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Wednesday 5pm - 9pm Friday 5pm - 9pm Saturday 11am - 7pm Sunday 2pm - 6pm

DRE'S SAFE PLACE, 6101 East Molloy Road, East Syracuse, NY (2026)

06/03/2026

Pride Month is here, and some people are still waiting for a space where they can finally exhale without fear, judgment, or having to hide parts of themselves.

At DRE’S Safe Place, we believe everyone deserves spaces where they do not have to shrink, explain themselves, or perform for acceptance.

Today’s affirmation:

𝙄 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣 𝙨𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙝𝙤𝙣𝙤𝙧 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙄 𝙖𝙢.

Not tolerate.
Not barely accept.
Honor.

You deserve spaces where your nervous system can finally relax.
Where you can exhale.
Where you can feel safe enough to just be.

Come as you are. Leave lighter❤️ 🌈

06/01/2026

Mental Health and Mental Wellness are not the same thing.

And understanding the difference matters more than people realize.

𝐌𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐬𝐲𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠.

It affects how you think, feel, handle stress, relate to people, and move through daily life. Everybody has mental health, just like everybody has physical health.

Mental wellness is different.

𝐌𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞.

Think of it like this:

You can have mental health…
and still have very poor mental wellness.

A person can be functioning every day while mentally exhausted.
Still going to work.
Still taking care of people.
Still showing up.

But internally:
• emotionally drained
• overwhelmed
• disconnected
• anxious
• running on survival mode

That does not automatically mean someone has a mental illness.

Sometimes it means the mind and body have been under stress for too long without enough rest, support, release, or recovery.

Mental wellness is the daily maintenance.

Sleep.
Boundaries.
Emotional release.
Healthy coping.
Supportive relationships.
Rest.
Moments where your nervous system can actually slow down.

Without those things, people slowly start functioning from depletion instead of balance.

And many people do not notice it happening because they were taught surviving is the same thing as being okay.

It’s not.

A person can look successful and still be mentally struggling.
A person can laugh all day and still feel emotionally heavy.
A person can have no diagnosis and still desperately need support.

That’s why mental wellness matters before crisis happens.

Not after everything falls apart.

𝗔 𝗳𝗲𝘄 𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲:

• stop treating stress like a personality trait

• your body sends signals long before it sends symptoms, learn to listen earlier

• give your emotions somewhere to go before they start choosing for you

• find spaces where you don't have to perform and actually use them

• check in with yourself as often as you check in on everybody else

Because a lot of people are carrying more than they admit.

And most have nowhere healthy to put it.

That is why DRE’S Safe Place exists.

A place where people can release pressure, slow down mentally, reconnect emotionally, and take care of themselves before the weight becomes too heavy to carry alone.

05/31/2026

Some grief gets surrounded.

Some grief gets silenced.

And grieving fathers?
A lot of them suffer quietly.

They go back to work.
They stay strong for everybody else.
They carry their families while carrying heartbreak at the same time.

This month, I had the honor of pouring into grieving mothers.

Next month, my heart is with the fathers.

The ones who keep showing up.
The ones who hurt quietly.
The ones who rarely get asked how they’re really doing.

So this Father’s Day, I want to do something intentional from my heart.

I will be honoring five fathers who have experienced the loss of a child with a private healing experience at DRE’S Safe Place®… a space intentionally created for release, reflection, and honoring their child at their own pace.

No pressure.
No speeches.
Just space created with care for fathers carrying grief quietly.

Each father selected will receive:
• A private healing experience at DRE’S Safe Place®
• A love lock placed in honor of their child
• A meaningful keepsake created intentionally from one grieving parent’s heart to another

If a father came to mind while reading this, I’d love for you to nominate him.

Please make him aware he is being nominated & Please include:
• His name + contact info (email or phone #)
• A little about his loss (only what you’re comfortable sharing)
• Why you feel he should be honored

To nominate:
DM DRE’S Safe Place® or email [email protected]

Nominations close June 14th.

