April Newsletter
Letter from the Chief Executive Officer Dr. Brandon D. Cosby
The Work of Words
Honoring National Poetry Month
There is a kind of power that doesn’t announce itself with volume.
It doesn’t march first.
It doesn’t legislate.
It doesn’t even always organize.
It whispers.
And yet, that whisper has always been where liberation begins.
April is National Poetry Month, but for many of us, poetry has never been confined to a month. It has been a method. A mirror. A map. Long before policy shifts and program models, there were stories—spoken, written, sung—that helped people make sense of the world as it was, and imagine it as it could be.
At Flanner House, we understand that storytelling is not ornamental to the work. It is the work.
Because before a community can change its conditions, it must reclaim its narrative.
For too long, too many of our communities have been described by what they lack. Data has been used as a diagnosis without ever being paired with a vision. But storytelling—real storytelling—interrupts that. It allows people to name themselves, to locate their own strength, to remember that they are not problems to be solved, but possibilities to be realized.
That is the beginning of healing.
Many years before I stepped fully into this work, I was a language arts teacher and a speech & debate coach. And of everything I taught, poetry was always my favorite.
Not just the written word—but the performance of it.
There is something transformative that happens when a young person stands in their own voice for the first time. When they stop reading someone else’s truth and start speaking their own. I watched students who had been labeled, tracked, and underestimated step into clarity, into confidence—into themselves. You could see it happen in real time. Minds opening. Shoulders lifting. Language becoming liberation.
It was life-changing—for them, and for me.
I remember the first time I encountered Etheridge Knight. He was the first poet I ever met who disrupted my understanding of what a poet could be. There was nothing distant or delicate about his work. It was grounded. It was lived. It carried the weight of experience and still found a way to move. He showed me that poetry didn’t belong to the academy—it belonged to the people.
Years later, I met Mari Evans, and she taught me something just as important, though far less romantic. She taught me that sustaining a movement is not built on moments of brilliance alone, but on the discipline of daily work. Writing. Thinking.
Showing up. Again and again. Even when it feels mundane.
Especially when it feels mundane.
That lesson stays with me.
Because today, in a climate that often feels increasingly loud, divided, and dismissive of nuance, creative expression matters more than ever. Not as escape, but as resistance. Not as performance, but as practice.
Poetry slows us down enough to feel.
It sharpens us enough to see.
It connects us enough to act.
In our Child Development Center, that looks like young children learning to name their world with confidence and joy. In our wellness work, it looks like people finding language for pain they were told to suppress. In our broader community, it looks like spaces where truth can be spoken without fear and imagination can take root without limitation.
This is how culture is built.
This is how community is strengthened.
This is how liberation becomes more than a theory.
It becomes something we can speak into existence.
And then, together, something we can build.
WELLNESS CORNER:
A MOMENT FOR YOU
Journaling Prompt:
What is a part of your story that deserves to be heard?
Write it freely, without judgment.
Taking just 5-10 minutes to write can support clarity, emotional release, and personal growth.
POETRY LIVES HERE
We are the rhythm of resilience,
the echo of those before.
Writing futures into existence,
opening every door.
At Flanner House, poetry isn’t confined to a page—it lives in our classrooms, our conversations, and our community spaces.
At Ujamaa Community Bookstore, spoken word and literary gatherings create space for dialogue and cultural expression. Within our youth programs, journaling and creative writing help children build confidence and articulate their experiences. And at the Morningstar Afrocentric Wellness Center, reflection and storytelling are powerful tools for healing and self-discovery.
“Poetry gave me a way to express what I didn’t always have the words to say out loud.”
These moments—small yet powerful—are how voices are strengthened and communities are built.
From the desk of the Chief Wellness Officer
There is little that is more powerful in determining our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors than what we hear and listen to daily. Music, poetry, and lyrics are not simply for entertainment, they shape us. They become theme songs that play in the background of our minds. They are the fuel to our emotions, and if we’re not careful, they can become the instruction manual we follow when life gets hard.
Often, song lyrics perform like spoken affirmations. When we hear words on repeat about struggle without hope, pain without solutions, or anger without direction, it inches its way along with the rhythm into our spirit. Repeated often enough, long enough, those messages can influence who we see ourselves, our future, and others. The opposite can also be true. When we choose words that uplift, motivate, encourage, and speak life, we can create a positive shift internally.
Think about the soundtrack of your life. Identify the songs that get you through hard times. What message did they send? What emotion did they evoke? Those are the songs, the lyrics, the poems that connected you to your inner grit and determination. That’s not magic – that’s mental health in motion! Words matter. They are the gateway into our spirit. What we feed our minds shows up in how we think, how we talk, how we cope, and how we show up in the world.
I want to invite you to be intentional. I challenge you to pay attention to what you’re feeding your spirit through your ears. Balance the expression of “real” with restorative. Let your playlist include healing, not just hurt. Allow the poetry and lyrics remind you of your resilience, not just your struggle.
