Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Mrs. Kennetha The Homeless CEO Patterson. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Mrs. Kennetha The, so excited to talk about all sorts of important topics with you today. The first one we want to jump into is about being the only one in the room – for some that’s being the only person of color or the only non-native English speaker or the only non-MBA, etc Can you talk to us about how you have managed to be successful even when you were the only one in the room that looked like you?
Being the only one in the room who looks like me isn’t an easy novelty—it’s a unicorn pattern recognition . An ability I’ve learned to interrupt with peace in solidarity, strategy, documentation, and unapologetic presence. I don’t shrink to fit the space. I expand it. I correct the record. I turn every moment of exclusion into public precedent.
Transparency and no Harm are always priority, for my community I lead alongside , it’s WE not ME !
I’ve learned to be effective by mastering the language of governance while refusing to abandon the language of truth. I bring receipts. I build timelines. I flip gatekeeping into cheat sheets and tone-policing into testimony. I don’t just survive the room—I transform it 👑🌹🦋‼️
Success, for me, means setting a standard so high that the next person who walks in isn’t just seen—they’re protected by the blueprint I left behind. I don’t wait for permission to lead. I prune coalitions, elevate boundaries, and build legacy— to bloom oh so BIGLY.
Every room I enter becomes a sanctuary, a strategy lab, and a stage for liberation—because my presence is not just resistance, it’s Kingdom ministry in motion.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
About Me and My Work
I am Mrs . Kennetha Patterson—wife , mother, Glamma ( Grandmother ) , Lived Expertise enhanced asset, strategic consultant, national trauma-informed advocate, and the most former Chair of the HUD CoC Homeless Planning Council, the first ever with proclaimed Lived Expertise.
I lead the CAB (now Lived Expertise Cohort Formerly Known As CAB) with unapologetic clarity until the Committee itself is dormant to one meeting each month now , due to collaborative applicant noncompliance—specifically, the sheer refusal to compensate Lived Expertise leadership. Why say that ? 😭 Cause in 9 months if you really wanted to you could have especially starting in Black History month ☕🤔‼️
But silence doesn’t stop legacy. We continue in our executive advisory capacity Davidson county wide National & Global the UK , Italy to name just a couple of locations , building sustainable solutions to poverty and homelessness from the ground up.
Shout out to April Burns Norris Founder of Community Bridges November 6th 2025 she was on the panel for Beyond the Bridge Screening Homeless Lived Expertise film & amongst her dialogue was Pay Lived Expertise .
We are truly doing a work in the community and our HUD COC Homeless Planning Council Charter says so The COC itself is behind Us All Chairs just made it very clear they’re working on it .
* No shot at anyone just our real Truth ‼️*
In Nashville, Tennessee—Music City and the capital of our state—we are blueprint builders. Our coalition is made of enhanced assets: leaders with lived experience who must be consulted to address housing disparities, however they show up.
We are tenant union extraordinaires, policy disruptors, and globally recognized strategic artists. We’re connected to the Mandala STEAM Program and Synergy & Solidarity Networks, where I serve as an executive leader.
Artistically, I’m one of the Morning Coffee Artist and a lead contributor to the Voices of Resilience Homeless Choir. Through the Metro Arts THRIVE Grant, I co-lead Voices Unheard—a modern-day Harriet Tubman poverty simulator and play production.
Spoiler Alert : I portray Harriet and I sing as such to go to prepare a place for you .
Alongside Helen Stackhouse (aka AM Hassan) and founder Daniel Holmes, we deliver case studies from Harriet’s perspective, showcasing our real talents as artists and advocates. We are mighty seeds that refuse to be buried.
We do not deserve mass shootings, criminalization, or the cutting of housing options. We deserve to thrive.
I’m also a proud member of the 2025 #4 Cohort of the National Low Income Housing Coalition’s The Collective we just returned from The Resora with the most healing retreat we ever could have experienced in this heavy invisible work , and I serve on the National Healthcare for the Homeless Council CAB and Ellen Dailey Advocacy Committee.