Local nominees only.
Selected fathers will be contacted privately.

Because fathers grieve too.
And they deserve space to be held too❤️

05/29/2026

If you’ve been needing a night out, needing to laugh, needing a reset, needing joy… this is your sign

The first two Adult Recess nights were filled with music, laughter, connection, and good energy
This next one we’re switching it up

Adult Recess: Joy in Motion will be the FIRST Adult Recess event held inside the new DRE’S Community Wellness Center

DJ Takeova
Movement-based games
Music all night
Food, mocktails, prizes, and real fun

Musical Chairs
Team games
Movement challenges
Throwback music to set the tone

This is not just sitting around
We’re getting UP

Every guest is entered to win a 55” TV
Winning team gets double entries

55” TV drawing takes place at the 5th Adult Recess

📍 DRE’S Community Wellness Center
📅 Friday 6/12
⏰ 7PM–9PM

🎟 Tickets are available now: https://www.dresplacellc.com/event-details/adult-recess-3
Don’t wait until the recap videos

05/28/2026

Lately it feels like every time we open social media there is another loss.

Another obituary.
Another funeral flyer.
Another “RIP.”
Another family hurting.
Another person gone too soon.

And a lot of people are carrying way more grief than they even realize.

Some people have not healed from the last loss before another one happens.

That kind of repeated grief does something to people.

It makes your heart feel heavy.
It makes you anxious to answer the phone.
It makes you hold your breath before opening Facebook.
It makes life start feeling fragile.

And a lot of people are still expected to go to work, take care of kids, show up, smile, answer texts, and function like their nervous system is not overwhelmed by loss after loss.

Please be gentle with yourself today.

This is a lot for anybody to carry.

If you have been feeling emotionally exhausted, disconnected, anxious, numb, overwhelmed, or extra emotional lately… there is a reason.

Your mind and body can only process so much hurt at one time.

So today, take a moment to check on yourself too.

Before you pick your phone back up… breathe first.

If scrolling is starting to feel heavy, give yourself permission to log off for a while.

Open a window.
Step outside.
Sit in silence for a few minutes instead of constantly taking in bad news.

Text somebody you care about.
Not because you need the perfect words.
Just to connect.

Drink some water.
Eat something nourishing.
Rest if your body is asking for it.

And please stop talking yourself out of your feelings.

If you are emotional lately, there is a reason.
If you are tired lately, there is a reason.
If your heart feels heavy lately, there is a reason.

You do not have to force yourself to keep pushing through everything like nothing is affecting you.

And if you feel like you have nobody to call
Nobody who really checks in
Nobody who understands the weight you have been carrying

Please do not wait until you completely break down to care for yourself.

That's what DRE'S Safe Place® was built for, not just crisis moments, but the weight you carry before you ever reach one.
Before the shutdown.
Before the numbness gets heavier.
Before you convince yourself you have to carry all of this alone.

Sometimes you may need a safe place to breathe, release, reset, and feel human again.

And please remember this:

Just because people are still functioning does not mean they are okay.

Give yourself grace.
And give other people grace too.

A lot of people are hurting in ways social media posts could never fully explain❤️

05/25/2026

Yesterday was bigger than a ribbon cutting.

Yesterday was proof that pain can become purpose.
Proof that vision can become reality.
Proof that healing, connection, and community care deserve intentional space too.

What started as DRE’S Safe Place with one mission:
to create a space where people could release, reset, breathe, and feel safe enough to simply be human.

…has now expanded into DRE’S Community Wellness Center.

And standing there yesterday, cutting that ribbon, I realized this is not just business growth.

This is purpose growth.

This space was built around the idea that community care matters.

That healing should not only happen behind closed doors.

That people deserve spaces where they can be supported, connected, poured into, and reminded they do not have to carry life alone.

People did not just want a place to release.
They wanted a place to gather.
To learn.
To create.
To connect.
To heal together.
To have conversations that matter.
To experience community care in intentional ways.

