Meet Milena Andebrhan

Today we’d like to introduce you to Milena Andebrhan.

Milena, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
So my story starts with my parents immigrating to America over 30 years ago from a small country located in East Africa called Eritrea. My parents left everything they had and knew for my siblings and me to have more opportunities and live a better life. This sacrifice my parents made shaped me as a person and most importantly being a child of immigrant parents taught me perspective. I learned as a young child how to see, hear, speak and feel through someone else because it was the only way I could help my parents. This was how I learned to be such an empathetic person.

Growing up my desire to promote change and help others was very clear. I wasn’t sure how exactly I wanted to help others but I knew for sure it was my purpose. My story of how I became an activist in the community simply came from my natural response to the needs I saw in the communities I was involved in and surrounded by. The Eritrean and Ethiopian community in Arizona specifically is a tight-knit community that I am heavily involved in. We celebrate our greatest moments with each other but also endure our toughest times together. I saw a need in our community and like many other homes, mental health wasn’t a topic that came up with our families due to the lack of awareness and the stigmas that followed along with. So when I saw our community suffering from this lack of awareness, I knew I needed to do my part. This lead to the beginning of forming our first East African Mental Health Support Group in Phoenix, Arizona. We now have group gatherings where we come together and discuss different important topics that may or may not be related to our mental health. I’ve also had the opportunity with the help from others in the community to host Mental Health Awareness meetings for the Eritrean and Ethiopian adults in our community.

Besides being involved in the habesha community, I am also involved in the dance community here in Arizona. What originally seemed like a selfish act for me soon became another opportunity for me to share my knowledge and experiences to inspire others. When I teach dance classes, I use my education and experience to help my students become more aware of how their mental health plays a role in everything they do and how they can use these skills we use in dance in our everyday life. One of the last things I would like to talk about is The Ladies Luncheon I cohost with my dear friend Seema. The purpose of this group is to gather different women from all over the valley and create a safe space where they can be vulnerable, relate and inspire each other. We choose different topics for each luncheon and discuss what these topics mean to us.

As I stated before, my dedication to helping others came from a natural response to being aware of the needs I saw in people I could relate to. One of my favorite quotes by the late Ermias Asghedom, also known as Nipsey Hussle is “The highest human act is to inspire”. My goal is to continue to inspire others and help provide people with the knowledge, tools, and interventions they need to be their best selves. I believe people are doing the best they can with what they have, know and understand and if they had, knew and understood more they would do things differently.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road but it has been a road of growth. I am always learning more about myself and figuring out how to maintain my happy. I think it’s important to show compassion to yourself and be kind. It’s okay not to be okay. It gets hard sometimes balancing what I do at work and in the communities, I’m involved in all while being a full-time student and having a personal life but I remind myself to practice what I preach and it helps me. Most importantly I remind myself to never lose hope. I value what I do and the people I work with to help in these communities and I can’t do that by placing myself on the back burner.

We’d love to hear more about your work.
Aside from the two groups, I am involved in, I have also had the privilege of speaking at different events on topics that inspire me such as the importance of self-care, women’s health, setting goals and building self-esteem and confidence. I am extremely proud and grateful for these platforms I have been given to do what I do best. I think what sets me apart is my courage. I am a full-time student and I work a full-time job and it took a lot of courage to take on this roll in these communities, but I did it and I continue to do it. I moved states temporarily and I still make it a point to go back to Phoenix to host, speak, and inspire others whenever the opportunity arises. Even during this COVID 19 pandemic we are managing to continue to meet via zoom and offer support to those who need it during this time. It’s definitely not anything I could do without the support of every single person that shows up for me.

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
My favorite memory from childhood would have to be spending Christmas eve with all of my family and cousins. It’s a family tradition that we still do today.

Contact Info:

• Email: milenandebrhan@gmail.com

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