Latest / Building 341 / The Part of Philanthropy Nobody Sees | Chad & Erica Furlong

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The Part of Philanthropy Nobody Sees | Chad & Erica Furlong · Building 341

• Caddey B: Welcome back to Building 341. Today we are sitting here with Chad and Erica Furlong. We're going to be talking about their journeys, the work they've done in the community and through philanthropy. DJ Rubbaban: Yeah, yeah. Caddey B: And of course the music they listened to along the way that became part of their soundtrack to their lives. So Chad, Erica, welcome to Building 341. We appreciate you guys for coming through. Cherica: Yeah, what's happening, you guys? Thanks for having us. DJ Rubbaban: What's up? What's up? I I wanna I he said the word palanth I can't even s pronounce that word right. Pronounce it Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: for even though I got two degrees, I still struggle with certain words. I don't know if my South Central is still Cherica: Thank you. Caddey B: Philanthropy. DJ Rubbaban: in me. Ca say that word for me. Cherica: Philanthropy. DJ Rubbaban: Talk that that sound like money. Boy, that sound like money. That's Cherica: It does. There ain't any money in it, but it does sound like money. Right. Caddey B: Ha ha ha ha. DJ Rubbaban: So you guys like Help our listeners tell us the story of we want to hear about what you guys do, your your your various charities, but let's talk about your music first. What kind of music did Chad grow up listen? Did you grow up in San Diego, Chad? Cherica: Man, I grew up in the Bay Area, East Bay, Alameda, San Leandro. That's where I grew up. So it DJ Rubbaban: Okay. Cherica: was it was hip-hop all day, every day in the East Bay. You know how it is. 90s hip hop. Grew up listening to all that stuff that was that was going on. tribe, you know, even some the LA scene, the EPMD scene on the East Coast, you know, all the stuff that was just out and about. Too short. Of course, for shore Bay Area. So but it was hip hop every day. DJ Rubbaban: Okay, okay, I can mess with you. Cherica: And then, you know, and then you got the soulful stuff like TLC and the the fun kind of, you know, that kind of vibe too. So that's what I grew up to. DJ Rubbaban: But when I but when I asked people on the streets about Chad, I didn't you grew up in the church? Cherica: Man, you know what? They didn't know what they didn't know. Hey, Caddey B: You Cherica: well we don't what we didn't we don't share with them, they just didn't know, right? Yeah, DJ Rubbaban: Okay. Cherica: but I did. So I did listen to on the church side of things because my dad was a pastor in the Bay Area, so I grew up listening to heavily influenced by the church. So there was those church That I listened to too, like who was it? Ron Cannoli. Do you guys remember Ron Cannoli back in the day? DJ Rubbaban: I gotta I gotta ask the streets about that one. Caddey B: I got, DJ Rubbaban: I gotta ask the streets. Cherica: Hey Caddey B: yeah, I'd have to look that one up. Cherica: man, people are gonna know. Hey, your listeners some the line is for DJ Rubbaban: Look, look, we was listening to the whinins and the the the Shirley Cheeses and Cherica: sure. But your people that are listening to this podcast, some of are are gonna know who Ron Cannoli is. I guarantee it. DJ Rubbaban: it in the comments if you've heard that group. Put us in the comments if you know Chad too. Cherica: That's what I'm talking about. Caddey B: Definitely. Cherica: If you know Ron Cannoli and some lift him up, I'm gonna need you to write that out there. DJ Rubbaban: Okay, okay. What would be your favorite gospel song? Cherica: What about you? I would say the wine's the group. B B and C C. Yeah. The brothers. The brothers. That's what I listened to growing up. Was a lot of the Wynans family. Tomorrow. DJ Rubbaban: Okay. yeah. Cherica: Yeah. And also Ron Cannoli. That was that play that was playing a lot in my house too growing up. There was there was Yeah, yeah, yeah. Brian. DJ Rubbaban: Y'all gonna walk I got to ask the streets about Ron Cannoli. Well was he a brother with a last name named Cannoli? Caddey B: Right? Cherica: Cannoli. Yeah. Caddey B: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: He was a brother with a big head, he was cool. Cherica: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Caddy B have you ever listened to Caddey B: Mm-hmm Cherica: him? Do you know who Ron Cannoli is back in the day? Caddey B: I have no clue, I have to look that one up. Cherica: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Tremaine Hawkins, they were a Bay Area family. Andre Crouch. DJ Rubbaban: Okay. Cherica: Yeah. We listened to a lot of old school gospel music. But then, you know, when my mom would leave the house, we'd pull out our our prints Michael Jackson. That's right. You know. When they're gone, then DJ Rubbaban: Okay, opposite. Cherica: when they're gone, then you know, you listen to what you listen to. When you're not in church, you listen to what you listen to, right? DJ Rubbaban: You listen to Freaky Tales. Cherica: And then when you got a girlfriend that got you listening to all that crazy, you know, Joe to see boys to men, all those things. DJ Rubbaban: Okay. Cherica: Just all the romantic stuff. DJ Rubbaban: What I liked about the nineties too is that it incorporated rock and pop music. Like we all got a taste of all of that. You know what I mean? From Rod Cherica: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Caddey B: Definitely, definitely. DJ Rubbaban: Stewart to all the European stuff, you know? Cherica: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Simply red. Do you remember too? DJ Rubbaban: Yeah, I love it. Cherica: I living in the Bay Area, I wasn't exposed to rock. I just wasn't exposed to it until I until I played basketball and we were running out. it was high school basketball. I think I was a junior in high school, leaving the locker room. We ran out to do our warm-up layup drills. And we're in San Leandro and they played Nirvana. That song from Nirvana. smells like Team Spirit. That song. Caddey B: Smells like teen spirit. DJ Rubbaban: Yeah. That was the shit though. That was the shit though. Cherica: Dude. And that thing got down. That thing got down. Yeah. It was crazy. Yeah. I was like, okay, I can my whiteness was just coming DJ Rubbaban: Look at you. Look at you. Cherica: up. I was feeling I was feeling Caddey B: You Cherica: my whiteness in that moment just kind of coming up in me. DJ Rubbaban: Yeah, and you know what we should feel like. Yeah. Was you kinda grungy or you was still hip hop? Cherica: It was cool. It was cool. No, man. No, I wasn't. His daddy was a pastor, man. He was a grungy. And it was only hip-hop for me, but DJ Rubbaban: okay, okay. Cherica: but I watched that movie. Man, the nineties where they were getting stuck in the nineties, but I love there was this movie called it was with Winona Ryder and it was a grungy kind of movie where the soundtrack had some cool songs. DJ Rubbaban: I loved all those. Yeah, I loved all those. Cherica: But it was reality bites. This movie was called Reality Bites. Yeah. And it had this sound. DJ Rubbaban: Yeah, that was good. You remember that one, Caddy? Cherica: It was grungy. Caddey B: I do. Cherica: Yeah. Yeah, it was kinda it DJ Rubbaban: Okay. Cherica: had some tracks in there that I felt for sure. DJ Rubbaban: Now Erica, you give us yours. Like, was it similar? Cherica: mine was very soulful. So both my parents, well w when I would visit my mom or I lived with my mom, it was all gospel, mostly. And when I would go visit my dad, it was completely different genres of music. He and he took me to my very first Prince concert. So Prince played DJ Rubbaban: that's where Cherica: he had a tape deck in his car. And we would just pop tapes. He he loved Prince. He loved that whole Minneapolis sound. So we listened to a lot of Apollonia, Prince, Morris Day and the Time. We listened to a lot of that music. But he also loved old school. So Al Green, The Temptations. He loved he loved all of that stuff too. So that was my introduction. DJ Rubbaban: What kind music What kind of music did Peggy listen to? Cherica: My grandmother loved Hawaiian music. Yes. Yes. yeah. DJ Rubbaban: She was such a sweet lady. She was, and when I first met her, when I first met her, she told Joan, she says, such a nice, such a nice looking chocolate man or something. And she had me. After that, after that, she could do no wrong. After that, she could do no wrong. Cherica: She Caddey B: You Cherica: was old school Japanese, but lived in Oakland, lived in the ho in East Oakland, but loved her some Hawaiian music. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: All I know is Don Ho. Cherica: and just, you know, whenever we'd be over there, that's what she would be playing. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: Yeah, real good energy too. Real, real so kids watching this, when once you get older and older, stay positive. I love seeing people that are seasoned, that's not burnt out and upset and mean all the time. Your grandmother was very just when I seen her. She probably cussed you out, but we didn't know nothing about. Cherica: yeah, she was good people. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Definitely. She was always fussing at me about something, but yeah, she was good people for sure. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: Good, good. Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: So let's get into it then. Let's get into the start of that big word you said. Palantrophy. Cherica: Philanthropy. DJ Rubbaban: Yeah, and your journey of Erica has a foundation in Africa, Uganda, and Chad has a foundation in Mexico, and you both have these foundations and you both go to Uganda and Mexico a lot, right? That's crazy. Cherica: Mm-hmm. Yeah, we do. Yeah. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: Well, are both of you guys introverts, extroverts? Like, how do you keep that energy on? Cherica: That's a good question. I I I feel like I'm more introvert than Chad is. But we love the work and I s and I can see that when we're in we when we've immersed ourselves in the work, we turn on. We turn on. and and and it it can be a very emotional attacking emotionally because when you're in it, you're just There's something about the work that brings so much joy and so much also just a a a heaviness because you're carrying this thing. and I I think we both feel differently when we're in our element. When I'm in Africa, it's a different Erica than it is when I'm out. DJ Rubbaban: it is? Cherica: And I see that with Chad too. When he's in Mexico, he he's he's Different because of the need and because of the burden of it also. When she's talking about the burden, there's like there's a couple of different approaches to philanthropy for the listeners for all of us. One is we get to engage in it, we'll we'll get to send some money, or we'll get to support by following somebody's Instagram. or their podcast or whatever, or we'll get to be engaged in in a fan. You know, there's there's a fan level of whatever I can do to help, I'm down for you. I love what you're doing. I love what you're about. But then DJ Rubbaban: Right. Cherica: there's another level of ownership where you're the founder or you or you're running it or you're responsible for in the burden and weight of that is the work weight of the work. It's the weight of these kids aren't gonna eat unless you find a way to raise the money to feed their asses. You know, it's like it's a heavy, DJ Rubbaban: Which is heavy. Cherica: they're not they're not the staff's not gonna get paid unless you can raise that money and get paid. Or the vision unless you're sharing the vision at home and in building an army, it it's a different weight. And then there's also a weight of the burden of what these kids are facing, what these families are facing in their home environments. And don't get us wrong, they have they are beautiful and strong people in their own right. And they've got it better in a lot of ways than Americans do. So we we strategically mm-hmm. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: we don't really hear that part of it. You know, we really don't hear that part of they they do have it a lot better than Americans. You know, we usually just hear America is just the best. America's the best. And I hope you guys can give Cherica: Right. Right. Right. Right. We grew up with that. DJ Rubbaban: us some examples of that too as we talk about, you know, like like when you guys Cherica: Mm-hmm. DJ Rubbaban: go into the going to the one place in Africa and the guy was teaching them sports and and and the appreciation levels and all that. Cherica: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. P poverty may mean that you don't have access to some things, like the same kind of education or medical care or things, items like cars or clothing or or or is easy access to food or things like that. But what it does do in a community is People are close because you gotta be. You you rely on each other so you have this closeness. And you in your background, you know that so well with with people, you know, people then are in close relationship. Yeah. Family means something different in Mexico in Uganda than it means in the US. DJ Rubbaban: So so Chad, let me so let me start Caddey B: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: off. So let me start off first with let's start off. What's the name of your foundation? Cherica: It's called Buenaunda, which means good vibes. So if you DJ Rubbaban: Mm. Cherica: go up to a kid in Mexico, they may be like, él tiene buena onda, which would mean like he's got good vibes about him or she's got good vibes about him. So we called it DJ Rubbaban: Right there. Cherica: like what the kids, you know, say. So we called it buena onda. Yeah. And we we've got like a boys and girls club for kids in a Baja town. A small tiny Baha town south of Ensenada by about an hour. DJ Rubbaban: And what's the what like one of the things I heard Erica say in one of her in her one of her interviews was you have to have an end goal. You have to have an end goal in this journey. And part of what I wanna Caddy's gonna go in a few in a minute or so, but what c kind of what I wanna know too is how do you how do you manage this and like you said, what's the end game and like do you have to if it's a problem like do you have to go down there? earning money and you know, and Cherica: Mm hmm. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: still taking care of you and your wife and your fa your extended families and so let's start with you, Chad, first. Let's start with you first. Cherica: Mm-hmm. Okay. Well, our end game with Buenobunda is to educate kids and to see that they dream bigger for their lives than just working in the fields which are down the street. So what we're competing with is a culture there in Baja where everybody works in the fields. Everybody. dads that are local, a lot of dads will go into the US for work or they'll go somewhere for work, and then maybe about half the dads are there working locally, but if they are there local, they're working in the fields. As soon as a kid hits of age, meaning twelve, thirteen, they're big enough to work, they're gonna go into the fields because is po in this very poor community, they're in the fields, they're making maybe. $15 a day, $16 a day, working six, seven days a week, but gas costs the same. rent's still expensive. as the US, you know, they're spending the same on gas. It most of them don't have cars, but g a lot of prices of goods, the cost of goods are still pretty, pretty high down there. So to make a living, you gotta when your babies are big enough, they need to go work to supply for the family. income and as a whole as a whole. So that then robs these kids of any other future. They don't really build they get stuck in this cycle of working in the fields for very little, not really DJ Rubbaban: Hmm. Cherica: doing what they want to do with their lives, or even having the ability to think about that. How do you dream about, hey, I want to go be I want to own my own business someday or I want to be a this or I want to be a social worker or work on cars. You get kind of stuck in this little world. So our goal is we incentivize these kids to stay in school. If the families will keep their kids in school, we'll supplement with some rice, with some beans, some sugar, some groceries, take a little pressure on them. DJ Rubbaban: I love it. Cherica: Yeah. And and we're creating a fund. Also, we're taking the kids and driving them to the big city in Ensenada to see the colleges and the trade schools and to get them thinking a little bit differently, get them dreaming for their lives. Well, it's about health, mind, body, spirit. So if we can just be a small part of helping these kids think and live a little bit differently than the normal stuck in poverty normal, that we're trying to elevate these. kids out of that space. That's our end goal with with Veroni. DJ Rubbaban: Okay. Now how long has this program been going? How long has it been? Cherica: Man, we we opened the doors to kids maybe two years ago, just coming on a year and a half, two years ago. We were in a long building phase where me and friends, one car load of people at a time, one van load of people at a time, would just build this facility. So we were building the constructing this big facility, raising money going back and forth. So we've had kids we started with about thirty kids every day, and now we run Anywhere between eighty and a hundred kids every day. We got five full-time staff, six full-time staff down there keeping the thing going. Sophia is our beast. She's she's beast mode down in Punta Colinet. She's out there killing it, leading. We have an amazing DJ Rubbaban: I love it. Cherica: all local team. Incredible, incredible group. It's a great program. Yeah. It's a beautiful program. And it it also they also feed these children. Mm. So they're not, you know, they're educating them. Yes. It's more of an after school program and it's, you know, gone through the summer. But they are also able to have a meal and a lot of them that's their only meal of the day. And so DJ Rubbaban: What's the average age of these of these kids? Cherica: They are anywhere from four to about sixteen. Yeah, four to sixteen. A lot of young ones though. A lot of elementary age. About probably eighty of the hundred are elementary school. Kids. Yeah. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: Caddy you got questions? Caddey B: Okay, okay. So what was it? So Erica, you've been doing this work for over 17 years. What keeps you getting up and getting into it? Cherica: I think the ki it's the kids. It's the relationships. and I think what what it the difference in in our our organizations is that I've been we don't have a facility, we work with schools in Africa, and for the last seventeen years I've built relationships with these kids. So it feels like when I'm going and coming, I'm going to visit my children, my own children. And you know, leaving them in Africa is hard. So I want to get back as quickly as I can to see how they're doing, to to to go visit them, see how they're doing in school. And so It's become more of a family than it has been work. And so for me, that's where the burden is heavy because we all know as parents, when you leave your children, you know, you're like, I wonder how they're doing. Do they need anything? If they do need anything, that means I gotta raise more money to send to send more money. And We've we've pivoted from the way that we used to do that because of that. Because the burden was so heavy emotionally that we now work directly with schools instead of with with specific families so that we can have more of a a yeah, yeah. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: Set a boundary. Yeah. Yeah. It has to be some, it has to be Caddey B: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: an a an invisible it's like like me coming from a therapeutic background, like people can people would say to me, How do you handle it when people try to commit suicide? Or when a client goes back to a bad situation and you've invested all this in his client. Well, it's really you just set the tone and you want them to go. Like you helped you push them, but you want them, they have to do it themselves. Like you can't Cherica: Yeah, yeah. Mm-hmm. DJ Rubbaban: 'Cause it can be overwhelming. And and and one of the things in this journey and us talking about this, like for me, I'm one of those people with people that do your work that I just sit in the glass window. I just I think I would just go over there and cry, Erica. And think I would be I think I would be a hot mess. You know what mean? As much as I Cherica: Yeah yeah yeah yeah no and you DJ Rubbaban: do anyway, what you guys do seems like it would just I would want to adopt every kid. Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: Think I would want to fight some people, I would want to sing in church with Cherica: Yeah, yeah, you would DJ Rubbaban: them. You know, what's to do with the big head you guys were talking about? I want to sing some of his songs, Cherica: Panoli. DJ Rubbaban: all that. Like I would just, but at the same time, I've seen you go. I've seen Chad go. I've seen family members go. And even my nephew, you know, I gotta ask him the ghetto version. I'm like, man, tell me what's really cool. And you know him, he's so laid back, he's so but then when I asked Chris Galaxy, it was a wonderful experience for him. It was a wonderful he Cherica: Yeah. Yeah. Mm-hmm. DJ Rubbaban: was like, I don't know if I can go back right away, but I wanna go. I was like, Man, you better go back. You better go back. You know, it's so Cherica: Yeah. No, it's true. It's true. And the and you learn that in the process. Like, you know, in year one to five, I didn't know that I needed to protect myself in that way. I didn't know I was just like, I'm all in. I'm young. I'm you know, I'm young, I can do it all. DJ Rubbaban: That's crazy. That's crazy. Cherica: And you feel like you can handle and hold all of that and you can hold space. For, you know, thirty to a hundred children at a time, but you can't. We're not we don't have the capacity for that. So doing it this way is like coming into wisdom and coming into okay, if I'm going to do this work and I know that I've been called to this work, then how do I protect myself in the process? There there that is such an important point because we're all wire. For those of us who are wired specifically, though, where we just wanna give all the time, we want to meet people's needs. We you we there's a need being met in us when we meet someone else's need. But that can also be an unhealthy thing, right? Because it sh shows okay, what's wrong with what is it about you that has to go around meeting everybody's needs all the time? We've had to find boundaries in this journey of philanthropy and leadership. And balance. In that balance, we gotta meet our own needs. We gotta yeah. It's important. DJ Rubbaban: Now now now let me ask you this, Erica. So you've been doing this 17 years. Kinda give us a little bit about the origin story of your foundation too. And and I wanna know as well. I wanna know, you never thought of some big dude named Bubba Bubba or something, African dude on the plane, and he's walking into your thing and like, I want all of this. You know, F you, I'm you are going to be my wife. You are going to be my wife. Like you wanna it's it's like Caddey B: You DJ Rubbaban: you just came in there with your obey easy going vibe, like, hi, I'm Erica. Like Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: like you didn't think the killer was gonna be like, like, Erica, you are my wife. Cherica: That is funny that you that you said that. I did before Chad, and even still being married, I've had a many DJ Rubbaban: Sa give us the skull give us the scu. Cherica: of proposals. Proposals, yeah. Someone's always, Caddey B: Hmm. Cherica: yeah, like, do you need another husband? Like a hundred cows, right? Yeah, like yeah. The dowry, DJ Rubbaban: What? Cherica: offerings, all of it. But I think in I think this was God protecting me too. Because like I said, 17 years ago going in with a big heart, wanting to do some good, I didn't see any of that stuff. And it wasn't that it wasn't that it DJ Rubbaban: See, God was kind of protecting you from all of that. Cherica: wasn't there because for years I traveled alone. I would go there alone. Sometimes I would go there with one of the pastors from the church that I was going to at the time. But a lot of times I would be alone traveling. And it wasn't really until we went for the first time. Chad came with me in 2021, 22 for the first time. And he said, I can't believe you c would come here by yourself. Yeah. And I was like, what do you mean? I'm fine. But I I don't think, I never thought about it. I never thought about you're in a different country. You're target. You're this you're you're a little person, and that I'm a target. I never thought about that at all. I move about the world with such like bigness. DJ Rubbaban: You both of you guys do. Like both of you guys have no fear. Like I've heard stories. Cherica: Yeah. That I never it never crossed my mind that I could be swooped up and never come back home. I never thought about that. But I think about that with Chad going to Mexico. I'm like, let me know when you cross the border. Let me know when you get there. Where are you going? And that shit is real. Yeah. That that threat is real shit. We'll tell you tell him that story when we were in our From Mexico driving into the town with a cartel. Yes, this last trip. We were But hey, don't let this scare you guys. We want you to come DJ Rubbaban: we that's what we want right there. This is I'm getting excited right now. Cherica: with us. Yeah, we want you out We want you to come with us. So don't let this don't let this go. So we're driving to DJ Rubbaban: Yeah. Cherica: we're driving to Mexico and we're an hour from the project. And Chad has been driving going to Mexico for the last 15 years to this same place. But we're in the truck, we're an hour out, and Sophia and an another friend of ours gets a call from someone that's watching the road and says, Hey, Cartel. Yeah, it's cartel. Checking in. Hey, do you know who is driving a black truck, a black Tacoma, California plates, yada yada yada? And they're like, yeah, those are our friends. Don't trip, don't worry about them. They're good. But that's the those are the types of things that He's having to deal with, we're having to deal with when I'm there, but when he leaves, I'm constantly like, Okay, are you good? Which route are you taking? You know, things like that. But it does not deter us. Yeah. We keep going. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: That's crazy. Cause see, we all feel like Chad has a little bit of Jason Bourne in him. You know, like, you know, he could pull on the side of the road and take a tire off and fight somebody. But Erica, like, you know, for you to kind. Yeah. So Erica, for you to go to Uganda. And I love that you kind of dispel Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: some of the stereotypes about Uganda. Tell us how Uganda is. Like, tell us, do they got to. Cherica: Uganda. DJ Rubbaban: Do they got a good mall? Do they they got you know, we you know we Caddey B: You DJ Rubbaban: hear we see the Cherica: Your food. So Yeah, the food as food is a good thing. DJ Rubbaban: You know the v you know what we hear about Caddey B: How's the food? How's the food? Has it changed your taste buds? Cherica: It definitely has. very clean food, very organic. everything is kind of brought to the market each day. So there's like they're grocery stores, but they're not, you know, like like our grocery stores where there's a meat, you know, a meat counter full of meat. You may have like six packs of chicken in there. And once the six are gone, that's it. There's no more chicken till tomorrow. But everything is very fresh and very good and very, of course, inexpensive because it's all grown there. it's only been recently that cancer has been showing up in Uganda because of pesticides. Y only probably in the last three years are we seeing and hearing about people that have cancer and it's because of pesticides that are being sprayed on the food. Mass production of food, preservatives, the way we eat. And and the West has definitely come into Uganda and and changing infrastructure, changing framework and the a way the way that the people live, which is very different than it used to be. When I was going there before, there was one way in and one way out of the airport from the airport. Three hour drive. Now it's about twenty five minutes on a DJ Rubbaban: Whoa. Cherica: on a freeway. And you couldn't find a c a good cup of coffee anywhere. You had to just have that at your home or wherever you were staying. But now there's a coffee shop and a Wi-Fi cafe on every corner. And it's become this developed country, but the gap is very wide between the haves and the have nots. DJ Rubbaban: Which is like what America is becoming. Cherica: Yeah. It's number 10. It's number 10 for poverty on the continent. and you know the continent is large, so that is they're down there. DJ Rubbaban: Pretty low. Cherica: That's low. the average daily wage is about two dollars a day. And we have a few of our adult kids that are working and they work for a hundred dollars a month. get paid and you get paid once a month. and these are at like bars and restaurants. These are, you know, good paying jobs. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: So whereas Yeah, so it's like the tips and the it's f it's no tipping? Cherica: Yeah. And they get about it's about a hundred hundred and five dollars a month that they're getting paid. DJ Rubbaban: So for you to take all this all what you see and you regurgitate it out positive and then you get on a plane for hours and come back to the bay, do you just crash for like the first week? Cherica: man. That that's a great question because we go into a culture shock. When we leave Africa and we hit Dubai or United Emirates or wherever wherever we're at. Yeah. shude. Well DJ Rubbaban: You throwing out big words. Look, you throwing out big stuff. You just said divide. I want to hear those stories too. I'm going to shut up a little bit, but we got to go back to all of that. Cherica: well it's just when you Live and immerse yourself in our friendships and our people and our in the market and the village. That's our life for the months that we live in Africa. Yeah. Then we fly out and we land in the Western world. Yeah. It's like there's a little bit of what is that movie? Machine Gun Preacher or whatever that movie was, where it's DJ Rubbaban: Mm. Yeah. Cherica: this like, fuck y'all. Like you guys are you don't. you this decadence and yet there's people living starving or don't have shit in these other spaces, but we're so stuck in our own space. There's a little bit of an edge, I think, yeah that we we feel when we come back into mainstream DJ Rubbaban: Okay. Cherica: society. At least I feel that there's a little like fuck y'all. Like what DJ Rubbaban: No, it makes sense. Cherica: what are we but but it the flip side to that is we it's so we just We're all living our lives. We're all just in it. Yeah. And we don't realize that our neighbor down the street is struggling or this or that. Yeah. Yeah. It's true. So there is a there is a juxtaposition of of p poverty and wealth that's like it to be to go through the Middle East, to leave here, land in the Middle East, because we think, this is it. The US is it. But when you fly into a place like Qatar or Dubai or Turkey. You're like the amount of wealth in those countries. All around the world is unprecedented. Like they have DJ Rubbaban: Give us an example. Give us no, give us an example. Cherica: in Dubai, if you go there during the winter in their mall, they have a what are the ski a ski slope. They have fake snow and you can go in and and ski. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: In the mall? Cherica: In the mall. Caddey B: you Cherica: And there's a soccer stadium in the mall. Full size dinosaur put together from Wyoming. There's a mall in the airport. You Lamborghinis on the freeway. Well is that we don't even see in the US. Design children wearing designer clothes up underneath the e hob and all all that stuff. It's it's something else, but then we leave there and Fly five hours, and you are in one of the most beautiful but marginalized places in the world. and I don't even want to say disparaging or poverty DJ Rubbaban: Yeah. Cherica: or but marginalized. The continent is marginalized. There's so much wealth and beauty in the continent. And that is why it's, you know, being infiltrated for its resources. That's another podcast from another time. Yeah. Right. Right. DJ Rubbaban: Mine. Cherica: But there's so much there that is untapped by the people because of the structure and the system. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. DJ Rubbaban: And this is the to this is like, you know, centuries of what they did to Africa anyway. Another marginal even Mexico, like and it makes you Cherica: Mm-hmm. Exactly. Same. yeah. DJ Rubbaban: wonder about Mexico with the cartels as well as the president and all that, like the pushback Cherica: Mm-hmm. DJ Rubbaban: with the United States and its changing policy so much. Does that really affect what was happening in America? Does that really affect Uganda and Mexico? Have you guys seen that? You know, the politics have changed drastically. Cherica: Absolutely. Absolutely. It it affects how we can come and go. Mm-hmm. You know, DJ Rubbaban: Does it? Cherica: it affects the amount of time that we can be there. It affects the work that we can do there, how we're doing it, for whom we're doing it for. the amount of money DJ Rubbaban: Well. Cherica: that we're sending or not sending and why we're sending it. There are a lot of things that yeah, donors. That have our donor support has definitely changed. Because frankly helping black and brown children. It's not popular. It's not yeah, it's not popular. It's not on a priority list. I'm a be that's too true. Yeah, it's America first these days. Yeah, DJ Rubbaban: You guys, I hate to hear that. I hate to hear this. I need Marvin Gaye, what's going on right now? I need Caddey B: True. Cherica: exactly. Exactly. And and even in those times when we're there and it's hard to raise money. And you know, one of the I listen to a lot of Christian and gospel music when I'm in Africa because I There's such a DJ Rubbaban: Okay. Cherica: You know, it's hard. It's hard work to raise money for our children right now is a very difficult thing. In America, I feel like has a lot to do with the way the world sees black and brown children, people in general, but black and brown children and how we support them, how we empower them, and how we educate them. And in Uganda, that's what we're doing through the Big Honda Foundation is we educate right now we're educating a hundred and twenty-five students at three different schools. And that's not high on a priority list, right? To to have a child read, and write and to critically think and and the same in Mexico. Mm-hmm. What would the world look like if all of our children were educated? Mm-hmm. Shout out DJ Rubbaban: Even Yeah. Cherica: shout out to all of our donors and supporters. We love you and couldn't do this work without you. but the you know the whole America First thing, we get asked a lot, like I got asked a a couple weeks ago from a well-intending person here in Velleo He was like, Hey, what about our kids? You know, our kids are struggling in the streets and this and that. We gotta pour into our kids before other countries. DJ Rubbaban: Good question. Ice Kids had a famous song about that, like, you know, you know Cherica: That's a great question, right? That's a great question. When you love your community and you love your city and your your community, that that's a great question. And and that's true. But the reality is these places around the world, Mexico, Uganda are the two that we're talking about right now, they don't have access to the what we have access to in our communities. Yeah. These people are just They they're on their own apart from somebody coming alongside and helping. Have you ever been in your life in a situation where you just needed somebody to help you? I have. I know what DJ Rubbaban: Yeah, that me too. Cherica: it's like. And I don't know what it means to me when that person helps. I I I'm like I'm I'm your I'm your I'm true to you for life because. Of what you just did for me. You have no idea what you just did for me. Yeah. I'm down for you for life, man. In and in life, access, they just don't have the access. That's why we will go out and about. In in the point of this America first thing that I think is important. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: We stay in positive too. Like this is America first, because we want the donors, we want everybody to reach out. We stay in positive, but we just talking about cause and effect. Cause and effect, good energy, bad Cherica: Right. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: energy. Cherica: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And and what what I want the point I want to make about that is we are a part of a world. All of us are a part we're a part of a world family. You know, that and unless we put each other unless we consider each other as nations and as peoples, we've got to consider each other as brothers and sisters and how can we How can we help each other? And how can we, you know, it it's not w no one's better than another. No one country. We just can't look at it like that. We've got to look at it a little bit different. DJ Rubbaban: Mean even though the history of the world we've been conquering each other, all of Europe conquers each other, you know, all of this, China, America, like everybody Cherica: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Caddey B: Mm-hmm. DJ Rubbaban: c you can't have my you can't have my computer chips, you know, you can't we you can't have our cars because they're too cheap. You know, you go on and on. And it Cherica: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: and it kind of goes back to you too and your journey, what we're talking about today, and you guys have kind of been sent to do this work. And again, it just me, just me, Caddy got his own opinion. I sit back and I look through that glass window and I go, fuck, how do they do that? How do they do that? I mean, we was recently on a trip today, and we we was recently on a trip a couple weeks ago. We wasn't in Dubai together, but we was on a trip. I think it was it was I it was it was rough, but but no, I enjoyed it. But you Cherica: Yeah. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: guys just turned that off. You guys just Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: turn it off and have a good time. Cherica: There there is a deep sense of calling that I think we both feel. And it there and everybody who DJ Rubbaban: Mm-hmm. Cherica: l your listeners and all of us, we're all just we all have a part to play. Each of us. DJ Rubbaban: Right. Cherica: And it's different for all of us. We just have to find out. Like the biggest part some of us need to be playing right now is right here at home in in taking care of our Children or building our going to school and building our career, whatever it is. But we all have a part to play in this world. We have to be authentic to that. For us, my story with Mexico was connected to my youngest daughter, Natalie, who's my adopted DJ Rubbaban: Yeah. Caddey B: Thank Cherica: daughter, who her biological family is from Mexico, and they donated a little piece of land in this small town I would have never known otherwise. So I my life path brought me to that. space. And for Erica, your life path was you were a part of that board of this organization. And there was a transition of leadership where she had to decide, do I step into this role as the CEO of this organization? So all of our path I really believe in the spiritual I know some people aren't about that and some people are but I I I do see connectedness I see a connectedness in the world DJ Rubbaban: Definitely. Cherica: and that there's th ca things happen that we have to stop and look at. No, not everybody believes in God and not all of that. That's fine. We're we're all figuring it out. But for me, there's when I s the land was offered and I take that back to my daughter and I think, okay, is this part of why I'm here? Is this a part of the reason why I'm here? And DJ Rubbaban: Mm-hmm. Cause I think we I think as we get older and we're in touch with ourselves, you realize certain things are just meant to be. Certain things like you know, and and you guys know me, so you guys know certain things that I've done. People go, You crazy, why you do that? Or what Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: are you getting from that? Or and and and and it's just we're sent to do it. Even Caddy will tell me, You're doing too much. Why you do this? Why you you're doing too much? Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: But I'm still looking through the glass of other people like you and other people that go, no, they doing the work. I'm just Cherica: Mm-hmm. DJ Rubbaban: doing a little, little bit. They doing the work. But you guys have to take care of yourselves. Tell me you guys go to Dubai and ski in the mall. Tell me you guys meet kings and queens. I need a ghetto store. I need I need something with a bite to it. Cherica: She's pushing me in this right now. Stop and smell the roses. Stop and smell. I think one of the things that I've learned in the process too, because of what it's done to me on the inside. I know that over the last 17 years, I'm not the same. in the the work, it's because of the work. but realizing that. Being home is a blessing. Being home is like where we live. Like this is a blessing, you know. and to be able to appreciate those things, I we've got to stop. We gotta slow down, we've gotta do what we need to do to take care of ourselves because there needs to be a refilling before you can do the work. DJ Rubbaban: That's a word. Yeah. Cherica: You there's no way that we can come home. And jump back into work because we both work. We both have jobs. You know, the nonprofit work, the phil philanthropy work is the heart work. And unless we can strengthen this thing and and do what it needs to to do to be healthy, we're not gonna be enough to to do the work fully. You know, we're both 50 years old. DJ Rubbaban: So you guys take those crazy trips? You guys going y'all doing crazy trips? Cherica: We we we are this year. We did yesterday. yes, we did. Tell that story. Tell that story. Caddey B: Do you guys do, I was gonna say, do you guys do trips that are not about the work? Cherica: Yeah, we do. So yesterday on the way back home, we're on our way home from Mexico or Friday. And I was like, you know what? Let's not go home. Let's let's stay in LA, go to the beach, enjoy it. And he was like, don't we have don't we have stuff to do? Don't we have to you know we gotta work? We gotta do this. Yeah. And I'm like, No, it's okay. Like, let's just stop for a second, enjoy this. DJ Rubbaban: I love it. And you guys trust each other's you know like some people like no no no Cherica: Yeah. So we did that and it was beautiful. We had a great time, took our time getting home, and then in October we're gonna go and celebrate our third year of marriage, in Hawaii. So yeah, totally DJ Rubbaban: you going back to Hawaii. Now look, now look. Caddey B: Nice. DJ Rubbaban: Now Caddy, they do stunt. So when they got married, they stayed in this house, big pool, big, I mean the whole living room was bigger than my whole house. Like y'all going back to that same pretty house? Cherica: No, no, no. We're going to a different island, but we we try we do try to to get to give ourselves the time. but we definitely have to fit it in because the work is is there and if we don't do it, who's going to? So we do try. DJ Rubbaban: Now, does it make the people in your life jealous because they want time with Chad and Erica, your children, your your parents, your cousins, uncles and Cherica: Mm-hmm. DJ Rubbaban: aunties? Do they you know, because this work is probably Cherica: Well, you such a great question. Yeah. I'm I'm finding that the more we're journeying along and the things keep growing, Mexico's growing, Uganda's growing, and our DJ Rubbaban: Mm-hmm. Cherica: other work, it's squeezing out people that are that that have been a priority in the past, but we are having to identify our highest priorities, even like each other. For example, my work is gonna take me out of town for six weeks in Southern California. I'll have to be there half of October and all of November through December 3rd. And I you know, she becomes my highest priority. It the it so our priorities change to that point. It's such a great question is yeah, we we've had to squeeze who we can take care of. Starts with us and then the kids and then you know out from there. It definitely affects the relationships. DJ Rubbaban: I it's it's almost like it's almost like I wanna hate right now. Cause it's just Cherica: Yeah. Caddey B: Hahaha DJ Rubbaban: I love Caddey B: So what's something you two disagree on all the time? DJ Rubbaban: There you go. Cherica: great question. Time. Our time. Yeah. Our time. DJ Rubbaban: It's precious, huh? Cherica: That's a good that's a good one. Our time and break that down. We How we use it, how we're gonna use it. I think also just how slowing down, like I was saying. you know, I want we're not getting any younger. We're both 50, we're halfway through this thing, and we know that, and we haven't been married long. And so time is such an important thing for all of us, everyone out there, like. our time is the only thing that we have and I don't ever want to squander it. And so I think that's one of the things that I'm like, okay, to what are we going to do today? And how are we going to spend our time? And a lot of times, especially if we're home, especially if we're home home in our in our house, we know that tomorrow morning we both are going to work. But we always want to make time for one another. And so I think that's probably we don't never really argue, but that's usually the thing where I'm like, Okay, what time are you gonna be home? Like what what kind of time do we have? DJ Rubbaban: That's the big that's the big one. Well Cherica: And that's such an important thing. And even for our kids, you know, we have four kids between us. We also wanna make time for them. I think they are probably our greatest priority. the four of them. And individually and collectively, you know, they need us and so being mindful of that and our time. DJ Rubbaban: Mm-hmm. I one of the things I've noticed with you two and our conversations is the generations before us, and not to put fault on them, but in the conversations that we've had, all us four, you know, my wife as well, us four talking, you guys really make a priority to check in with the kids and and they have their own minds and and conversations and go through their things and We all talk like I mean, this is my part, I can do my part, but I can't do it all. I can't I can't fix it, but I can help you. I can push you down the road, but I can't I can't drive the car for you no more. You're twenty five or twenty or whatever, Cherica: Mm-hmm. DJ Rubbaban: nineteen. So you guys we gotta find some hate, man. I I gotta bring up the views. I gotta Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: I gotta bring up the views. So tell me about Uganda and Some of the people that you meet in Uganda and the other schools and how do you interact with these people? D does the East Oakland ever come out in you and you be like, What? We ain't doing that. What? Cherica: Think I think for to answer that question, I think the only time that I ever feel angsty in Uganda is if I hear about one of our girls being disrespected through relationship. DJ Rubbaban: And that and that's probably a cultural boundary thing, huh? Cherica: Yeah, definitely cultural, definitely definitely cultural. I mean this yeah, very cultural. or when I feel disrespected, it's a very it's very patriarchal, very male dominated. Through all classes. Yeah. And so I know that when Chad is with me. And I'm speaking, that's okay. If Chad's not with me, I get looks like who are you? Who are you? Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: So they know Jason Bourne is with you. They don't know he's gonna take a coconut and throw it at them or something. Yeah. Cherica: I definitely over the years have built relationships with people who understand who I am and they understand the work that I'm doing. So it's definitely open doors, but I know that having Doing this with this partner opens other doors that I wouldn't otherwise be able to walk through. but the male dominated society, I mean, I've had have had my fair share of of being put in my place, I guess I would say. as a woman. DJ Rubbaban: Tell us about Cherica: As a woman. DJ Rubbaban: You talked about a guy named Godwin or something like that. So how did you Cherica: Yes. Yes. DJ Rubbaban: guys meet him and and tell us about that school and and Uganda? Cherica: So Godwin, we met him through a friend of ours that's here in the States. And he basically was like, Hey, I used to know this guy in Africa. I'm gonna connect you through WhatsApp. And we're like, all right, comes to find out this guy, he's probably in his mid 40s, has a school of about 500 kids that he and his wife run. 500 kids. Caddey B: Wow. Cherica: And the really amazing and beautiful thing about this guy is that he basically Taught himself and three other young guys the game of basketball. And they have built this really extraordinary basketball program primarily for girls, and now they've introduced it to boys, but they get girls' higher education scholarships in high school and university through the game of basketball. And It is an incredible program and they start the elementary school age and it's basically like what our P E program would be, but it's only basketball. They don't do anything else but basketball at this school. Only basketball. They're very DJ Rubbaban: Sonly basketball? Are they good, Erica? Don't lie, Erica. Cherica: good. No, one of their girls was on the the Ugandan national team. a few of DJ Rubbaban: Whoa, okay. Cherica: them. Yeah, a few of them and then a few of them are. Several several get scholarships. Yeah, they get scholarships. So they're really nice, good schools. Yeah. And so he is really he and his wife both are really they understand the importance of education. And like Chad was saying, like the people in these countries, Mexico and in Africa, they are doing the work for their people. You know, they're not just sitting back waiting for Americans to come and help them do shit. They're doing it. DJ Rubbaban: And that's and that's some of the that's some of what we hear. it's always other people. Cherica: We're debunking. Yes. We debunk all of those myths about the lazy African, the lazy Mexican person. That's not the truth. It's not true. These people don't need us. We have decided to come alongside and say, hey, what do you need? you need