That is exactly why this Wellness Center was created.

A place for:
• workshops
• support groups
• wellness events
• youth programs
• educational experiences
• creative healing
• grief support
• community conversations
• intentional gatherings & celebrations
• meaningful partnerships
• repasses and gatherings where families can come together for support, reflection, and community care after loss

A place where facilitators, therapists, coaches, educators, wellness professionals, organizations, and community leaders can pour back into people.

A place where someone carrying stress, grief, burnout, anxiety, emotional exhaustion, or simply the weight of life can walk in and experience community care in real time.

I truly believe our communities need more spaces that prioritize wellness before crisis.
More spaces that make people feel seen.
More spaces that encourage connection instead of isolation.

DRE’S Safe Place has always existed in the space between calm and crisis.
Now DRE’S Community Wellness Center allows us to expand that mission even further.

What excites me most is not just what this space is today, but what it can become through collaboration, partnerships, and the people who will walk through these doors.

The conversations that will happen here.
The healing that will happen here.
The ideas that will grow here.
The lives that will be impacted here.

That is the vision.

We are NOW OPEN and currently looking for:
• therapists
• wellness professionals
• facilitators
• coaches
• support group leaders
• community partners
• organizations
• educators
• yoga instructors
• creative workshop hosts
• intentional collaborations

We also have office space available for wellness and helping professionals looking for a place to grow, connect, and serve the community.

Thank you to EVERYONE who showed up, supported, encouraged, reposted, prayed, helped build, helped move things, gave ideas, and believed in this vision.

Special thank you to my cousin Kameisha for the beautiful decor and helping bring the vision to life.
Thank you to my cousin Chris for always supporting my vision and building out every detail
To my grandmother & April for the food made with love.
To my grandfather for stepping in with the last-minute help when it was needed most.

And to my husband…
thank you for standing beside me through the vision, the stress, the long days, the emotional moments, the building process, and the purpose behind all of this. Thank you for supporting me, believing in me, and helping me continue pushing this vision forward even when things felt heavy.

And to my family, friends, community partners, and every person who walked through those doors yesterday… thank you.

And most importantly…
thank you Drequan.

Your life mattered.
Your name still matters.
And your legacy continues helping people heal every single day.

Healing happens in community.
And community care has the power to change lives.

This is only the beginning❤️

05/24/2026

11 years. The same date. The same pictures. 💔

Today is the day my life changed forever.

Every year on May 24th, I come back here and post the same pictures for awareness.

Not because I want to.
Because I have to.

There are no new ones.

No new memories.
No new smiles.
No random phone calls.
No “Ma” in his deep voice.
No more chances to make new photos.

Just these pictures, and the pain attached to every single one of them.

I have a son. His name is Drequan.

He was 20 years old. Full of life. Full of love. The kind of young man people gravitated to. Funny. Loved. Important.

My BeBe

And on this day, 11 years ago, he was left unresponsive. Not breathing. No oxygen going to his brain.

Not for minutes.

For hours.

While someone who called himself a “friend” walked past him, went into his wallet, used his debit card, and came back hours later.

By the time help came, it was too late.

So hear me clearly today:

My son might still be here if someone had called 911 sooner.

📞 If you EVER witness an overdose, CALL 911.

I don’t care if you’re scared.
I don’t care what’s in the room.
I don't care if you are on probation or parole
I don’t care if you were partying too.

The 911 Good Samaritan Law exists for this exact reason. It protects people who call for help during an overdose emergency.

Make the call anyway.

Because now, I live in a reality where all I have left are pictures and memories

The same pictures.
The same date.
The same heartbreak.

Year after year.

One call could have saved his life.

Please don’t let another mother or family feel this pain❤️

05/23/2026

Some days are bigger than a workshop.

They become a reminder that our youth do not just need another program, they need safe spaces to feel seen, heard, supported, and emotionally free.