And now, I’m thrilled to announce our apparel partnership with Cherry Willow—a fashion-forward collaboration that elevates lived expertise through wearable liberation. This line isn’t just clothing—it’s testimony. Each piece is designed to honor our stories, fund our movement, and spark conversation wherever it’s worn.
Cherry Willow Apparel: Where Lived Expertise Wears the Crown.
What’s most exciting about my work is that it’s not just reactive—it’s precedent-setting. We turn harm into documentation, exclusion into strategy, and silence into song. Every initiative, every exhibit, every coalition folder is a blueprint for justice.
We fill all gaps and barriers to housing disparities—locally, nationally, and through global partnerships—in overarching ways that combine governance correction, artistic resistance, and strategic advisory.
Our work is intersectional, intergenerational, and international.
Call to Action
If you’re in Nashville, Davidson County, or anywhere building toward equity—plug in with us. Consult Lived Expertise leadership. Book us for strategic advisory, coalition exhibits, or poverty simulation performances. We are the blueprint. We are the receipts. We are the mighty seeds planted by all the dirt thrown .
📍 Follow our work, amplify our voices, and let our legacy guide your solutions. And don’t forget to wear the movement — my Cherry Willow Apparel is now live for Mrs Kennetha The Homeless CEO Patterson storyteller of poverty and homeleness .
📚 Also, stay tuned for my upcoming e-book—a tell-all testimony that documents the full arc of our leadership, the strategic exclusion we faced, including the ripple effects on the under the radar Youth Action Board of the HUD COC Homeless Planning Council .
This isn’t just my story—it’s a coalition archive, a blueprint for justice, and a reckoning for every system that tried to bury us.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Three Qualities That Shaped My Journey
Looking back, the three most impactful qualities in my journey weren’t polished—they were powerful.
They weren’t handed to me—they were honed in the fire of lived experience, exclusion, and divine assignment. 2018 – 2025 ARRIVED
1. BeYoutiful.
I show up as myself, always. Ball cap in the boardroom? Absolutely. Whether it’s a bad hair day or a bold statement, I wear my truth. I became The Homeless CEO while homeless—navigating gatekept opportunities in a perpetual game of Nashopoly. My advice? Don’t dilute your brilliance to fit someone else’s blueprint. You cannot be carbon copied. Your authenticity is your authority.
2. Don’t Let Anyone Yuck Your Yum.
Nike said “Just Do It,” but I say: Just do what’s calling you. Whether they like it or not, it’s not their Kingdom assignment. I’ve learned to move with purpose, not permission. If it’s in your spirit, it’s already ordained. My advice? Protect your calling from commentary. Build anyway.
3. Embrace Your Neurospice.
I’m neuro spicy—and I love it. I found out later in life and I’m still fighting to be formally diagnosed, but that hasn’t stopped me from leading, building, and blueprinting. We all learn differently. There’s a whole tribe of us unicorns out here, flipping systems and rewriting norms. My advice? Don’t wait for validation to honor your wiring. Your difference is your design.
Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?
Partnership & Collaboration
Funny you should ask — WE host a recurring strategic partnerships and sustainably meeting every 4th Thursday of the month at the Metro Office Building, 800 2nd Avenue, Nashville, TN 37210.
That’s where strategy meets community, and where lived expertise leads the table.
