Because Foster Care Survivors should become the best parents.
Lakievia "Lucky" Johnson
Lakievia “Lucky” Johnson, MBA, PMP is the visionary founder of Freedom From Foster Care℠ A Nonprofit Organization, an organization born from a powerful blend of personal experience and professional expertise. Lucky's journey began with early exposure to community service through her mother, the founder of Safe Zone, Inc., a once effective nonprofit organization that supported Latch-Key Children. At age 11, Lucky’s world shifted profoundly when she entered the foster care system after her mother was given six months to live due to complications from HIV/AIDS. This abrupt upheaval in Lucky’s life would eventually instill a deep understanding of the foster care system's inherent challenges.
Lucky’s experiences navigating the complexities and dangers of foster care, which included social and housing instability, lack of access to and the removal of critical financial resources, verbal abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect, were later compounded by the intense challenges she faced after aging out of the system and during her divorce to escape an abusive marriage. She encountered inadequate legal representation, the heart-wrenching separation from her daughters, and a court system that, as detailed in her court documents, often silenced and marginalized her. She also had to defend her parental rights against the court's erroneous accusations regarding her mental health. These experiences illuminated the systemic failures and personal traumas that can hinder Foster Care Survivors like herself in establishing stability and building healthy families.
Despite these persistent difficulties, Lucky demonstrated extraordinary resilience. She excelled academically, earning a bachelor’s and master’s degree after her divorce and thrived as a doctoral student in Strategic Leadership. Professionally, she built a successful career, demonstrating leadership in project and program management, and earning multiple certifications in project management, product ownership, social and behavioral research, and strategic leadership. Her achievements include starting and managing STEPS Academic Advising & Education, LLC, an educational consulting company that helped students achieve their academic and professional goals by getting into their postsecondary institutions and careers of choice. Lucky also served as a powerful advocate for children, lending her voice to improve life outcomes, especially for those in the foster care system.
Lucky's life is a powerful testament to her belief: "We are not what happens to us; we are what we choose to become." Her personal battles and professional triumphs have converged to fuel her passion and desire to disrupt the cycles of generational foster care. Through Freedom From Foster Care℠ A Nonprofit Organization, Lucky aims to address the unique needs of Foster Care Survivors, or adult individuals who survived being in the foster care system as a child. The organization provides vital resources, including parent education programs, educational and professional development training, support networks, and legal advocacy, to empower Foster Care Survivors to become successful parents and break cycles of generational foster care, ensuring their children do not experience the foster care system. Lucky is turning her personal story of resilience into a powerful force for change, ensuring that other Foster Care Survivors are empowered to write their own narratives of success and create generational freedom from foster care for themselves and their children.
