My Story

“My name is Teedy of Ask Teedy Entertainment. I am Ceo / Founder of Sisters of Grief (S.O.G), an actress, artist developer, educator, entrepreneur, manager, poet, music promoter, published author (The Caterpillar and The Butterfly) and the website host of www.askteedy.com and www.sistersofgrief.net. Coming from New Orleans, Louisiana, I have many stories of grief and loss and it was through these devastating times that I began to understand my calling and purpose in life.

I became familiar with grief and loss at the early age of 11 when I lost my great grandfather and great grandmother. Being so young, I did not understand the levels of grief, I just knew the pain was sharp like a knife and it felt like it would never end.

Sometimes, I would wake up in the morning thinking that my great grandmother was in the kitchen cooking breakfast and that my great grandfather would call me to go get him a honey bun from the corner store. None of the two scenarios ever happened again. These experiences would only be the beginning of my training.

In 1988, I loss my cousin who I treated as a brother to a violent crime (murder). He was held down on a railroad track in New Orleans and was cut in half from the waist. I could still remember the night when he came to the house to give me a kiss and said, ‘You would want to let me kiss you because I might not see you again, I never did. He was only 21 years old.

In September of 1993, I gave birth to my youngest son. He and I died for 30 seconds but was resuscitated. I remember seeing myself leave my body and seeing my son not breathing inside of me, the doctors face as they knew they had messed up from having me wait so long to give birth and my husband who had no clue to what was happening, he never even looked at the monitor that had flat lined.

In October of 1993, I loss my oldest brother to murder. It was a Wednesday evening and he had come over to the nursery that I owned, to visit my newborn and the other kids. I remember him going to the room where my son’s crib was and then to the center where the nursery kids were. All you could hear were the excited children saying, ‘Hey Uncle Eight-Ball,’ which was his nickname.

He then came into my office, sat down and gave me a hug and kiss of which he had never done before. He also said the same exact words my cousin did. My brother was murdered that night, and I was there to see them carry his lifeless body to the coroner's vehicle. He was only 28 years old.

In 1995, my father suffered an aneurysm, diagnosed with emphysema and was not supposed to have lived...My family and I prayed him through.

In 1996, due to what is now known as PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), I divorced my children's father, because at this time, I was unaware of what was happening to me. I was lost for seven years, existing not living. Here I was this strong woman with a business, family and spiritual strength and yet displaced. Think this chapter was rough, read on.

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, and this would be another round of loss that would be added to my chapters. My family had lost everything in this flood, from houses to personal belongings, vehicles, valuables, pictures, personal information, the list could go on and on. We had to relocate to a small town of which was a big change from city life. My city was gone forever...I thought!!!

In 2009, I loss the woman that kept our family together, my Sadie Mae. It was hard watching this tower of strength succumb to Alzheimer's, but yet again the chapters to my story would continue.

In 2013, my sister tried to commit suicide, however, I intervened and got her help. Never underestimate a person's state of mind when they are depressed, listen to them carefully!

In February of 2016, I loss one of my best friends to breast cancer. This was another one of those blows where you had to maintain strength for the one you loved so they wouldn't feel guilty. She died in my arms in hospice.

In March of 2016, I loss a lady I treated like a grandmother to cancer. I was at her home when she took her last breath.

In August of 2016, I loss my other best friend to breast cancer as well. Now, what do I do, all of my friends are gone.

All of the losses that I experienced seemed enough for me. I had to pick up the pieces and continue on, even though the pain was overwhelming, I had to continue my journey.  September of 2016, my father died in my mother’s arms at home due to lung cancer. I was brought down to my knees. I was devastated, I thought...Just when I was moving on and becoming resilient, it knocked on my door again.

Now here I am going back and forth with God, asking him with confusion, "What Is Going On."  I just couldn't understand how he could keep sending this level of pain and expect me to still stand strong. Well guess what, he wasn't through with me yet!!!

In 2018, grief and loss came with a vengeance. Tuesday morning, August 21, 2018, my sister was not responding in her sleep. I was called into her room to perform CPR. Tirelessly, I tried to save my sister but to no avail. By the time paramedics arrived, my sister had died due to cardiovascular disease. Can you imagine having your loved ones' life in your hands and you can't save them. It is a vision that is played over and over and over again in your head. 

 October 31, Halloween night, a disgruntled employee murdered my cousin in Florida. This tragedy was what I call, the set-up for the knockout. Here I was ducking jabs and when hit by those that landed, I was still left standing, but the final jab that would lead to the knockout was right around the corner.

On Tuesday morning, December 18, 2018, I lost my mother due to cardiovascular disease around the exact time (5:00 AM) that I lost my sister four months prior, and this time, I could not breathe. The jab was too strong for me to stand.  My knees buckled and I hit the floor. I had been knocked out. I mean the count was past the normal 10, then in August of 2021, right before the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and the waiting of Hurricane Ida that caused billions of dollars in damages, lights being out for weeks, flooding in Laplace and the uprooting of what was left of my family to Mississippi for two weeks, I lost my baby of 15 years, my shih-zu named Cinnamon. It wasn't until the 16th count, I stood up...Despondent and uncaring were my lifelines.

 How could I bounce back from this level of grief and loss?  How could anyone expect me to be understanding and still believe in God?  It was through this anger and pain, I found my strength and realized that I needed to help others understand that they are not alone, and we can make it through with the help of our sisterhood.  Through those experiences, my body breaking down, my mental status tested, stronger spiritual awakenings and in honor of my sister, Nichelle Wynette Williams Theodore, my cousin, Aja Hunter, my mother, Barbara Ruth Theodore, my dog Cinnamon and all of our beloved family and friends that have gone on before us, I established Sisters of Grief (S.O.G) “Helping Sisters Get Past the Pain.”