My dad used to say, “Garbage in, garbage out.” Since what you hear the most often feeds your heart, mind, and emotion, feed yourself something good.
-Bwana Clements, MSW, LCSW
Meet the Staff of Ujamaa Community Bookstore
Dr. Adam Henze, Ujamaa Community Bookstore
We Celebrate Poetry at Ujamaa
Sometimes, I sit and wonder about the history of poetry and Flanner House. We know that Booker T. Washington famously helped us found our charter over 120 years ago, but did he ever gather poets on the front steps of a Flanner Home? My colleague, Norm Minnick, even found a 1980s application from Indianapolis poet, Etheridge Knight, asking to stage a play here, though whether Flanner accepted remains unknown. Etheridge seemed to believe Flanner was at least adjacent to the Black Arts Movement. Surely, there's a deeper poetry history here than our elders can recall.
What we do know: our poetry program, Volta, is now four years old. It features a monthly open mic hosted by two talented teenage students (Aalihya Banks and Sreepadaarchana Munjuluri) free to attend, with free food provided. Each show opens the mic to local writers, with occasional competitions like poetry slams or haiku battles. Community organizers also host their own poetry events at Ujamaa Community Bookstore.
Ujamaa Community Bookstore also hosts creative writing workshops, including Rashida Greene's ARC (Artists Resisting Complacency) Workshop, a peer-led BIPOC monthly writing workshop, and Dr. Austin Ashford's programming, which weaves hip hop and theatre arts into poetry practice. Poetry is alive and well here. Which is why we're excited to announce the first annual Ujamaa Poetry Festival, taking place April 25th from 2:00 to 9:00 PM. The evening begins with family activities, moves into writing workshops for adults and teens, and culminates with a special edition of the Volta open mic at 7:00 PM. Hosts will be announced in late April on Instagram.
We believe poetry helps people tap into their history, their emotions, their community, and the things words can't yet describe. We hope to see you on April 25th!
Keaun Michael Brown:
Keaun Brown is a bookseller at Ujamaa Community Bookstore and currently in the process of completing his undergraduate degree at IU Indianapolis in May 2026. Keaun has a love of books and facilitates the “Paper Airplanes” book club.
People often ask me where all my ideas come from, how I manage the community organizing I do, where the new inventions and art my creative brain produces stem from. I always tell them the same answer—I don’t sugarcoat it: it’s rage.
I am a Black man in America; to hold that identity is a prescription for a lifetime of rage at the condition of my people. However, I have often said that this world has too many soldiers—it does not have enough healers. This is where my pen has saved me. I use poetry as a means of representation and storytelling. It’s a tool to remind myself, and my community, that their experiences are real—that their emotions are legitimate. Through this, I hope to heal the wounds of my people, to allow them to shed their armor and let hidden scars be caressed and shown love. I think it’s beautiful to repurpose a language forced upon my people to heal the very wounds it caused.
This piece that I wrote was about the anger I felt seeing the plight of my people, and the moments where I feel distrust in God's plan or his message- and the ultimate decision to restrengthen and recommit my faith in Him.
BLACK PEARLS OF ACKEE by Keanu Michael Brown
I was often told;
“The pen is always mightier than the sword.”
But I do not wish for ink to stain my palms any longer, I have grown weary from the limitations of the page.
When she comes to me, eyes barren where once innocence was held, I wish to arm her chest with munitions- make her flowers prickly with grenades.’’
I wish to look down and see my hands caked in dried blood, as the water rehydrates it to fall harmlessly into the sink- washing away perils of yesterday. I hope for the heat of the towel to be warmth of tomorrows sun.
When he comes to me, begs me to explain why he is armed wit a paintbrush to a pistol, I am ashamed at how weak my words feel on the tip of my tongue.
I wish to hold the power of God.
To bless those who I deemed to have suffered, to smite those who only I have deemed to have oppressed.
Perhaps, this is the very reason why they have armed me with a Pen.
May my God guide me.
LaVaja Moore:
LaVaja Moore has been affiliated with Flanner House for over 3 years. She started as a participant in the F.E.E.D program to eventually being hired at Cleo’s Bodega. LaVaja currently serves as a bookseller in Ujamaa. You can often find her performing poetry during Open Mic events.
For me, poetry is a reminder that the glass is always half full. Being a 23-year-old Black woman in this world can be heavy, and poetry is my safe space—a place where I can set the weight of the world down and simply be. There is no need for perfection—no rules or regulations, no stipulations or expectations. Sometimes the pages are a mess, filled with scattered thoughts and unfinished ideas. Other times, my fingers cramp from writing so much. At all times, it serves as a gentle reminder that, if nowhere else, it is between the lines and stanzas I create where I can exist unfiltered and unapologetically.
“GRACE” by LaVaja Moore
You peel back the layers, one by one
& sometimes find a stranger in your own skin
The mask you wore to keep the bad out
Was never meant to let the good in
You learn that healing isn't clean
Its ugly cries and silent nights Its cursing gods you used to trust
And craving wrongs that once felt right.
