The Modern Phoenix

Kennae Miller is the owner of Transformation Yoga, South Carolina's only Black, Veteran and woman-owned yoga studio. Transformation Yoga provides the tools of yoga and meditation to people in underserved, underrepresented and marginalized communities from an anti-racism, anti-oppression and trauma-informed framework.

Kennae is also the co-founder of Enough, which bridges yoga, racial and social justice together to provide funding and awareness to local issues and grassroots organizations owned and led by BIPOC.

Kennae is one of the most fascinating and whole-hearted humans I am in community with, and turns out even at 9pm on a school night, we had no issue getting right into so many of her personal life experiences (particularly as a black yoga teacher and leader) that will enlighten, inspire, empower and just open your mind to where you may also be in need of giving or seeking liberation.

In this episode, we dive into:

• Her personal experience as a police officer's daughter
• AND her experience as an officer herself, in the south, for several years, unfortunately witnessing corruption and injustice
• How she started being asked to dim her personality in the yoga world
• Diving into that time Kennae called G out(in? whatever) on the 'gram
• Why she committed to NOT watching cartoons at age 7
• How she parents her son who moves through the world as if he's been here before
• The question she challenges herself with whenever she wants to not take care of herself and how everything is in the name of her liberation
• How she's balancing two sides of an identity partly formed from watching her mother's successes and mistakes re: self-care, celebration, and more
• When "no" is a full sentence
• How we can all honor our own culture without appropriating other people's culture

This one packs a punch, so buckle up.

Make sure you follow Transformation Yoga on Insta @transformationyogasc and support Kennae's deeply important work in the world at transformationyogasc.com.

Lucy Cuneo is an OG; she was a panelist for one of the earliest in-person events with The Champagne Society, and she is one of Harper Bazaar's best photographers in the world. Like many of us during these times, she's trying to navigate her balance of career, children, her conscience, and bringing her whole (political) self to her platforms.

In this conversation, we dive right into it and discuss the following:

• Why having two babies is different than one

• Why her integrity meter started going off in 2018

• How we're both trying to transition from a "white girl business" to a business with heart, soul and purpose

• Sloppy action being better than inaction

• Lucy uses the word "ether," a lot

• Why she feels there is something naturally selfish about blogging

• The quandary of bringing more of yourself to your business and social media

• Why you should never judge the way another mother balances her mental health re: the news

• Why she became political on social media this year and her regrets about it

• And so much more

Final note and warning: This is an open conversation between two democrats two weeks before the presidential election, which we now have the outcome for. This is not only a space for democrats, but this is only a space for women who can handle hard, honest conversations and big feelings. You belong here, if you decide you do.

Let's do this.

Learn more about Gervase Kolmos:

https://www.gervasekolmos.com/about

Follow Gervase on Social:

instagram.com/gervasekolmos

Follow Lucy on Social:

instagram.com/lucycuneo

Visit Lucy's Website:

www.lucycuneo.com

Get G in Your Inbox Here:

https://www.gervasekolmos.com/newsletter

Learn more about The Champagne Society:

https://www.gervasekolmos.com/thechampsociety

Follow the Champagne Society:

instagram.com/thechampsociety

facebook.com/thechampsociety

Brittny Irvin is many, many things.

During the day, she's a teacher at a high school in the Charlotte, NC area.

After work, she's helping her super-cool daughter Bean develop a social presence based on making a difference, sharing your individuality and just being yourself (shout out to @thesweetlifeofbean).

All day, every day, she's a Mama x3, a woman of color, and an all around bad-ass. Oh, and there was that time she was a panelist at one of our favorite events with The Champagne Society.

Brittny is an inspiration to us all, especially as a high school teacher during a global pandemic.

In this conversation, she dives DEEP discussing the following:

• What it's like being a teacher during a pandemic
• Her experience with a COVID, "geriatric" pregnancy
• Managing being over-extended as a black mother, friend, and educator during the BLM revolution
• Pacing herself for waves of anti-racism
• Social media induced mom guilt
• Knowing what it feels like to be the only minority in a classroom
• And so much more

Final note: We are not shaming you if you took your kids to the pumpkin patch this year. I kinda wanted to make it to one, but just didn't get to it.

Let's do this.