A huge thank you to the SCSD and Building Women for trusting DRE’S Safe Place with your young people. ❤️

This week, we had the honor of walking alongside these students through our theme:

Feel It. Name It. Release It. Replace It.

Not by forcing conversations. Not by telling them to “calm down.” But by giving them healthy, intentional ways to express what is happening inside.

They laughed. They opened up. They released emotions. They encouraged each other. They learned that feelings are not something to hide or be ashamed of.

At DRE’S Safe Place, healing is not always sitting still in silence. Sometimes healing looks like movement. Creativity. Breaking what has been weighing you down. Speaking life back into yourself. Learning that your emotions deserve healthy outlets.

And judging by the smiles, the energy, and the connections made these young people reminded us exactly why this work matters.

Special thank you, as always, to Bianchi’s Catering for showing up with love through every meal and dessert provided for the students. Your support helps create experiences that feel warm, welcoming, and memorable.

This is bigger than a visit.

This is emotional wellness in action. This is community care. This is what happens when youth are given space to breathe, release, and just be kids again.

DRE’S Safe Place®
Release. Relax. Rejuvenate. Connect.

05/22/2026

This Sunday at 2:00 PM, we will be honoring my son Drequan's legacy and be officially cutting the ribbon for DRE’S Community Wellness Center.

This space was created for healing, creativity, connection, support, and mental wellness.

But I want people to understand this clearly:

This is not just a room.

This is not just an event space.

This is a place where meaningful work can happen.

A place where therapists, grief facilitators, art instructors, yoga instructors, life coaches, educators, youth mentors, doulas, support group leaders, creatives, and community organizations can bring their work into a warm, intentional space.

A place where people can gather.

A place where people can create.

A place where people can breathe.

A place where people can be supported.

If you have been saying, “I need somewhere to host my workshop,”
“I want to start a group,”
“I have an idea, but I need the right space,”
or “Our community needs more places like this,”

this is your invitation.

Come walk through it.

Come feel it.

Come imagine what could happen here.

Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
DRE’S Community Wellness Center
Sunday, May 24th at 2:00 PM
6101 E. Molloy Rd., East Syracuse, NY

Sunday is not just about cutting a ribbon.

It is about opening another door for healing, connection, and community.

I would love to see you there. ❤️

05/20/2026

AFFIRMATION WEDNESDAY

I am allowed to pause.

My mind deserves rest too.

Some of us are not just physically tired.

We are mentally overloaded.

Tired from making decisions.
Tired from being responsible.
Tired from remembering everything.
Tired from checking on everybody.
Tired from solving problems that never seem to stop coming.

And because we are still functioning, people assume we are fine.

But mental overload is real.

Decision fatigue is real.

When your brain has to make too many choices, carry too many responsibilities, and stay alert for too long, it gets harder to think clearly, regulate emotions, focus, sleep, and respond with patience.

That does not mean you are lazy.
It does not mean you are failing.

It means your mind has been running without enough recovery.

Mental Health Awareness Month is a reminder that mental wellness is not only about crisis.

It is also about noticing when your mind is tired before your life starts forcing you to stop.

𝗧𝗶𝗽 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆:

Take one decision off your plate.
Not ten.

One.

Choose the easy dinner.
Wear the simple outfit.
Say no without overexplaining.
Put the phone down for 20 minutes.
Write the list instead of carrying it in your head.
Ask for help with one thing you keep doing alone.

𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆’𝘀 𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻:

I am allowed to pause.

My mind deserves rest too.

At DRE’S Safe Place®, we believe rest is not something you earn after you break down.

Rest is part of how you stay well.

Sometimes the most powerful thing you can do is stop, breathe, release what has been sitting heavy, and give your mind a place to land.

We Healing Over Here!!

DRE'S SAFE PLACE

06/03/2026

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Wednesday	5pm - 9pm
Friday	5pm - 9pm
Saturday	11am - 7pm
Sunday	2pm - 6pm