Michelle Jewsbury, founder of Becoming Amplified and Unsilenced Voices, joins Sunny Ray to trace her path from Hollywood acting to surviving domestic violence to building a nonprofit and publishing empire. After escaping a violent relationship, Michelle wrote and performed a solo play about her experience, which led strangers to share their own stories of abuse and trafficking. In 2017 she founded Unsilenced Voices, using a legal settlement from her abuser to fund programs in Sierra Leone, including Matilda's Program, a vocational training initiative named after a young girl who died of AIDS after leaving sex work. Michelle also published her memoir, But I Love Him, and now runs Becoming Amplified and Legacy Amplified, helping over 120 authors publish books and build platforms. She discusses balancing a heart driven nonprofit with a sustaining for profit business, the role of rejection and relationship building in fundraising, and statistics on domestic violence affecting men. The conversation blends personal healing, humanitarian work in West Africa, and practical publishing guidance.
A domestic violence survivor turned nonprofit founder on building schools in Sierra Leone and helping 120+ authors publish their stories.
What is Unsilenced Voices and why should people care?
I founded Unsilenced Voices in 2017 after surviving four years of domestic violence and writing a solo play about my experience. People began sharing their own stories of trafficking, abuse and grief, so I built an organization to give them a platform. Today we run vocational training, agricultural and malnutrition programs in Sierra Leone, including our flagship Matilda's Program that helps girls exit sex work through vocational training.
What made you decide to build something operational, like a school program, rather than just campaign or speak out?
When I visited Sierra Leone, my team member Philip took me to a bar and showed me twelve year old girls selling their bodies for a dollar. I met a girl named Matilda who wanted out of sex work, so we enrolled her in vocational training, paid for materials and gave her a stipend. She became a huge advocate before she tragically died of AIDS, and our vocational training center is now named after her.
How did you end up choosing Sierra Leone and West Africa specifically?
Even before I found God, I had dreams of being surrounded by African children. My first trip was to Kenya and when I landed I knew Africa was where I wanted to help. I had been vice president of a nonprofit working in Sierra Leone, so when we expanded I went back there and rehired Philip, who has been my manager on the ground since the beginning.
What did writing But I Love Him teach you about what a story can change?
Writing was therapeutic and it opened doors, being a published author gets you interviewed on major networks for free because journalists want new authors. It gave me a platform and a soapbox, and after publishing, people started approaching me with their own stories, which snowballed into the work I do today helping others share their message.
What surprised you most about working with more than 120 authors through Becoming Amplified?
I learned people are terrified of being judged, no matter what the story is. When I first went live with my story I was shaking and scared, but I received an outpouring of support instead of condemnation. Now I tell my authors that yes their story stays online forever, but they will change lives and the people who matter will love them for their mission.
You run both a nonprofit and a for-profit at the same time, what does each give the other?
There is a heart book and a food book, I started with my heart book, the memoir, before I had any for-profit plans. The nonprofit mostly serves women and girls who are survivors of trafficking and abuse, while the for-profit works with people who are already stable but still want their stories heard. There is overlap but different demographics, and the for-profit is what currently sustains me financially.
What skill from acting turned out to be most useful in running an organization?
Handling rejection was the biggest transferable skill. My godfather Ralph used to sing no no no no yes to me during audition after audition, and I carried that into fundraising, which is about seventy percent of running a nonprofit and comes with constant no's before you get a yes.
What do most people get wrong about relationships and fundraising?
People don't nurture their business relationships enough, not just friends and family but donors and partners. I became close friends with donors like Jen Duples and Steph Sheeta by genuinely investing in those relationships over time, and that nurturing turned into ongoing support, exposure and funding for Unsilenced Voices.
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