Meet Ella

Emmanuella.

My name is Emmanuella. I usually leave my last name out because I'm not a fan of it, for various reasons. I was born on March 05, 1994 in Bronx, New York. Before my mother got married, she was a 28 year old virgin and my dad was known as a playboy here in the U.S and in Ghana where they both migrated from. I'm sure they didn't intend on having a broken home but that's exactly what my little sister and I grew up in.

My dad couldn't leave his playboy ways behind or his terrible habit of abusing us both physically and verbally. After my 8th grade year, my father’s own guilt kicked him out of our home and he moved 3 blocks away from us with his girlfriend. I attended an all-girl catholic high school called Marylawn, which was my father’s idea. During my years in high school, I saw him and his new family exactly 4 times and each time he'd look right at me and keep it moving.

I was blessed to be raised by a hurting woman and God (simply the best dad). I grew to become a very shy person, afraid that I'd get rejected and ejected for being myself. Today I am a junior in college, majoring in Public Health and minoring in Biology at Montclair State University.

My life may have been a mess and I may have some hideous scars but God has given a message to my mess and has given my scars some purpose. I'm thankful because He trusted me enough to give me a testimony and He's waiting to see what I'm going to do with it while I'm still learning and growing.

Instagram: for_ella