Yvette McMillan
Yvette McMillan |
Yvonne Brake |
The Busy Beavers became more than a childhood club for twin sisters Yvette McMillan and Yvonne Brake. It became the genesis of a lifetime committed to serving others.
"We'd run to the store and do errands for elderly neighbors," laughed Brake as she and her sister recalled their duties in the club they founded and eventually expanded to include other children from their Struthers, Ohio, neighborhood.
From childhood on, the two were influenced by church and family. "Our mother instilled in us the importance of faith and helping others," recalls McMillan.
That desire to help less fortunate people coupled with a deep and unwavering spiritual faith led the sisters on the path to pursue a Master of Nonprofit Organizations (M.N.O.) degree at CWRU's Mandel Center for Nonprofit Organizations. They'll receive their degrees at the May 20 diploma ceremony of the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, which confers the degree in cooperation with the Weatherhead School of Management.
The twins stress that their nonprofit management education has provided the tools to benefit them professionally and enhance the practical knowledge they have acquired during their years of service in the nonprofit sector. Brake, who earned a bachelor's degree in management at Canton's Malone College in 1998, is the director of development for Haven of Rest Ministries in Akron. McMillan, a 1998 social work alumna of the University of Akron, is the assistant director of the Women's Division at Harvest Home, a woman's shelter serving the Akron area and a division of Haven of Rest.
In addition to their respective professions and academic pursuits, they formed a small, urban outreach ministry known as Because He Cares. Established in 1980, this highly mobile, non-traditional theatrical company portrays live drama designed to foster cultural pride through African-American history for youth across a four-state area.
Brake and McMillan want to expand their activities to include teaching black youth the history of philanthropy in African-American culture. Through education and ministry they hope to encourage philanthropic endeavors and perpetuate new generations of benevolent youth.
The vast accomplishments of these twin sisters also include recognition with the Summit County YWCA's "Black Women of Excellence" Award, which McMillan received in 1995 and Brake in 1996.
