About Us

Our Vision

Healing, Peace, and Clarity

Our Mission

Providing transformative healing experiences and support services for families who have lost loved ones at the hands of another while delivering programs to youth and adults to eliminate the root causes of violence and trauma
in their communities

Our Initiatives

Healing for Families

The Bakari Foundation’s (TBF) Transformative Travel Experience and Retreat serves families who have lost loved ones at the hands of another. It is our belief that travel combined with structure and therapeutic programming can be used effectively as a healing mechanism for families who have undergone this type of tragic experience.

Given the lived experience of TBF founders and retreat hosts, Jill and Phil Henderson, who lost two sons to violence at the hands of another, we know this is a sensitive time for any family and it’s with humility, gratitude, and love that we want to help and support this often-overlooked segment of our society – families in crisis and those whose dreams have been shattered by a cloud of violence.

The Transformative Travel Experience provides trauma-grief therapy and tools to families for Healing Beyond Violence Through Intervention to help an often-overlooked segment of our society – families in crisis and those whose dreams are shattered by a cloud of violence. Understanding that the cohesive family unit is devastated, grief-stricken, and possibly fractured following the violent murder of a family member, our international healing retreat provides intensive targeted workshops, customized group, individual, and family therapy sessions, customized tools, cultural activities, team volunteer activities, and reconnecting while creating new memories for the family members. The remote setting in the Costa Rican rainforest is a critical component of the healing experience. In the near future, we will be expanding our retreats to impact more families by including select U.S. based locations that will provide comparable experiences.

Dealing with the death of a family member is always difficult. The normal reaction is grief or sorrow, and sometimes anger. However, the violent murder of a family member elicits a traumatic crisis response which may include shock, disbelief, disorientation, fear, and even an obsession with revenge. Both physical and emotional crisis responses can be extremely varied and cause cognitive imbalances in the brain when the physical and emotional become misaligned. The grieving process cannot begin, and family members are left unable to move through the stages of grief to progress to a state of acceptance and put life without their loved one into perspective. The term ‘traumatic grief’ is used by Clinical Social Worker Deborah Spungen to describe trauma being interjected into the grief of mourning. She identifies family members as co-victims in summing up how stagnation can be caused after the death of a loved one by homicide: “In the aftermath of a homicide, the co-victims are often involved in various activities imposed on them by the medical examiner, the criminal justice system, and possibly the media. This is true whether or not an arrest is made. Such involvement is not by choice and these endeavors are time-consuming, exhausting, and sometimes quite public. Co-victims are left with little energy to traverse the rest of the grief process, which is distinct from the experience of those whose loved ones did not die violently. As a result, co-victims may be incapable of moving on to other phases until there is some finality to the legal aspects of the case, such as the completion of the trial.”

We have seen the pain and behaviors described above, and many more, exhibited by the families we have become associated with at The Bakari Foundation. Our immersive week-long retreat targets the critical steps that families must take together to break through the roadblocks of trauma to be able to process grief and reclaim physical and mental/emotional health by providing a laser-focused international experience without day-to-day distractions. The unique, intensive counseling sessions and workshops are provided by expert, licensed therapists that address the combined effects of trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and grief. We work on rebuilding family connections (youth and adults) that may be lost when dealing with trauma because you can live in the same house and grieve very differently and more often than not, the grief is not discussed. Families participate in family activities and competitions, excursions that take them out of their comfort zones, family therapy sessions, and more. During the retreat there are scheduled, balanced physical and therapeutic activities to deal with anger and depression along with comprehensive health coaching with a certified yoga therapist. Families leave the retreat with tools and resources for continuing at-home progress.

We have developed a collaborative team made up of licensed counselors, TBF board members, experienced wellness venue hosts, travel professionals, program administrators, and most importantly, representatives of the community for whom the program is designed -- family members experiencing traumatic grief from the loss of a loved one as a result of violence. Family members who have participated in previous sessions provide valuable insight and have been quite beneficial in communicating expectations to those participating for the first time. Over a 6-8 month period, the team considers venues, develops budgets, uses inputs from the counselors and families to customize journals that will be used as a key tool for guiding the journey and focusing energies during the retreat, and develops intricate schedules to create the right balance for an immersive experience that also allows time for meditation, introspection, and paying respect to the departed loved ones while working in a safe environment to begin reframing a life of acceptance of their loved one's moving to a different space in their lives.

