About Us
Jamika Smith, Founder & CEO
Jamika Smith graduated from the University of Tennessee at Martin with a B.A. in Human Environmental Sciences, and later earned a M.A in Community Development from North Park University in Chicago. She is particularly interested in models of human and social development that employ participatory community-driven approaches.
Jamika is the Founder & CEO of Teena’s Legacy a non-profit charitable organization whose mission is to create a safe space for young women and women in general to explore their authentic self, using upholstery as a conduit for self-reflection, self-expression and economic transformation. She started Teena's Legacy in honor of her grandmother Alberteen Stredrick.
Jamika is also the CEO and owner of Affirm My Design where she provides a holistic approach to the upholstery and home décor industry. She has over 10 years of experience in the upholstery industry and 20 years of experience in community development and organizing.
Who Is Teena and what Is Her Legacy
Alberteen made her transition back in Feb. 2009, but not without leaving a long-lasting impact on Jamika’s life hence motivating her to keep her legacy alive.
Alberteen (Teena) was creative, vibrant and always about her business. She grew up in the town of Pastoria and Sherrill, Arkansas. Shortly after graduating, she went to New York City for vocational training and returned to Arkansas to work on the family farm. She left Arkansas for Chicago at the tender age of 19 in order to earn a better living for her family. She held a number of jobs including clerical, domestic, culinary, resale, and factory work. She retired from Leaf Brand Candy Co. where she held a number of positions.
Alberteen (Teena) was an accomplished seamstress and a self-taught interior decorator. She had a creative eye for fashion which resulted in unique and stylish clothes; she would model her designs in fashion shows she and her daughter (my mother) hosted in local lounges/clubs and also coordinated shows in the basement of her own home.
She also had a gift in restoring and reviving old furniture back to its original glory. My grandma believed strongly in self-sufficiency and having your own, her vision for her family was for them to tap into their natural gifts and use them to start their own business and leave a legacy for their children. I am honored to doing just that, keeping my grandmother's legacy alive for my daughter, and the generation to follow.
Teena's Legacy Mission
Teena’s Legacy is a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit agency that provides a valuable trade of re-upholstering furniture, promoting economic transformation along with practical tools, and life skills encouraging self-discovery. Teena's Legacy empowers individuals to work through triggers and issues and uses reupholstering furniture as a tool to empower their healing.
We encourage individuals to discover who they are, explore opportunities, pursue their passions, and design personal pathways to success.
Teena's Legacy Core Values:
- Love
- Creativity
- Integrity
- Abundance and Prosperity
- Sisterhood
- And Living in Your Greatness!
