Today's guest is Dr. Yolanda Kerney. Dr. Yolonda joined the United States diplomatic corps as a Foreign Service Officer in 2004. She served as Counselor for Public Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; Public Affairs Officer at the U.S. Mission to Barbados, the Eastern Caribbean, and the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States; Public Affairs Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Jamaica; Cultural Affairs Officer at the U.S. Embassy in the Republic of Cameroon, and Economic Officer and Chief Consul at the U.S. Embassy in the Republic of Guinea.

Dr. Yolanda is the recipient of several Department of State Meritorious Honor and Superior Honor awards, and the Lois Roth Award for Excellence in Cultural Diplomacy. She is a proud alumna of Howard University from which she earned undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees in music history and literature, and religious studies. Before joining the Foreign Service she served as a music historian at the United States Library of Congress.

Learn more about the power of believing in yourself and thriving in your self-knowledge in today's episode!

Today's Pioneering Woman is Bessie Blount Griffin. Bessie Blount Griffin was an American writer, nurse, physical therapist, inventor and forensic scientist. As a part of Blount's physical therapy exercises, she taught World War II veterans who had lost the ability to use their hands, new ways to perform everyday tasks by substituting the use of their teeth and feet. She would tell them, “You’re not crippled, only crippled in your mind." As a nurse and physical therapist, she also cared for and worked closely with Theodore Edison, son of famed inventor Thomas Edison. Thank you for your Pioneering Contributions, Bessie Blount Griffin!

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Podcast Hosted by Lisa Mae Brunson, Founder of Wonder Women Tech

Sound Engineering by Alicia Pichette

Encore Editing by Cari Favole

Original Music score by Carleigh Strange

Illustrated Artwork by Jessenia Hernandez -@sen.i.a on Instagram