Biography
Sharon Richardson is a formally incarcerated entrepreneur and owner of Just Soul Catering, a Justice Involved soul food company employing all women who have gone through the criminal justice system. She is also Founder and Executive Director of Reentry Rocks a 501c3 nonprofit working directly with returning citizens training and building better futures for women like herself. As the former founding Reentry Specialist and Advocate at Steps To End Family Violence in New York City, Sharon allowed herself to be taught and infused her training with her lived experience. Diving into the unique and complex needs of supporting and advocating for criminalized survivors of intimate partner violence facing felony level charges related to their efforts to survive. She learned and facilitated a variety of innovative, trauma-informed, anti-oppressive programming focused on the prevention of intimate partner violence (IPV); advocacy and healing for survivors and children impacted by abusive partner behavior; as well as training and education intended to increase awareness of the epidemic of gender-based violence; and advocacy and activist efforts designed to transform the rhetoric and institutions that sustain such violence. After serving 20 years in prison for a domestic violence case Sharon decided to not remain a victim but to step up and cultivate her own unique Reentry program. Sharon saw fit to build a bridge from prison to the pavement affirming women and walking with them, and honoring their multiple identities and life experiences.
Sharon completed four units of Clinical Pastoral Education in accordance with the standards of the College of Pastoral Supervision & Psychotherapy. She also obtained her Associate Degree in Social Sciences and her Bachelor’s of Arts Degree in Sociology. Upon returning to her community, Sharon birthed Just Soul Catering and gained momentum after winning two Business Pitch competitions with Defy Ventures, all while managing the exploding growth of the business. Sharon is not just passionate about the work she does but is also intentional about sharing her story as a survivor and living by the mantra, “if I can do it so can you.” While taking care of others and creating brave spaces for women to design revolutionary approaches to self-care, transformation, and community accountability, she serves as a mentor and role model. Presently, Sharon runs her social justice enterprises; keeping at the core a belief that standing in the seat of justice also means caring for those most marginalized and affirming that they matter.
Sharon has received a Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise Certification and was also awarded a grant from the New York City Department of Correction to conduct a 12-week entrepreneurship program for incarcerated young people interested in starting their own businesses. Most recently, Just Soul Catering was a winner of a $30,000 award through the 2018 Squarespace and New York Knicks sponsored “Make it Awards”. Always using her personal history to inform her professional work; her inspirational narrative and compelling style has also made her an effective speaker and educator. Sharon has presented on issues of domestic violence at Columbia Law School, Criminal Justice Action Network, CUNY Law School Workshops on Domestic Violence, and Public Trainings on the ground breaking Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act with the Correctional Association of NY. She also participated at a public screening of 'Crime after Crime', a documentary dedicated to the life of a fellow survivor-defendant and was even a panelist at Sakhi conference on Domestic violence. Sharon was honored to be a guest on media outreach efforts like WBAI’s Talkback with Hugh Hamilton 99.5FM. Most recently Sharon was profiled in Cherry Bombe magazine and delivered a TED Talk for their 2018 Cherry Bombe Jubilee.
Bringing awareness and activism to the main stream, Sharon has been featured on “The Kelly Clarkson Show” and Defy Ventures panel with Actor/Activist Michael K. Williams discussing reentry, mass incarceration, entrepreneurship after incarceration, and liberation. Sharon’s ultimate goal is to one day run her own kitchen in New York City and build the first and only industrial kitchen and small business incubator specifically for justice-involved women to see their dreams come to fruition. Sharon has aspirations to create leaders that are empowered with self-worth, powerfully supported, and standing for what is right even after experiencing all that was wrong.