Sherrikka Myers

I had the honor of interviewing Sherrikka Myers, the Founder of Every 1 Voice Matters, and I can honestly say that I am so blown away at hearing where Sherrikka came from to the confidence she now has, and how her bravery was not suppressed by anyone on her journey to helping others who suffer with stuttering. As a young child, Sherrikka herself dealt with stuttering, shame, embarrassment and self-esteem issues, but in talking to her today, you would never know! Her personality radiates with confidence, patience, and a true love for what she is doing. Read on as Sherrikka talks about how far her organization has come, with now being booked nationally, creating a book series, a YouTube Series, holding classes and being a certified life coach! Sherrikka is so down to earth and easy to talk to, and through her creativity, she has been able to push forth and create a mascot for her company to help children relate and feel comfortable with working through their difficulties as well.

Q & A

Question: What is "Everyone 1 Voice Matters"? Who does this organization cater to?

Sherrikka: Every 1 Voice Matters is a 501C3 nonprofit geared towards kids who stutter, have low self-esteem, lack self confidence and who are dealing with any other issues that may be hindering them from becoming the best version of themselves.

Question: What prompted you to start the Everyone 1 Voice Matters Organization?

Sherrikka: I always knew I wanted to do something with kids who stutter, but when I realized my first grandchild named "Lil Herbie" stuttered, that made me more eager to get started with helping kids who stutter.

Question: How was your confidence level and self esteem affected as a child, dealing with stuttering yourself?

Sherrikka: I did not have confidence and my self-esteem was little to none. Growing up and not being able to express yourself like the rest of the kids was very frustrating and embarrassing. I always felt less than the rest of the kids because of my stutter.

Question: If you did not have a stuttering problem as a child that helped mold who you are today, what do you think you would be doing now in your career?

Sherrikka: I probably would have been an entrepreneur, running my own business.

Question: How was the mascot of Every 1 Voice Matters, Herbie, created? What prompted the idea and how has Herbie's character grown through the process of his development and the development of your organization?

Sherrikka: Lil Herbie is the child I carried all my life, who was afraid to speak and express how he felt, because of his stutter, and I finally gave birth to him. He was birthed from me persevering and determined to not allow my voice to be silent any longer. Once I started to love who I was and realized that my voice mattered just as much as everyone else's, I wanted to have a kid who can relate to other kids who stutter, been bullied or anything that hindered them from living themselves and Lil Herbie is that kid. He is living that childhood that I felt like I couldn't and didn't have and kids can relate to Lil Herbie.

Question: Can you tell us more about the book series you've written and where can it be found for purchase?

Sherrika: The Lil Herbie book series is really a series of books about my life and the different challenges I went through growing up with stuttering. The main character is named "Lil Herbie", but the real character and stories are about my childhood.

"Lil Herbie is the child I carried all my life, who was afraid to speak and express how he felt, because of his stutter, and I finally gave birth to him." -Sherrikka Myers

Question: Can you tell us about the YouTube series you have coming up and either when it will premier, or if it's already premiered, where can our readers find it?

Sherrikka: I have a YouTube channel called Lil Herbie Series. I created this page because I wanted to implement learning and of course reading, because that is how I was able to get my stuttering under control, was reading out loud. I created an animated series first for kids with different words of the day, definition and Lil Herbie shows an example of the word being used and then I wanted more. I am working on my very own show called The Lil Herbie Show which will be premiering Lil Herbie, the mascot, and him in different situations that kids are currently going through daily. The show will be educational and teaching kids great life skills. We will be touching on anti-bullying, low self-esteem, Covid 19 situations and other issues kids are dealing with. You can visit our YouTube page by clicking the link to any of The Lil Herbie Show links attached to the name to view. The Lil Herbie Show will be premiering in March.8.

Question: We know that you do tons of motivational speaking and visit schools often. Do you travel nationwide or are you local to a certain area? How can schools/other organizations contact you to invite you to their school/events to speak with their kids?

Sherrikka: Yes, I do a lot of motivational speaking and visiting schools is what Lil Herbie and I loved and miss dearly. I get bookings nationwide for our program C.L.A.S.S (Core Life Academic & Social Skills) to come to their schools. Lil Herbie makes the visit remarkably interesting and interactive with the kids. Hopefully, things will get back to normal soon and we can get back on the road. To book Every 1 Voice Matters, you can email us @ [email protected] and/or email my Publicist Lanetra King @ [email protected].

