We had the good fortune of connecting with VanDella Menifee and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi VanDella, what do you want people to remember about you?
I was in the prison system for almost 26 years (pause)… as an employee. I retired from the DOJ, Federal Bureau of Prisons in 2012, as a Regional Administrator in Dallas. I started as a Correctional Officer in 1987, after graduating from Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, Alabama. Since retiring, I have been volunteering, changing lives with the assistance of others, and making people SMILE.

I want my legacy to be known as the “hardest working woman in volunteer service”, a Professional Volunteer that is the “Olivia Pope” of community advocacy. A natural born fixer connecting people of the political, private sectors and non-profit organizations to local citizens and people in need of services, passionate about their mission or having the financial means to make a difference and trust me to be the conduit to changing lives and making SMILES! In community service I want the imprint left on the minds and hearts of others involved in creating positive impacts and meaningful connections that are forged through my actions.

I want my legacy to be the one who fostered a sense of inclusivity and collaboration within a community by a memorable act of community service. People appreciate me bringing diverse groups together, encouraging teamwork, and creating a sense of unity. As a community leader, inspiring and motivating others to join in community service activities that are often remembered as catalysts for positive change. Having the ability to lead by example and encourage others to get involved, willing to contribute to a lasting impression.

I want people to remember me by having personal stories and instances where community service made a significant difference in someone’s life that was particularly memorable. Acts that touch the lives of individuals on a personal level, creating lasting and memorable indentations that built servant hearts.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I received my first call to action in political service, as a third grader, by sending out an SOS! My SOS was to save our school, to keep my neighborhood school in Chicago from closing. This challenge caused me to round up others in support of this important cause, including my peers, church members, and anyone else I could find. We marched around the school in the effort of keeping the doors open. This gained media attention and many people of influence joined the cause. The school remained open and is still open to this day! This “win” ignited a fire in me to be a source for change throughout High School in Chicago.
Leaving my family and friends in Chicago after high school was a challenge!  I went to Alabama to attend college and emerged myself by working and volunteering in campus activities.  In 1987, I graduated from Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, Alabama, I began working for the Department of Justice (DOJ), Federal Bureau of Prisons, as a Prison Guard in Talladega, Alabama. I swiftly moved up the ranks gaining several promotions, due to my activism inside and outside of the prison walls. I retired as the Southcentral Re-Entry Regional Administrator after over 25 years of dedicated service with the DOJ, which allowed me the opportunity of becoming a full-time wife, mother and volunteer after my rewarding career.
As a volunteer, I first began focusing my attention on schools in different districts throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area. I served in several positions on the PTA Board earning many awards, including the PTA Life-Time Membership Award. My career in volunteer service took an amazing leap that launched me into politics when I met Jeff Williams at the Lunar New Year’s Festival at Asia Times Square in 2015. I asked Jeff Williams to speak at our son’s school for career day. Mr. Williams agreed and I agreed volunteered for him.  Initially, I did not know he was running for Mayor until I arrived in the office to volunteer.  I was his first volunteer to assist him on his mayoral run!  Jeff Williams became mayor, was re-elected and I found myself deeper in the trenches of community service assisting the residents of the metroplex.  I love being an ambassador for positive change by helping others improve their lives, one by one. That’s me simply being me.
If not for obstacles and challenges, a person with the passion for volunteer service would never be called to action. Challenges inspire change and I saw a need early on in my career with the DOJ. To quench my thirst to serve others, I began volunteering after my shifts as a correctional officer assisting staff with the Inmate Life-skills Programs that focused on helping with reading, anger management, theatrics, time management, etc. I worked at the Federal Penitentiary for a decade and continued to be a Staff sponsor for the inmates. I had set my intentions on learning more about the agency and helping those incarcerated. When I worked with a population of adult male inmates serving multiple life sentences, I could see that idle minds meant disciplinary infractions and seized up normal operations for several weeks. My volunteer time helped me to get to know the inmates and create programs to keep them stay occupied in positive ways. Receiving numerous awards for my efforts was encouraging, but what really mattered was knowing I was making a difference for both my fellow co-workers and the inmates.
I want the world to know that as a Professional Volunteer, over the past 10 years, I have been connecting people who have for profit businesses or non-profit organizations, who are passionate about serving others from their heart with a SMILE! As a Professional Volunteer, I believe, volunteering is at the very core of being a human and they do not always have the time to volunteer, but they have the heart to serve others over themselves.  In my case, volunteering has nothing to do with manual labor, but the ability to help and connect people with each other.
VanDella Menifee has received numerous awards and achievements, including the Presidential Volunteer Service Award twice, and three humanitarian awards. She has also served in several capacities for many organizations as an ambassador, member or volunteer.
VanDella believes her greatest accomplishment is being a wife to her amazing husband, Robert. They have been together over 30 years and Mom to their two awesome young men, William, and Richard. William is pursuing a degree in nursing to become an ER nurse because of his passion and having to care for his Mom and Richard is pursuing his degree in aerospace engineering, because he loves figuring out how things work.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

I would contact Lady Jade and ask if she could meet us at the Cake Bar in Dallas and then go to Chocolate Secrets in Dallas for some delicious sweets! Jade is a foodie, so she could tell us where to go for lunch in Dallas! I would contact Rodney “Hot Rod’ Baker to see if he could get some VIP concert or comedy club tickets for the weekend! He is the G.O.A.T.! We would pick up food and distribute the food to the homeless people on the corners.  First, we would stop by one of Mr. Roland Parrish’s McDonalds to say hello and purchase 25 hamburgers. Then I would drive by William’s Chicken to say hello to Mr. Hiawatha Williams, Owner, William’s Chicken and purchase 20 2-piece chicken snacks. Along our route, we would distribute the food!
The following day, I would contact Michael Burrowes at the Tower Club to assist me with a dinner reservation at the table in the back with the best views of the City of Dallas, where you can see all the way to the AT&T stadium in Arlington.  I would also surprise my friend with a gift of one of Michael Burrowes’ one-of-a-kind design silk pocket squares that can be used for the gentlemen or as a scarf for the ladies and cannot leave without another bottle of his signature body sprays called “Late Night Text!”   Later that evening, I would contact my friend, Radu Cernat “The Violin Guy” to see what club is playing at in Dallas and ask him to hold a VIP table in the front for us!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Attorney Danita Haskins, Haskins Law Office, Birmingham, Alabama.

Website: https://mainstack.me/vmenifee

Instagram: iam_vandella_menifee

Linkedin: VanDella Menifee

Twitter: VanDellaMenifee

Facebook: vandella l. menifee

Youtube: Boss Talks on the  Rooftop with Bryson Fowler Boss Talks on the rooftop with Bryson Fowler S3 EP 10: Vandella Menifee (youtube.com)

In the Kitchen With The Breakfast Brothers

Image Credits
Ian Miller,

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