When his mother lost the battle to Ovarian Cancer in 2016, Kobe Juwan Smith’s life completely changed.
He had witnessed firsthand how the lack of quality resources, services and health information shortened the life span of his matriarch. It weighed heavily on his mind how many families suffered the same gut-wrenching heartbreak of losing the ones they love and how many more would share the same unfortunate fate.
Kobe Juwan Smith knew then and there that more had to be done for women locally.
Using his pain to fuel his advocacy journey, he set off on his trailblazing path to be the change he wanted to see in the world. “Part of my advocacy work is to ensure that women and girls have consistent access to life-saving sexual and reproductive health information and services — the kind my mother was not fortunate to have.” Smith explained in an in an interview with Nightly News.