Three goals remain top of mind when delivering the annual retreat program. First, providing programmatic intensive therapies, workshops, and nature experiences that when scheduled and delivered by licensed professionals will provide the basis for optimal focus on healing, growth, and rebuilding. Secondly, since travel is therapeutic and proven to alleviate symptoms of anxiety and depression, while also providing a sense of calmness and stress reduction, incorporating a well-planned travel experience becomes an integral part of setting the stage for open-mindedness and readiness to accept the tools and concepts that will be provided. Third, select a location that is remote enough to eliminate distractions, yet still within proximity of the various components that have been designed into the program for a well-rounded immersive experience.

Once a detailed agenda is prepared by the TBF retreat team, the families receive detailed instructions on what to pack, arrangements for flights and transportation, and answers to their questions to ease any uncertainties.

As with each of our programs, a foundational element of this program is to turn our namesake Bakari Henderson’s passions for international travel, entrepreneurship, and love for all types of people into a gift of healing and cultural awareness for families who have lost loved ones through similarly tragic circumstances as Bakari's and to improve the communities in which they live. The Henderson family often reminds people that if the men who took Bakari’s life had gotten to know him they would have loved him. The hope is by uniting different cultures we can move the spectrum toward eradicating hate while creating more space for love.

The Bakari Transformative Wholeness Institute | Developing Leaders and Rebuilding Communities

The Bakari Transformative Wholeness Institute programs empower youth with the knowledge, skills, and hands-on training needed to break down barriers that have stagnated underserved communities to begin rebuilding emotional health and to develop a firm foundation for wealth building.

Studies have shown that children who grow up in impoverished communities are negatively affected and there may be cognitive deficits at an early age, even before starting kindergarten. Changes in the brain can affect the ability to learn, cause inappropriate interactions in social situations, and possibly lead to behavioral problems. As the children mature toward adolescence, they are potentially three times more likely to suffer from mental health disorders such as ADHD, depression, and anxiety. Unfortunately, internalizing the problems carries over to adulthood and the cycle of generational poverty repeats. It’s important for marginalized youth to be exposed to caring teachers, coaches, advisors, and role models who understand the challenges and uplift them beyond negative self-perceptions while delivering stimulating content.

Working with high school students, our goal is to meet each individual where they are to instill personal accountability by developing and/or nurturing a passion for financial stability, higher education, and entrepreneurship while implementing nontraditional initiatives and restorative justice principles to build self-esteem, eliminate inappropriate or violent behavior, and to walk beside those affected by trauma to reinvigorate underserved communities.

The Bakari Foundation (TBF) curricula provide intervention, pathways toward healing, and foundational underpinnings for productive living. Through three programs that are improving education access and outcomes by providing underserved and overlooked youth with the tools they need to maneuver through life practically and innovatively, a poverty mentality that may set in when a student is striving to have his or her basic needs met and thinking there is no way out is replaced with a promising emotional and financial outlook. The three programs are:
· Financial Literacy
· Foundations in Entrepreneurship
· Career Leadership Internship for High School Students
We strongly believe our approach that provides hands-on experiences, including information sessions and one-on-one mentor-led opportunities with diverse leaders who have overcome the same obstacles the students face today to become successful adult leaders in business, government, and all walks of life, college readiness preparation, real-work business projects, and job opportunities that allow them to earn and manage money will develop youth for wholeness and leadership.

Financial Literacy and Foundations In Entrepreneurship Programs - The Bakari Foundation (TBF) contributes to the broader goal of community well-being by providing methods to remove the stigma and constraints of living in poverty by decreasing the economic gap for impoverished and victimized communities that are often overlooked and are dealing with compound trauma. By focusing on empowering youth to understand the larger world around them in the areas of finance and business ownership, generational poverty can be replaced with generational wealth within families and distressed communities can be revitalized.