Question: We also know that you offer one on one services to people who are seeking skills to overcome stuttering issues; how can people reach you for these one on one sessions and can you tell us more about what they include?

Sherrikka: Being that I am certified Life Coach, I offer one on one services to help kids build their self-esteem, self-confidence and teach them how to love themselves and know that their stutter does not have to define them. I help them realize that stuttering is what they do, not who they are. I believe in building a child up from the inside out, because if you can’t accept who you are, I don’t believe any type of therapy will work completely. I refer them to a speech pathologist to work with regarding different techniques they can use to help get their stuttering under control.

Question: You have an amazing team with what seems to be strong board members helping you in your journey- can you tell us how you found and connected with your members who are helping to push your cause?

Sherrikka: Yes! I have an AMAZING TEAM and I appreciate them all so much. I connected with my board members through other people who heard about my cause and believed in what I was doing and believed that they would be a great fit. My motto is teamwork make the dreamwork and the team I have is full of educated and dedicated people, whom I ADORE and appreciate very much.

Question: As a black owned business, what obstacles have you come across due to racism, if any at all, and if so, how did you handle the issue(s)?

Sherrikka: Well, its always a challenge being a African American first and foremost, but I believe in what I have and what I am doing, so I just keep going and focus on the things I can change, instead of those that I can’t.

One of my biggest challenges was getting my African American mascot accepted by everybody. I remember being told that if my mascot were a Caucasian mascot, I would probably be booked more and have a lot more opportunities come my way. I handle that by stating, he represents me and where I come from and I am an African American. I also closed it out by saying that Lil Herbie is for every kid, despite race or gender and if he can’t be accepted for his true identity then it’s their lost and not ours. I just continue to push forward, because I know that he will open doors for all kids.

"I remember being told that if my mascot were a Caucasian mascot, I would probably be booked more and have a lot more opportunities come my way."-Sherrikka Myers

I was completely dumbfounded at this statement, but was so proud at how Sherrikka was able to respond!

"I also closed it out by saying that Lil Herbie is for every kid, despite race or gender and if he can’t be accepted for his true identity then it’s their lost and not ours."- Sherrikka Myers

Question: When you first decided to create "Every 1 Voice Matters", how did the people in your life react to that idea? Did you have people who tried to discourage you from moving forward? If so, how did you get the courage to keep pushing?

Sherrikka: It’s funny you asked this question; people didn’t realize how many people in the world stutter and that it was a major problem. They told me they did not think it would work and nobody would support me, because I sound fine now. I told them, I believed in it and I may sound fine now, but it took me 35 years to sound fine to myself. I know what kids go through and not just the stuttering, but all the other challenges they face while growing up stuttering. It took me years to realize that my voice mattered and if I could help one child realize that their voice mattered just like everyone else and help them build their confidence and self-esteem, then its well worth it. I didn’t need anyone else to believe in it, because I did, and I believed in me.

Question: What other projects are you working on now/for the future? What are your hopes for the current book series you have and for the YouTube television channel you are releasing?

Sherrikka: I am working on creating my very own Lil Herbie learning app for kids. The app will consist of reading, stem, financial literacy and more. I am hoping that my book series will encourage more kids and help them build great life and social skills. I am hoping that Lil Herbie and The Lil Herbie Show will become a household name and be on every television around the world.

Question: What words of advice would you have to anyone who is dealing with stuttering?

Sherrikka: My advice would be, it doesn’t matter how long it takes you to say something, it doesn’t matter if people laugh or make fun of you, always remember that your voice matters just like everybody else's and its not you with the problem, its them.

Sherrikka is making a HUGE dent to make the world a better place, and is reaching millions of people on her platforms. To learn even more about Sherrikka Myers and Every 1 Voice Matters, check out their social media pages:

IG @Instagram.com/Every1Voice

Facebook @ Facebook.com/Every1VoiceMatters

Online @ Every1VoiceMatters.org

Email: [email protected]

And to learn more about Lil Herbie, check out:

IG @ Instagram.com/Lil_Herbie_Series

Facebook @ Facebook.com/LilHerbieSeries

Online @ LilHerbie.com

YouTube: https://youtube.com/c/LilHerbieSeries

Email: [email protected]