some nets. You need nets for your your hoops. Okay, we can do that. Or you need your your teachers to have some type of training. Okay, we can do that. Or there is a you know, a large percentage of your kindergarten students that can't afford the tuition. Okay, we can provide a scholarship, but it's not us coming in and saving white savior. Saving anybody. If anything, they're saving us. Yeah. Mm-hmm. DJ Rubbaban: missionaries did, you know, the missionaries. That was part of their, you know Cherica: Yeah. That white savior mentality of I'm gonna go DJ Rubbaban: Yeah. Cherica: in and I'm gonna save you guys and and do this and make me feel good in in systems that are bullshit. But one thing that Erica does that's so beautiful is she has a knack about identifying people who are just heroes and they're getting it done and they just need a little help. Yeah. Like Godwin. Godwin's story is he was an orphan himself, was taken in by a pastor in a local community, raised him in his home with as one of his kids. So today we went today in Godwin's house. We went over to his house months ago, but we went over to his house and he took us through his bedrooms. He has 18 girls living with his wife and him, and he's got some biological kids in there. Yeah. 18 girls. He's raising 18 orphans. He's raising in his home. And he built by himself. He built that school up to about 500 kids with excellence. Like we see a lot of African schools, village schools that we're talking about, not like Kampala, the big city. We're talking village schools. What he has done by himself. Yeah. So you he's farming on the side in his side hustle so that he can feed his kids in his school and sell some of it to. to help with tuition. Guy's a frickin' beast out there, just a baller. It yeah, Godwin. DJ Rubbaban: Man, shout out to God. Yeah, shout in that. Now what kind of music Caddey B: Wow. DJ Rubbaban: would he like? Would it only be tribal music? He not listened to no Tupac? Y'all ain't bringing him, y'all ain't bringing no MP3s. Cherica: It would definitely be African music. It'd be African in Africa it's African music Caddey B: Some Nipsey Hussle. Cherica: all day, every day. But it's got a reggae vibe. It's it's hella cool. Yeah. It's cool shit. Really cool. DJ Rubbaban: me ask you this stupid question. I'm I'm d I'm dispilling some of the myths. Cherica: If you have any more questions, you just holler. DJ Rubbaban: No, what about what about a what about a animals? Is it is it lions and tigers where they're where they're growing the vegetables? Like some Cherica: With no DJ Rubbaban: you know, I'm thinking Black Panther, I'm thinking, you know, hyenas, Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: I'm thinking nothing in you Cherica: It's not Wakanda. We have been on Safari where you can see all of those animals. Coolest thing ever. But they are on a reservation. They are not out roaming around. DJ Rubbaban: So no part of Uganda where you're at, you you can't just be walking down the street like, huh, huh, and you see a wild boar run down the street. Cherica: No. No, there's too many people. Yeah, they they DJ Rubbaban: Okay. Cherica: they they hunt it out. You know, the if everything's food. So where people are, the animals just keep moving out. In the villages, you know. But nothing just cute little nothing big, nothing ferocious coming out to get people. No. Not no. DJ Rubbaban: then, huh? Now what about at what about at night when you know everybody's watching, you know, Netflix? Like what do you guys do at night in Mexico and Africa? Like, you know, is you watching T V or y'all listening to the the the baboons? Like talk give me something. Give me something. Cherica: In Mexico it's quiet. And that it's so peaceful. Yeah. and depending on where you are in Africa, it could be the same, but the difference is the amount of people in Africa. It far outweighs what's happening in Mexico, especially in this Pueblo town. in Africa, it doesn't sleep. It doesn't DJ Rubbaban: it does it? Cherica: Kind comes alive at night. At night. Yeah, because everyone's working during the day. so at night, literally at like eight PM until three or four in the morning, it is on. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: They party in? Cherica: Yes. Partying, just up, music, cooking. Even some kids are up running around. But in Mexico, by like nine o'clock, the town kind of shuts down and it's quiet. DJ Rubbaban: Everything is shut down. Cherica: The sky is the clearest, the most beautiful sky. You could see the stars, cause there's no streetlights, there's no cars. And in Africa, it's completely different. in that way. Mm-hmm. Yeah, on the weekends in Mexico, it'll be a little bit of a you'll hear the parties, the fiestas, the music. People play music loud until drinking until twelve, one, two o'clock in the morning, later sometimes. you'll hear the dogs. Barking. There in Mexico there's a lot of dogs, groups of dogs that are out and about barking. And you'll hear that, but during the week it's very, very tranquilo, is what the people would say. Tranquilo, peaceful. Yeah. And but in Uganda, yeah, the people come alive, especially in the city and and in the village, which we don't stay out in a lot yet. We're building our house out in the village. So we're gonna get a lot. more experience with that. But in the city it's just it's a hustle and bustle and all the all the markets around the bota bodas, all the you can't drive anywhere without a million mopeds around you full of people coming and going. DJ Rubbaban: Yes, huh? Have you guys ever patroned any of the clubs? Have you guys patried the clubs and got it your two step on? Cherica: yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. We've yeah, we've got the clubs. Live music. Great live music. Great music scene there. lot of joy. A lot of cover bands. Yeah. Good music. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: a lot of cover what kind of music in the cover band? Cherica: soul. A lot of soul R and B music. American hits. Yeah. American music is everywhere in the world. Yeah. They they it it is Caddey B: That's true. Cherica: everywhere. Yeah. They they know all the songs we know, it shapes and creates culture. You see the kids in the ghetto and in Kampala too, trying to dress like and look like all the people they're listening to and find their own style. And you know, it's not gold, but it'll be like they're sh they'll be having, you know Yeah, whatever DJ Rubbaban: Their version of it, huh? They're ver Cherica: they can do to express and be seen. Yeah, they'll they'll wear it or make it or create it, sunglasses at night, you know, all the things, just cool kids. We got cool DJ Rubbaban: so it's everywhere, huh? It's everywhere. Cherica: cool kids. Yeah, the influence is is DJ Rubbaban: People do they in in and and and and I'm just being generic, but I'm just being now in Mexico, is it that similar scene? Like can you 'cause we hear so much about the cartels, is it really Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: just good living? Like when you guys travel out, it are people friendly and Cherica: In in Mexico, it's different. The people express themselves different. The culture is different. In Mexico, it's vaqueros, which is cowboys. So you got belt buckles and cowboy boots and hats, but it's swagger for days. I'm telling you, DJ Rubbaban: it is. Cherica: it's not like it's like there's some badasses. Those guys and they're cool as hell. And it's like, man. You see them out and about and you're like, that's yeah, that's what I want to be like. They're that's how they express themselves. And they're but in when we're in Uganda, it's different. Yeah. It's more it's a mutismo and is different. It's just I d I don't know. It's more express it's more like music and hip hop and culture and in a different way of style and so on. A lot more like the Western, like US. DJ Rubbaban: Caddy, you got any questions, Caddy? 'Cause my last question really is Cherica: Of course he does. DJ Rubbaban: No, my no, I'm gonna say this my last question is how was a I know, I know, I know I don't get I don't get this I Cherica: You got cut off, Caddy B. Caddey B: That ain't, he never has a last question. DJ Rubbaban: never have a last question. So how was how was when you bring people down to Uganda, how are they after that? Are they just like, yeah, I did it. Yeah, I'm good. Like, or are they like Cherica: no. It's you're changed. And you can't get enough. And it's not just going to see these kids, but it's what being on the continent does to you. There's something about seeing, tasting it, smelling it, enjoying the people, the culture, even just driving around. It is something that I feel like every everyone needs to experience. and it it's ch it's life changing. It's life changing. The last time I counted, I think I had I think I was like trip number twenty three. that I've been there. Yeah, DJ Rubbaban: Crazy. Didn't you bring your mom down there too once? Cherica: my mom has been a few times, my kids have been, Chad and I have been going for c a few times a year for the last few years. And one of the one of the The first time that we went, he said to me, I see why you come here. You know, it takes it 23 years, DJ Rubbaban: You guys are too deep. You guys are too freaking deep. Cherica: you know, 23 hours, Caddey B: You gotta travel. You gotta leave this. get- Cherica: you know, to get there on a plane. And he said, I understand why you come here. I see why. And we'd only been there a few hours. And and DJ Rubbaban: Connection. That connection. Cherica: then that's when I knew. I'm gonna marry this guy. Because he said to me, DJ Rubbaban: See, see, see Caddey B: You Cherica: if this is what you want to do, I'll do this with you. If this is what you want to do for the rest of your life, your life, I will do this with you. And I so appreciate that and love that about him and the work that we do because doing it alone is one thing. Doing it alone is you, you know, you kind of talk to yourself a lot about the experience. DJ Rubbaban: Mm. Yeah. Cherica: But when you can do it with someone else, you can talk with someone else about the experience. DJ Rubbaban: And you can talk to someone else through just your own language without saying it. It's just it's just it's just what Cherica: Yeah, we understand. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: it is. It's and even the little things that me and and Joan do, sometimes I'm like, Joan, like she's like, no, da da da da da. You just kinda Yeah. It's weird. Cherica: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And it's it's Caddey B: That's how your partnership is supposed to work though. When you have a partner, that's how it's supposed to work. Cherica: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That's right. Yeah. And I don't think we understand DJ Rubbaban: We don't know that sometimes. We you know, we get the we Cherica: Yeah, DJ Rubbaban: get the redhead that's crazy, you know, that chases us down the street or, you know, we get the black chick, you know, with problems and, you know. Cherica: it's true. No, it's true. You don't know until you've DJ Rubbaban: You don't know. Cherica: experienced it. Yeah. And you're like, shit, this is what I've been needing, or this is what I what I needed to even elevate the work. I know a lot of what we've done in the last few years for both of the organizations is because we're together. The things that we've done we've not we were not able to do solo. And even though we both have amazing boards, we've got a great, you know, friend system behind us and family. Supporters. And supporters, we would not have been able to do the work that we've done alone. And so we're both, I know I'm extremely grateful. Yeah. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: Yeah. I mean you di over the summer you did a sewing camp for a couple of weeks. For a week, six weeks. Cherica: Yeah. Yeah. Six weeks. Yeah. Three camp three camps sold out. She couldn't take she was turning people away. She even grew by another camp this year, but then still had to turn a bunch of people away. That keeps and that's East Bay girls of color in in Oakland primarily. Oakland in the East Bay. It's a beautiful, beautiful, beautiful thing. Yeah. They work in tandem. One cannot happen without the other. And you know being able to do this work like said is a blessing like people think that I couldn't do it or my goodness I can't believe you're doing this but we it's such a we don't know what we would do if we didn't do this. Yeah right this is our thing Caddey B: Yeah, yeah. Cherica: that we have been chosen for and there are many people I believe out there That are doing those things that they don't enjoy doing. Even the hardest of things. It is very difficult, but we enjoy it. Mm-hmm. Isn't that what we're all trying to do too is learn to sit in that pocket of what we are, what we love and what we're good at. Yeah. We're all kind of navigating in and out of that space in all of our lives. And we still do that today to try to stay in that. Red hot center of that pocket, you know, and we're all just doing what we can. We all have the part to play, like we were saying earlier, but we all need to be giving. We all need to give something. We all need to do something. If we're not giving to others, then we're really missing what we as human beings are wired to do that will bring us so much joy when we do give and in love and so on. That's some hippie shit right there, but it's true. DJ Rubbaban: I love it though. But see Caddey B: I don't know. DJ Rubbaban: look, I love it. And look, I keep saying I will be quiet, but tell us about your podcast. Like you guys have a po you guys need to invite me and Caddy B on your podcast. Cherica: Done. Done. Caddey B: Yeah, what started Cherica? Cherica: The Cherica show began because out of philanthropy because we we started, we wanted to share the story, give an outlet for people to hear what's going on, and then to expose folks to good things, to doing good, and people who are just inspiring, like you guys, people that are out there that are inspiring, they're living their brightness, they're being the bright light that they are. Yeah. And that helps that, you know, even just sitting with you guys today inspires us to be brighter ourselves. So that's what the Jericho show originally hip it was hippie shit. That got you know, people didn't like that. Caddey B: You Cherica: So then we moved it to hippie ish and then we were like, well hippie shit. Yeah. She did. She did. We're working on our book and Caddey B: And then last night I was watching the one that you guys just did where you're planting the coffee plant in the manure Cherica: Yes, yes. Caddey B: and showing the house that you guys are building. I was watching that one last night. Cherica: Yeah, man. And you DJ Rubbaban: Was that hippie shit Caddy? Caddy, how was it? Was it hippie shit? Cherica: Yeah. Caddey B: It was good. It was good. You know, it was hippie shit for sure. I mean, going out with the wheelbarrow Cherica: Yeah. Caddey B: looking for cow patties. I mean, that's kind of hippie. DJ Rubbaban: We gotta bring that back, Chad. We gotta bring that back. Cherica: Yeah, it was it wasn't about values. Yeah, yeah. We did. And that's exactly what it is. And it it feels, you know, we we use that term very loosely, but you know I I think that you know, people want we wanna label folks and say that this is what they are, we're missionaries or we're this or we're that. And I'm like, no, we're just out here doing some hippie shit. We're all and we all have That thing in us, I feel like that's innate, God given, you know, whatever whatever we're believing, that's in us to do, you know, whether we're teaching in in our inner cities, whether we're, you know, helping the houseless, whatever it is, the work that you do, Leon, like it's it's it's all hippie shit. That thing in us that we that keeps us up at night, the thing in us that we would do for no money. And philanthropy is no money. so I just we love it and I prefer to be called hippie any day. Yeah, we're we're finishing our book too, which we have called hippie shit. So it's almost DJ Rubbaban: Whoa. Cherica: almost completely done. It's the story, it's our story of love from divorce. So we talk about divorce, we talk about race, mixed race relationship. We talk DJ Rubbaban: Look at this. See, I'm getting I'm getting it all right here. Right here. I'm getting it. You talk about the you talk about the weed and the gun and Cherica: Yeah, man. Yeah. We talk about thoughtfulness. DJ Rubbaban: and who got All of that. Cherica: all of it. All of it. Let's go. Mixed our DJ Rubbaban: Now when is it coming out? Cherica: mixed family. Yeah, so we DJ Rubbaban: When is the book? Cherica: we are gonna have our final proof. It's definitely gonna be out next in 2027 in print. But we we've finished we're in like our second rewrite of the book, and then we've got a third rewrite, and then we'll begin that process of pushing it out to the world and sharing it. Again, hopefully it's just another another light that helps people in their own brightness encourage them and something that they can see and read and we'll do an audio version of it too. So yeah, we're it'll 2027. DJ Rubbaban: And you guys gotta have like 'cause we're talking about the sam similar thing. You guys gotta have something in the in Vallejo at a coffee shop and have me and Caddy read a certain chapter. All that. Cherica: yeah. Done. Done. Done. Done. DJ Rubbaban: put my own twist on it, Erica, you know. Caddey B: Definitely. Cherica: Done. Sack, we'll go with the sack. Let's go. We'll we'll do a tour together. DJ Rubbaban: coming to the bay, I'm coming to Vallejo. I'm coming to Vallejo. Cherica: Well then after that we gotta go to your LA hood. Let's go down south. DJ Rubbaban: Chad, you totally can like it's a lot of my friends that didn't grow up in LA that I took to LA would be like, Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: because these these cities are very, they're shrinking. You know, it's less, it's more asphalt and less dirt. People Cherica: Yes, yes. DJ Rubbaban: aren't as nice. People are like cutting you off. And when I bring people to LA, they go, Cherica: Mm, yeah. DJ Rubbaban: this is it's dirty here. Like, it's it's it's very urban. I'm like, yeah. But you can handle yourself, Cherica: Yeah it is. DJ Rubbaban: Chad. Caddey B: Hmm. DJ Rubbaban: I can take you to I can take you to Boo Boo's house. I can take you to Boo Boo's house. Cherica: Hey, thank you. DJ Rubbaban: And I'll be like, this is my cousin Chad. He'd be like, Yeah, yeah. Cherica: Okay. Caddey B: You got that 619 area code, so yeah. DJ Rubbaban: 'Cause I thought you was from San Diego. I thought you was from San Diego, Ted. Cherica: Yeah. Yeah. I I liv I lived there for twenty years. I lived there a long time. So I grew up in the bay, but then I I found my way down down there. So yeah, in so DJ Rubbaban: Caddy B grew up in San Diego too a little bit. Caddey B: I'm from Oceanside. I'm from Oceanside, yeah. I was born in Escondido. Cherica: What part? O side. side. Nice man. That's that's cool. Okay, cool. I love that. I love O Side. We're gonna be in Vista for six weeks doing school assemblies through October Caddey B: I just... Cherica: and November, just speaking to kids, you know, for six weeks through the Caddey B: We sold our house in Vista three years ago. Cherica: Yeah man. wow. Nice. Six one nine. Yes. Caddey B: Yeah, so I grew up in Vista, all that. Yeah, my aunt and my cousins still live down there in Vista. Cherica: That's cool. Yeah. Yeah. O Side's O side's got that Vista vibe too. That's a I I really like that area. My youngest daughter was born in Vista. Caddey B: Okay, yeah. And then my brother, he's Cherica: I mean I guess the small world. Caddey B: got a house out in the Duluths, out in Fallbrook. Cherica: Cool. Cool. Pretty out there. It's pretty c pretty. Nice. DJ Rubbaban: So anything Caddey B: Yeah, DJ Rubbaban: you guys would like to say before Caddey B: that's like the country of San Diego. DJ Rubbaban: sorry. Cherica: Mm. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: hear about the hood in San Diego. I don't wanna hear about Vista and yeah yeah. Caddey B: No, you're DJ Rubbaban: Ain't you don't you didn't you come from the good part of San Diego? I know you lived in the hills and I know it was pools, it was poop waterfalls, I know it I know y'all had maze, Chad, already know. Cherica: Man I'm pretty happy. Man, all of that, butlers, you know, the guest house, Caddey B: You DJ Rubbaban: All of that. I got a guest house and I ain't in there, but I mean guest house, y'all Cherica: all of that. DJ Rubbaban: invented the guest house, yeah. Cherica: Man, yeah, get San Diego's an interesting place. That's kind of why I don't want to throw shade on it, but we we really love the Bay Area because everyone lives together for the most part. It it's a melting pot of cultures, which is a core value for us. It means a lot to us. It's very important. So because that's such a priority to us, San Diego's not a lot like that. It's pretty homogeneous. It's pretty there's there's not a lot of yeah people DJ Rubbaban: Yeah. Pretty Yeah, yeah. Cherica: People live in their communities, which really isn't the way we view the world or want to support. However, it is a gorgeous. San Diego is a gorgeous place. We were just there. Yeah, it's beautiful. Yeah, it's pr it's a pretty place to be, no doubt about it. So yeah. We'll be spent a more time. Yes. DJ Rubbaban: And you guys went to Vallejo. You guys went to Vallejo. And you guys have other family members in Vallejo too, right? Cherica: Yes, I do. My sister lives here. Cousins cousins. Three cousins live here. Yeah, cu DJ Rubbaban: Yeah. Cherica: Hey, the home of Cunfunction of E forty, La Russell. Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: that yeah, the E forty, that's my guy. I w you know what I was wondering I was listening to Son's latest album and Cherica: Mm-hmm. She's dope. DJ Rubbaban: She's dope, right? I was listening to her latest Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: album. Cause her Caddey B: Yeah, yeah. DJ Rubbaban: first album, I didn't even know who that was. I didn't even know that was someone. I didn't even know that's who that was. And I'm listening. One day I'm in the car and Cherica: Stanley. Yeah. family. DJ Rubbaban: it's like, I'm listening for my May Back, Lay Back. And they was like, that's something Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: that's so-and-so. I was like, that ain't her. That ain't her. And I'm bumping Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: it. And then Chris was like, you know, Chris and his mellow, Dad, that's her. That's her. No, that's her. Blah blah blah. Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: And so I was listening to the new, I was listening to the new album, and she got a song on there called Vallejo. And I'm like, I know E40's Cherica: Yeah, yeah. DJ Rubbaban: on here. I know E40's on here. And he's not on there. I was like, Cherica: Yeah. DJ Rubbaban: she got it. You tell her they put E40 on the reading. Caddey B: Gotta get her a remix. Cherica: yeah. for experience. DJ Rubbaban: He don't charge that much for features. He might be now, but yeah. yeah. Shout out to, shout out to her. Yeah. I keep, I keep saying sign. Remember I called Cherica: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, she DJ Rubbaban: you, I was like, Son. Is it her son or sa? Cherica: Son, son. Yeah, that's Erica's cousin. DJ Rubbaban: Okay, okay, I'm gonna say song, yeah. Cherica: And she's she's a beautiful person. Good humor. Just yeah, good people. Really? But she's she's the born. She's the DJ Rubbaban: She is. I thought she was gonna be a little snooty, but she's not. Yeah. Cherica: lady. Yeah, she was at our wedding. You were there when she went. she sang that song. Al Green. Al Green. And my boy Britt on the park. DJ Rubbaban: she and then her and then she sang she sang at your sister's wedding too. Cherica: She Yeah. She killed it. She killed. She was she was DJ Rubbaban: Real soulful, like real soulful. Real soulful. And Cherica: Hey, I wanna give a shout out to Red Lotus, somebody we don't know, but he's a Vallejo DJ Rubbaban: Okay. Cherica: guy too. Yeah, that's it. And his music is so So good. he young guy in his mid early twenties. Young guy that is got nine maybe thirties, but he's got a a nineties spirit. So good. He's a revolutionary, but yeah. he's so DJ Rubbaban: So you guys have his information, we gotta reach out to him. Cherica: good. His stuff's dope. We went to his concert in the city a couple months ago. So good. Yeah. He's a performer. DJ Rubbaban: Red Lotus. Cherica: Yeah, Red Lotus. He's got a lot of passion and lyrically just he's got something to say. Yeah. His DJ Rubbaban: And this is Vallejo, okay? Cherica: Valleo's got a scene coming up. Yeah. There's some music here for sure. LaRussell, of course, is blowing up. He's he's all heart. Caddey B: Yeah, he's gonna do a backyard. He's gonna do one of his backyard things up here in Chico in October. Cherica: Nice. Yeah, he advocates for the kids community. He keeps it grounded. He also is building his own thing, keeping his wealth inside as much as he can. I he hustles, man. That guy works hard. Yeah. Post, post, post, post, post, post. He I really respect LaRussell quite a bit for what he's about. Yeah. Caddey B: Yeah. So I got one more question and this is going to be. Cherica: Okay. DJ Rubbaban: I'm shutting up. I ain't saying not. Caddey B: Maybe I got two, but you said too short, Chad. So I gotta ask, because we did one, ain't posted it yet, but in a versus, who you got, too short or Nas? Cherica: For me f for me personally you Caddey B: I like Erica's face. Cherica: said Nas. Yeah, Nas. She's been on the show, you know, that's Caddey B: But I'm not talking lyrically, I'm just talking as a verses, DJ Rubbaban: The best verses. Caddey B: as the vibe, what's gonna be. Cherica: For me, it is Okay. DJ Rubbaban: Let Chad answer, Erica. Let Chad answer. Cherica: For me personally, man, I that's a man, you're you're gonna make people mad, but but that's a great question. But for me personally, no Caddey B: the comments that I've been getting has been bad. Cherica: like we okay, we went and saw DJ Quick. You listen to DJ Quick's beats, his shit just hits different, right? We were there together with with DJ Rubbaban: give you a therapeutic Ted I'm gonna give you a therapeutic word you're deflecting just tell me who would win Cherica: Yeah. But what I'm saying what I'm saying is his shit hits and for me personally it's too Caddey B: Yeah. Cherica: short because his stuff just hits me different. It for me it's just DJ Rubbaban: There you go. There you go. Cherica: it's where it is. Just Caddey B: That's it. Cherica: it's simple, it's clean, it's cool, but man. It's clean. Well not like that. Okay, you go, you go, you go. He didn't ask me. Caddy B you w you you wanna know what she does. I say Caddey B: Nah, nah Erica what you got? Yeah. Cherica: Nas. I say Nas. But I I think when I'm listening to music especially with rhymes and and flow and lyrics, I'm always it's hard to just go, that's a the beat. But the lyrically I'm I ha I can't I just he's just such a Caddey B: Lyrically, is the beast for sure. Cherica: Yeah, right, yeah, yeah. DJ Rubbaban: But it's something about that freaky tales, you know? Cherica: there's also too short where you're just like on my drive home sometimes, I'm like it's just Yeah, you know, like you just have yeah. Right. Caddey B: And there's game in there, there's game in Two Shorts Versus 2. Cherica: Yeah. To me when you They're different. They're very different. Yeah, I think. Caddey B: Yes. Cherica: When I was growing up, I listened to a lot of Gangstar because DJ Rubbaban: I love Gangstar. Yeah. Cherica: because those lyrics, you know, he's such an artist in in what how he writes and how he puts this he's a poet. Like a tr an artist. It's something on a whole nother level. DJ Rubbaban: Yeah, yeah. And primo's beats. And primo's beats, yeah. Cherica: yeah. That too. So yeah, on the lyrics too, but but on the how it hits for me, it for me it's too short. DJ Rubbaban: There you go, that see, there you go, we shut down, it's done, it's a wrap. And Caddey B: See? DJ Rubbaban: we not gonna use that when we asking for money for the foundation. We're not gonna put that on there. We're gonna put something more sensitive when we ask for money. Cherica: No. No no. We ended with DJ Rubbaban: Thank you guys. Big time. Caddey B: My final one, my final one, what's next and where can everybody find what you're working on? Cherica: what's next? We'll head back to Uganda in January for a couple months. And the the goal is to bring on a fourth school. So we'll have another 50 kids or so that we'll be supporting. that's the goal for us. And you can follow us on Instagram and TikTok at bayganda Foundation or bayganda.org online. Mm-hmm. Yeah. And with Buena onda in Mexico, what's next is we're moving into the fall. So kids are all coming back to school. Our programs bump up. So we're expecting to we year and a half ago when we started, we were at about 30 kids. Now we're 80 to 100. We're expecting to average about a hundred or more. We just did a big community event. Down there gave away a bunch of backpacks and fed everybody and school supplies, had about 600 people in the community show up. It was real cool. Every time we do that, we kind of bump up with our after-school program attendance. So we're planning for that. You can follow us there at Buenaunda Project on Instagram. That and our website also is buenaundaproject.org, baygonda.org. So yeah, we're just gonna keep loving kids and take it as it comes. And thank you so much for having us. We are so grateful for the platform that you provided for us and what you guys do. We just appreciate both y'all for your brightness, you know. Yeah, thank you. Thank you for having us. I wanna just say quickly before we Caddey B: Thank you for coming on. Cherica: go, I think people are always asking too, what are we what do we raise money for? And specifically, I would think if if we had just one thing for each organization for Uganda, it's educating girls in the early childhood education at kindergarten age. so that's what we raise money for. And then for Buenaunda, it's their feeding program. They feed these children every day and it's a hundred kids each day. That's a lot of food. And so that is one of the greatest needs for both organizations is to continue educating for us and then also continue feeding this amount of of children. And I feel like as we grow, you know, that number increases. And so folks want to give, that's what you're giving to right now, very specifically. DJ Rubbaban: Thank you guys Caddey B: Nice. DJ Rubbaban: so much. Cherica: Thank you. Appreciate you guys. It's fun. So good.