It’s sometimes making the same mistakes
Like a constant loop of repeat or copy and paste
It’s learning to love the parts of you that you once used to hate.
You miss the version that always knew what to say,
Even if she was lying through her smile or just trying to save face
Now you just sit with the ache in your chest
And hope that the truth feels worth it... in a while.
You touch your scars like braille and pray
They’ll one day tell you who you used to be
But they only speak in riddles now,
And beg you just to set them free.
Getting to know yourself is pain and grace,
It’s breaking mirrors just to find your face.
It’s singing at the top of your lungs in the shower or
dancing in the rain & giving yourself a twirl
Or simply doing the things reminds you that you’re just a girl
It’s unlearning silence you once thought was strong,
Admitting had it messed up all along
It’s choosing your softness, even when it’s abused
And loving your gentle heart, even when it’s being used.
Getting to know yourself is
building a home where no else one claps,
And loving the girl who’s still learning how to relax
For me it’s
It’s messy. It’s heavy. It’s starting again.
No map, no script, just ink, paper and pen.
And maybe I won't know her name for a while...
I gotta believe that when I do
She’ll make me proud and make me smile
She’ll make me know that it was all worthwhile.
DONOR SPOTLIGHT 
2026 NCAA Men’s Final Four and Indiana Sports Corp
Not all gifts come in the form of dollars; some arrive through connection, generosity, and community.
Thanks to Rachele Leininger, a parent in our Child Development Center, Flanner House received a special donation of NCAA Men’s Final Four basketballs through the Indiana Sports Corp. This thoughtful contribution created moments of joy and inspiration for our children, reminding us that impact comes in many forms. We are deeply grateful for partners who open doors and create meaningful experiences for our community.
SAVE THE DATES – 2026
Juneteenth Celebration: Friday, June 19th
Flanner House proudly invites the community to gather in celebration of freedom, culture, and legacy for its annual Juneteenth Celebration—an event that continues to grow as a vibrant expression of history, resilience, and collective joy. This year’s celebration is especially meaningful as it coincides with the 5th anniversary of Ujamaa Community Bookstore, a cornerstone of culture, literacy, and Black economic empowerment on the Near Westside.
Golf Outing Monday, August 3rd
Spend a meaningful summer day on the greens while supporting community impact!
Join Flanner House on Monday, August 3, 2026, for our annual Golf Outing at The Country Club of Indianapolis. Enjoy great company, friendly competition, and a beautiful course—all for a powerful cause. A portion of proceeds benefits the Joyce Johnson Memorial Scholarship, honoring a woman whose life’s work centered on education, service, and clearing pathways for others to succeed.
128th Anniversary Gala Friday, October 9th
Join Flanner House as we celebrate 128 years of impact, resilience, and community at our Anniversary Gala! This unforgettable evening will honor the individuals whose dedication and hard work drive lasting change across Indianapolis.
Don’t miss a night of inspiration, connection, and celebration as we reflect on our shared legacy and invest together in the future we are building—one life at a time.
COMMIT NOW FOR 2026
We’re preparing for our 128th Anniversary celebration this year and invite you to confirm your early sponsorship commitment! Sponsors will be featured in our announcements and event marketing materials. If you’ve supported Flanner House in the past but were unable to join us in 2025, we’d love to welcome you back!
Join us today and help us continue growing a brighter future together.
Commit today by clicking here!
Juneteenth Celebration: Friday, June 19th
Flanner House proudly invites the community to gather in celebration of freedom, culture, and legacy for its annual Juneteenth Celebration—an event that continues to grow as a vibrant expression of history, resilience, and collective joy. This year’s celebration is especially meaningful as it coincides with the 5th anniversary of Ujamaa Community Bookstore, a cornerstone of culture, literacy, and Black economic empowerment on the Near Westside.
Golf Outing: Monday, August 3rd
Enjoy great company, friendly competition at The Country Club of Indianapolis—all for a powerful cause. A portion of proceeds benefits the Joyce Johnson Memorial Scholarship, honoring a woman whose life’s work centered on education, service, and clearing pathways for others to succeed.
128th Anniversary Gala: Friday, October 9th
Flanner House proudly invites the community to gather in celebration of freedom, culture, and legacy for its annual Juneteenth Celebration—an event that continues to grow as a vibrant expression of history, resilience, and collective joy. This year’s celebration is especially meaningful as it coincides with the 5th anniversary of Ujamaa Community Bookstore, a cornerstone of culture, literacy, and Black economic empowerment on the Near Westside.
COMMIT NOW FOR 2026
We’re preparing for our 128th Anniversary celebration this year and invite you to confirm your early sponsorship commitment!
Sponsors will be featured in our announcements and event marketing materials.
If you’ve supported Flanner House in the past but were unable to join us in 2025, we’d love to welcome you back!
Join us today and help us continue growing a brighter future together.
Commit today by scanning the QR Code below!