The programs were designed by implementing the industry-leading Ramsey Solutions curricula, which offers the country’s leading personal finance and entrepreneurship curricula for youth. Ramsey Solutions analysis shows that only 17% of U.S. adults said they took a personal finance class in high school and adults who took a personal finance class are five times more likely to say they graduated high school prepared for handling money in the real world. We want to equip youth with tools to prepare to move beyond the stigma and lack of exposure associated with violence and living below the poverty level. Poverty, violence, and the lack of financial resources go hand in hand.

TBF chose Ramsey Solutions through an extensive team effort. We developed a collaborative team made up of a diverse group of community leaders, board members, school administrators and educators, business owners, and most importantly, representatives of the student community to whom the program would be delivered. Over several months, the team gained the insight of specifically selected people who could give needed input from multiple levels including an administrator who has worked with at-risk boys, a social worker, a recent high school graduate, freshman through senior high school students, a State district court judge, and a life coach who works with at-risk youth, among others.

TBF’s education team adhered to a definitive process for researching and evaluating multiple options, including potentially developing our own program versus available premiere financial literacy programs that we could adapt and modify to meet the unique needs of marginalized youth. The industry-leading Ramsey Solutions program was selected after identifying and vetting various wealth-building programs. The team also considered various types of delivery methods and environments such as churches, community organizations, and small businesses, before deciding the public school system best allows the students to absorb the information.

The financial literacy program, now in its third year, has been made available to two Austin Independent School District (AISD) high schools. Over 2000 students have been given the opportunity to participate. The curriculum is implemented during the regular school day and taught by AISD certified teachers. In addition to providing the Ramsey Solutions curriculum with the primary delivery being provided by a teacher while each student uses his or her personally assigned computer to access lessons, workshops, and direction on a special project, TBF hand-selected speakers will engage with the students providing real-life scenarios focused on financial literacy, building credit, understanding the Federal Reserve System, foreign currency systems that impact us in the U.S., and understanding other asset-building strategies such as stocks and bonds, cryptocurrency, and the importance of owning real estate, to name a few. In addition to being introduced to various types of assets, the students will paper trade stocks, bonds, and cryptocurrency. They’ll also be educated on short and long-term investment strategies, leverage, and potential risks. They will create portfolio strategies and specific saving and selling goals, including balancing the portfolio for stock growth and dividend earnings.

The entrepreneurship program encourages underrepresented youth to have their own businesses to manage their financial destiny and ensure they have economic leverage globally. We provide strategies and tools they need to be successful entrepreneurs and also position each of them with business-related internship opportunities to get hands-on experience. TBF has a large network of Black business partners fully engaged to provide career insights, mentor, and ensure the success of our participants.

Career Leadership Internship Program for High School Students - Now in its third year, The Bakari Foundation (TBF) Career Leadership Internship Program is sponsored by the Travis County Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP). TBF is proud to partner with SYEP which pays the interns $13.00 per hour, which is 180% of the minimum wage. In 2022 and 2023, TBF hosted two five-week, virtual sessions during which the interns worked 20 hours per week. The interns also worked on assignments that incorporated working for a small business at Bakari Luxury Sportswear (BLS), which was founded to foster the dream of Bakari Henderson.

Advocacy for A Cause

Through our advocacy efforts, The Bakari Foundation (TBF) also contributes to raising awareness about the importance of culturally responsive mental health support for crime victims, survivors, and underserved communities. By shining a light on these issues and advocating for change at the policy level, we are helping to break down stigmas and barriers surrounding mental health and ensuring that children, youth, and families are not only heard but also provided with the necessary equitable resources for recovery.

TBF is actively involved in many types of advocacy work such as:
1. Policy Reform for and Access to Mental Health Support Services: TBF's advocacy for improved policies to support trauma victims and survivors plays a crucial role in mental health support. Our work, along with other survivors and the Alliance for Safety and Justice and Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice, on the State of Texas bills SB49 and HB250 recently passed into law helped provide additional financial support and extended time off of work for victims allowing them more time to receive support services like counseling, and nontraditional therapy methods which significantly impact mental health outcomes for children, youth, families, and the overall community.

