Hidden Gems: Meet Dr. Ebonee Gresham, DNP, MSN, RN of Dr. Ebonee Empowers

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Ebonee Gresham, DNP, MSN, RN.

Hi Dr. Gresham, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born and raised in Buffalo, NY by a single mother, who was a drill sergeant in the United States Army. She didn’t play any games. I had a very strict and sheltered upbringing. I was an only child on both my maternal and paternal sides, in which my father was pretty much absent in my life. I knew who he was, but he lived in another state with his wife, so I did not see him much at all. His mother and father were a part of my upbringing, as they helped my mother to raise me during my childhood years.

I was a dancer from birth, studying ballet, modern, pointe and African dance. Dance became my life. As a dance major at a Performing Arts middle/high school, I also was a master dance instructor for many years and traveled from state to state instructing students of various levels. Life in my early years had its ups and downs, but my mother instilled great values and morals in me as a young child which I carry with me today.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Being a mother definitely motivated me and helped me defy the obstacles that came my way. My children have always been my “why”. They give me strength and life when I am low. Through each and every storm, I would look at my babies and remind myself that they needed me, and I must keep going for them. I am all that they have. When I was homeless, living in my truck with six small kids under the age of 12, I would stay up all night to watch over them while they slept. I prayed and cried over them, asking God for his protection and provision. Many sleepless nights and days, I went hungry, but again I had to keep pushing for my children, who were all small at the time. I would always think, “These innocent babies did not ask to be here and deserved so much more than poverty, struggle and going without.” I knew that my mother raised me to be a visionary and to manifest what I wanted in life.

Therefore, I dug deep into my roots and upbringing and fought a long, hard battle, but with God, I conquered every storm and here I stand to tell the story. My mother passed away and life began to spiral downhill fast. It was soon after moving to Atlanta that we became homeless. I was alone on the journey of homelessness. Family turned us away, homeless shelters told me that my family was too large and they didn’t have room for us. I pleaded with my children’s fathers to take them until I could get back on my feet, and they refused, although I was owed over $100K in child support – not a dollar contributed to house, feed or support the children. But it taught me a great lifelong lesson – to take accountability! I allowed them to impregnate me, and I would accept responsibility. It taught me to dig down deep to soul search why I was attracting all the wrong men and succumbing to the mistreatment. I also realized that all that I had and needed was GOD!

While I was looking for love and acceptance in all the wrong places, he was there all along. The closer I grew to him, the more he would send resources, programs and people in my life to help get us through each and every aspect of the hardest part of my life. It taught me humility, perseverance, patience, forgiveness and a greater grind and hustle like no other. It was like the story in the bible of how Jesus fed 5,000 with the “miracle of the five loaves and two fish”, I learned how to make ends meet, oftentimes robbing Pete to pay Paul, BUT GOD! It taught me what I could do with little to nothing and how tenacious I was. And in this, God grew my character as a mother, woman, future entrepreneur, motivational speaker and empowerment icon.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Dr. Ebonee Empowers, LLC?
Dr. Ebonee Gresham is a doctoral-prepared RN who doesn’t quit and is a force to be reckoned with – a true trailblazer! She’s the CEO of Royalty Body Spa & Wellness, a nursing leader who serves on many Executive and Advisory Boards, an Author of the Amazon best-seller “The Grit, The Grind & The Glory”, co-author of Gracefully Broken-Heavenly Restored and a social media influencer. She is also an Empowerment Keynote Speaker, Coach and Mentor to many. After a traumatizing upbringing, challenges in advancing as a nurse, being homeless with six small children living in poverty, and now having 10 children, Dr. Ebonee is the epitome of a Millionaire Boss Chic. Her passionate response and advocacy for issues such as domestic violence, single motherhood, and women empowerment has been featured on several media outlets and print publications such as SHEEN magazine, IMPACT Magazine, CDC, NurseDeck, VoyageATL, the Atlanta Journal of Constitution, NBC Nightly News and most recently the SisAundra television show to name a few. She is a highly sought-after keynote speaker, host and moderator who has graced the stage in front of hundreds to impact and transform lives.

Dr. Ebonee exudes grace, poise, tenacity, determination, and greatness. She prides on helping women turn their past into promise, their poor choices into purpose and their pain into prosperity. She is determined to impact women not only nationally but globally. Whether it be business, nursing, motherhood, sisterhood, community leadership, or philanthropy, Dr. Ebonee has a proven track record of completing anything she puts her mind to and is committed to serving and helping others to do the same.

Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
Motherhood is the most challenging yet rewarding responsibility a women will have. I was able to overcome many obstacles in life “because” I had my children to push for! My belief was that “they didn’t ask to be here and deserve the world”. None of their fathers were in their lives, so that was a challenge in itself being a single mother. My oldest son didn’t see nor hear from his father until a few months ago, and he is now 20 years old.

My advice to mothers who think that they can’t chase their dreams because of their motherly responsibilities is that you have to know your “super-power”. God designed woman to bore other human beings, we give “birth” to new creation and life that’s deep! – think about that! We sacrifice our minds, bodies and souls to replenish the Earth, therefore we were created to withstand, to endure. As mothers, we must take care of ourselves as well to be sound and strong for our children, but we must also be reminded that “our child(ren) are our “WHY”. Nothing in life can stop YOU but YOU! Refuse to be a statistic, refuse to settle for less, refuse to settle for a life of mediocracy. You, you’re your children and children’s children deserve a life of abundance and generational wealth. You are capable of reaching your goals, even with your children, just strategize the plan of “HOW” to obtain your goals, write the vision and make it plain. And then EXECUTE! Your MINDSET is everything.

My focus is to continue to operate in my purpose, which is to help virtuous women of valor fix their crowns. I practice helping women turn their past into promise, their poor choices into purpose and their pain into prosperity.
Through my life experiences, I help guide and support women through tough times and serve as a mentor to them to overcome any obstacles. I am available for speaking engagements, coaching and mentorship.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.drebonee.com
• Instagram: @dr_ebonee_rn
• Facebook: Dr Ebonee Empowers
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-ebonee-gresham-dnp-msn-rn-699b2063/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@dr_ebonee_empowers

Image Credits
Dihanah M. Photography