY native, transitioned to Nashville TN in February 2018. Jeshiqua is a fearless woman who takes steps towards growth and active change, even when she doesn’t see the full staircase. She has always had a passion for helping individuals since the early age of fourteen years old. Jeshiqua, best known as J. is a former social worker, now an active community organizer. J. later created her newest project, Project Love Strong (PLS). Her vision for this project is to show continuous selfless love and support to the unhoused (homeless) without pre-judgment. We want to create a community movement of change to support vulnerable populations. The goal is to create awareness about the underprivileged and unhoused communities that are in our neighborhoods while creating new resources and long-term hope and hands-on help for these individuals and communities.

Project Love Strong (PLS) is a woman ran 501(c)3 community entity that meets the unhoused where they are in the community to fulfill their immediate needs. As a result, PLS hosts community outreach events where they bridge together similar organizations and community partners for a fun, safe, afternoon of giving and serving the unhoused community. These annual outreaches give you, community organizations, and businesses with a philanthropic passion the opportunity to give back.

The mission of PLS is to promote community-based philanthropy for underrepresented and disenfranchised communities, individuals, and families. With the assistance of our volunteers, community partners, corporate sponsors, and hopefully you, we hope to empower those individuals currently struggling or experiencing homelessness.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
J. is a community organizer, with a MSW background. She has over 12 years of working experience dealing with individuals that have challenges with mental health, housing, and addiction. She is known for being a change-maker. This is who she is at her core. J. is not afraid to go the extra mile to ensure the success of a project, the process, and the team involved. She is a fearless woman who takes steps towards growth and change, even when she doesn’t see the full staircase. She is ambitious, goal-oriented, selfless, compassionate, and genuinely cares about the world around her.

She is most proud of her ability to stay the course. What course… the course of life. Over the last 5 years, she has made some very difficult transitions and they all have been worth it. She was living in a place of comfort, with the hidden ability to do more and be more. Without the transition, she would not be able to stand tall as a community organizer and founder of a nonprofit in Nashville, TN.

J. worked in the nonprofit world for her entire career and never thought of running her own. She would never have dared to host community outreach events in NYC, or get government, local, or other agencies actively involved in “being the change they want to see in their communities.” Most days she questions why she is taking this approach to help the unhoused but have quickly learned that this approach is what sets PLS apart. Project Love Strong is all about bridging the gap between issues and community. If we see an issue we can address it with the help of our community partners, why not JOIN TOGETHER to help?

Serving individuals who are seen as eyesores is very challenging. The reality is that most people do not care about those who are unhoused. Trying to raise awareness and remove the stigma associated with homelessness is the biggest struggle.

The greatest lesson that we have learned is that community partnership is key! We help serve this underserved community together and it is magical. Getting community and state partners together to take part in change is powerful

We would love to share with the world that Project Love Strong isn’t just outreach, we are a Community Movement. We love the work we do and the communities that we serve. In a short time, we have hosted 14 street outreaches: Hoodies for the homeless 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021,2022 Tees & Teas 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and a 2-day North Nashville, TN Tornado relief, 2020. In 2020 PLS also provided street outreach in Los Angeles, CA, and Denver, CO. In October 2021, Project Love Strong was blessed to provide outreach internationally in Downtown Montego Bay, Jamaica with Open Heart Charitable Mission. In 2022 PLS served Downtown, Denver CO, and the Las Vegas Nevada Strip.

We encourage you to follow us on social media and visit our website. We could be serving in your state next!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to dedicate this shoutout to Project Love Strong’s team and Supporters!

Website: www.projectlovestrong,org

Instagram: instagram.com/project_love_strong

Facebook: Facebook.com/project_love_strong

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutLA is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.