We’re actively seeking collaborators who are serious about equity—not just in language, but in practice. That includes:
– Policy disruptors and governance reformers ready to co-create systems that honor lived experience
– Artists, educators, and storytellers who believe in the power of narrative to shift public will
– Funders and institutions willing to compensate and consult Lived Expertise leadership—not extract from it
– Grassroots organizers, tenant unions, and national networks who want to build coalition across silos
– All University’s we’ve worked with Belmont and Vanderbilt more to come MTSU & Faith Based initiative partners shout-out to my Church Home Claiborne Family of Faith Worship Center Mr Daniel Holmes wrote a song dedicated to them as well Restoring Faith, his #1 Hit is Our Life’s Are as an Unwritten Song :
– Global partners who understand that housing justice is a human right, not a local issue
We fill all gaps and barriers to housing disparities—locally, nationally, and through global partnerships—in overarching ways that blend strategy, art, and policy.
Our work is intersectional, intergenerational, and international.
And we don’t just meet—we nourish. We offer community Townhall meals and healing conversations that center dignity, restoration, and real talk. These aren’t just events—they’re sanctuaries for truth, testimony, and transformation.
To the philanthropic community and funders of the 95-member HUD CoC Homeless Planning Council in Nashville-Davidson County: we see you. If your mission is to end homelessness—not reshuffle or hide humans—then fund the blueprint. Fund the receipts. Fund the people who’ve lived it, led it, and are building what’s next.
I’m also a paid keynote speaker, available for nationwide bookings. I’m currently headed to North Carolina, and I’m booking for 2025 and beyond. Whether it’s a summit, university, or coalition convening—I bring strategy, testimony, and truth. I don’t just motivate—I mobilize.
📬 To collaborate, consult, or book me to speak, come to the table. Or reach out directly—we’re not hard to find. We’re the ones turning harm into blueprint, silence into strategy, and lived experience into lasting systems change.
Speaker Bio & Contact
Mrs Kennetha The Homeless CEO Patterson is a national trauma-informed advocate, strategic consultant, and the most former Chair of the HUD CoC Homeless Planning Council—the first ever with proclaimed Lived Expertise.
She is a keynote speaker, coalition builder, and blueprint architect who turns harm into public record and exclusion into strategy. Her work spans governance correction, housing justice, artistic resistance, and economic empowerment.
📣 To book Kennetha for speaking engagements, strategic consultation, or coalition exhibits, email [email protected] or connect in person at the monthly partnership meeting: cadence subject to change * 4th Thursdays monthly , @ 800 2nd Avenue, Nashville, TN 37210.
Digital Contact Card :
https://blinq.me/SWVCYv0aSxB5CzZUX5Ju
Contact Info:
- Other: https://blinq.me/SWVCYv0aSxB5CzZUX5Ju Oh Housing First Responders with I Have a Testimony ( Executive Producer and Creator Ms Charlesetta Hall )
Global podcast is Refreshing we’ll BRB This is Nashville In my Place Interview : https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1D7YujmFBT/
The Collective Cohort #4 Welcome : https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1DAhRTF2HA/
These are All my Handles & Then some just explore my Kare Heirs Nation where the Unicorn’s reside 👑🦋💪🏾🙌🏾🚨🌹👏🏾🤲🏾✨
Image Credits
Mr. Daniel Holmes Morning Coffee Artist , Voices Unheard ~ Metro ARTS THRIVE Grant , Nashville Voices of Resilience Homeless Choir
Mr. Nelson Guillen Mandala
NOAH – Nashville Organized for Action and Hope This is Nashville – In My Place Award Winning Podcast & Radio Show
Nashville Davidson County HUD COC Committee Map
National Low Income Housing Coalition – The Collective Cohort # 4
National Healthcare for the Homeless Council – National Consumer Advisory Board & Ellen Dailey Advocacy Committee
The Contributor my 1st Op Ed
From THE Resora New Communities in Albany GA 1st Community Land Trust revamped after a National Win is: Mrs Shirley Sherrod & Rutha Mae Harris Pictured with me in the Yellow Fellow Original Freedom Singer , I had the time of my LIFE there & it is GOALS !!!!
The Contributor I have my 1st Op ed published in this precious collection of Resilience stories from the jewels of Nashville Davidson County who just so happened meet being unhoused, HOW ⁉️