Many survivors of crime, especially those from underserved communities, face barriers to accessing proper mental health services due to financial constraints, or limited resources. By advocating for extended time to process your trauma and increased financial support for therapeutic services and everyday essentials, TBF is persistently working to remove these barriers and ensure that families can access the mental health care they need in the environment that is best suited for them individually and collectively. TBF is also focused on creating a more supportive and culturally responsive statewide system that recognizes the long-term mental health needs of survivors of crime and those living adjacent to them.

2. Addressing Trauma and PTSD: Survivors of violent crime often experience significant trauma that can lead to conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental health challenges. The advocacy for the first Trauma Recovery Center (TRC) in Texas located in Austin and policy work by TBF is a significant step towards addressing the mental health needs of individuals who have experienced trauma due to crime. The comprehensive, TRC trauma-informed care concepts being deployed sporadically throughout the U.S. should not be limited to only one in Texas, which primarily serves Travis County. TBF is aiming to establish a state-wide network of specialized centers in partnership with the State of Texas that are equipped to address trauma-related mental health needs comprehensively. This includes interventions, therapies, and support systems tailored to help survivors and victims cope with and heal from the psychological impacts of their experiences. TBF’s three-plus years of dedication to this cause gives us hope that by continuing along this path to establish statewide centers, we will ensure that children, youth, and families have access to the specialized mental health care they need to heal and recover.

Our efforts aim to ensure that survivors have access to proper mental health services, address trauma-related conditions, and advocate for policy changes to support long-term mental health needs. We continue to raise awareness about the importance of mental health support for those impacted by crime, and empower youth to help them improve their mental well-being.

Through these initiatives, and our nontraditional therapy methods practiced in our weekly healing circles, peer-to-peer support, family retreats, etc, we are working towards creating a more compassionate, responsive, and supportive system for individuals and families affected by traumatic events and families just striving to live a balanced life in a world that feels compassionateless.

TBF has hosted panel discussions on mental health and is highly sought after to share our passionate, informative views on how survivors, children, youth, and families are impacted and traumatized by violence directly and indirectly. This gives us more opportunities to advocate for change based on life experiences, and also to hear from others to get input and suggestions on how we can bridge the mental health divide. We are a boots-on-the-ground organization and co-host community safety conversations to see what survivors and various community members need.

TBF co-coordinated and participated in the statewide Texas Survivors Speak advocacy day at the capitol including speaking to legislators, rallying attendees, and selecting vendors. This statewide outreach connects us to other organizations focused on the mental health well-being and overall quality of life of others for future collaborative opportunities.

Federal Impact - Based on our founders' experience of losing their beloved son Bakari Henderson abroad, and still grappling with the aftermath and international complexities of the fight for justice seven years later, we conceived and are currently advocating for a federal crime survivor bill for families impacted by international homicide. These families currently have no federal support which is mentally, physically, and financially taxing. We are honored to have Congressman Lloyd Doggett (TX) leading this effort and grateful for his assistance in championing bipartisan signatures on our proposal to U.S. Secretary of State, Antony J. Blinken.

Our overall engagement in policy work creates a more comprehensive support ecosystem for individuals, families and youth dealing with mental health challenges. By advocating for systemic changes, they contribute to a larger framework that ensures sustained, accessible, and culturally competent mental health services for those in need. Ensuring that children, youth, and families not only heal in the traditional therapy system individually but expand mental health services into nontraditional therapeutic methods that provide the necessary mental health support needed to a broader group of people collectively. When people heal together by recognizing each other's humaneness, mental health is embraced positively and the ecosystem flourishes at a faster pace.

TBF's involvement in policy work addressing child, youth, and family mental health aligns seamlessly with our mission and enhances our existing efforts by advocating for specialized trauma recovery services, extended support for crime victims, improved access to mental health services, and creating a more comprehensive support ecosystem. These policy initiatives are integral to promoting healing, peace, and resilience among those impacted by trauma, furthering the foundation's goals of empowering families, youth, and children in distress.

Conversations for A Cause Panel Discussions - During this time of division, polarization, social unrest, and heightened awareness, we are doing our part to help uplift families in need and the community by spreading love instead of hate through a series of panel discussions called “Conversations for A Cause” designed to focus on key issues where we can actively drive positive impact.

Compelling panelists share their insights and expertise while giving you an opportunity to identify how you can be part of the solution.

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