Learn more about Gervase Kolmos:

https://www.gervasekolmos.com/about

Follow Gervase on Social:

instagram.com/gervasekolmos

Follow Brittny on Social:

instagram.com/apartyof1

Follow Bean on Social:

instagram.com/thesweetlifeofbean

Visit Bean's Website:

thesweetlifeofbean.com

Get G in Your Inbox Here:

https://www.gervasekolmos.com/newsletter

Learn more about The Champagne Society:

https://www.gervasekolmos.com

Follow the Champagne Society:

instagram.com/thechampsociety

facebook.com/thechampsociety

Episode 1 felt like it needed to be you + me getting to know each other—skipping the surface level nonsense.

In this episode I get super honest about my "FFTs" with this podcast and the permanence of it compared to riffing at live events, plus my long history of putting pressure on myself to be shiny and happy all the time.

I share my experience as a new mama, as a coach, the growth and the massive authority I've amassed in this field. I've been working on myself for 15 years, been a mindset coach for 6 and ALMOST certified as a hypnotherapist. I've interviewed almost 100 women, I've birthed three babies and I'm just getting started. As long as I keep showing up authentically, even when it's a little uncomfortable, this podcast can be something of value to absolutely every woman who comes across it.

Here's what you can expect in my first solo episode:

• A little history about my first brand "Shiny. Happy. Human." and how I've outgrown that name
• Truth-bombs about the identity changing experience that comes along with having babies—and not just your first.
• Abandoning the blueprint of "The Plan"
• Transparency about how I handled PPD
• My invitation to mothers around the world
• The significance of your thoughts, beliefs and choices
• Along with what I think mothers need and deserve more of and how I promise to deliver it with this podcast.

Let's do this.

Learn more about Gervase Kolmos:

https://www.gervasekolmos.com/about

Follow Gervase on Social:

instagram.com/gervasekolmos

Get G in Your Inbox Here:

https://www.gervasekolmos.com/newsletter

Learn more about The Champagne Society:

https://www.gervasekolmos.com

Follow the Champagne Society:

instagram.com/thechampsociety

facebook.com/thechampsociety

Welcome to The Champagne Society. I'm Gervase Kolmos - Certified Coach for mamas and your host for our NEW PODCAST! The Champagne Society started 3ish years ago before in-person fun was cancelled. And man it was magical. It was a glorious kid-free, judgment-free space for moms of littles. But then the entire world changed...

This podcast was born out of love, excitement and a hope to create something that felt as good as it looked. For months, I kept thinking, "What would be the same if nothing changed?" Every woman needs to have some FREAKIN' FUN. Pandemic or not. We're never the only ones experiencing human moments; ups and downs. No one has their -ish together all the time and we're tired of pretending that we do.

Our community was built in small local venues with 30-100 women sitting shoulder to shoulder, snapping for solidarity, laughing (sometimes crying) and giving each other permission to make it "motherhood and" instead of "motherhood, or."

Our goal? Is to bring our famous Unfiltered Conversations normalizing the struggle of the juggle and challenging each other to do better can still continue. Each week I'm interviewing some of the most powerful and inspiring moms I know to hear their hard-earned lessons learned on what it really takes to have it all as a woman, a mother, an entrepreneur and a multi-faceted human. We'll go deep and we'll go there, so be ready.

We're Going DEEP on the real issues that affect all humans and especially entrepreneurial mamas with littles.

Grab a drink and wear whatever the F you want, and carve out some mama time to hear me say the things everyone else is thinking but scared to admit, and remind you, along with our guests, that yes, you do need to show up for yourself, and no, you're not the only one who's having trouble doing so. Expect "me, toos" and real talk plus actual answers to your main questions re: HOW - How do you juggle motherhood with your entrepreneurial ambitions, relationships, self-care and limited time? Well, listen to find out, b/c we're gonna talk about it, with curse words, because sometimes you just need em.

Raising a glass to you, mama. Let's do this.

Learn more about Gervase Kolmos:

https://www.gervasekolmos.com/about

Follow Gervase on Instagram

Get G in Your Inbox

Learn more about The Champagne Society:

https://www.gervasekolmos.com

Follow The Champagne Society:

instagram.com/thechampsociety

facebook.com/thechampsociety