Jennifer Moonsong
WCLU News Director
Glasgow native, Danielle Bradley, is from a big family with the motto “family first.”
“I have five sisters and five brothers, and I am the baby of eleven children,” Bradley said. As the baby in such a big family, Danielle had a lot of people to look up to, including her mother, Mary Jane Franklin and her big sister, Alma, who both dedicated themselves to family and community. For example, it was Bradley’s family that hostessa community Thanksgiving Feast at the Ralph Bunche Community Center from 2012 – 2018.
“My mother took in everyone. In our neighborhood, everyone’s kids were welcome. Everyone in the family, every friend, every neighbor. My mother mothered them all,” Bradley reminisced.
This way of life and way of being resonated very much with Bradley, who is a natural born helper, with a special place in her heart for children and the elderly.
“I have always had a special place in my heart for children,” she said.
As a young woman, Bradley worked in daycares and a girls’ home. She felt she connected very much with you, especially young women, and dedicated herself to establishing open and honest lines of communications with them.
From there, her work turned to foster care.
“I love giving them family they never had,” she said. Bradley first became a foster parent about fifteen years ago, and it’s been a busy and rewarding leg of the journey.
“I have fostered over fifty children. I adopted three children in the process,” she said.
I have adopted three children in the process.
With that said, Bradley added that in addition to her two biological cinder, and three legally adopted children, there are three other young ladies she calls her own, that were too old to adopt when they came to her. One might think with such a slew of children coming and going, and some becoming unwavering parts of the family, that Bradley’s two biological children would be jealous. Bradley says that was never the case.
“Thy inherited my love of kids and doing for others, we never had any real problems,” she said.
Tayshaun, 23, is now in college and daughter, Maryonna, 20, grew up with many foster brothers and sisters they love.
“They always treated them no differently than they did each other,” Bradley said.
Most recently, Bryson, 8, and Bentley, 7, have become permanent persons in the Bradley family.
“I got them when they were very young. Bryson was barely a year, and Bentley was 8 months old,” Bradley said.
“I kept them for a little while, and then a little longer. They asked if I wanted to adopt them. I had fallen in love with them. They’ve always been my children, I have always seen them as my children,” she said.
“That’s one thing about fostering with me, whenI took kids in they are part of the family. I never wanted them to feel different or left out.”
These days Bradley has found all new ways to help youth through her role at the Barren County Family YMCA. She works with teenagers via a Young Men of Color Grant that helps Caverna students better ready themselves for life in the real world. The program is designed to help ease and facilitate the transition from one stage of life, to another.
“The program has grown. We survey the same kids to evaluate if we are meeting our goals. We have guest speakers from many walks of life, plus colleges and technical schools to visit, because we don’t think college is everyone’s path and we want to show them as many paths as possible,” Bradley said.
Her other job title at the YMCA is dedicated to the elderly; Bradley coordinates the Senior Lunch program via BRADD, and has forged meaningful relationships with the lunch crew that she regularly interacts with.
“I love it. Everyday I come in and they are my biggest supporters, they have something positive to say every day, they have something positive to make my day better. This program has been a joy, I love coming to work,” Bradley said.
Believing that the child and elder are closest to God, both fit her personality and goal well.
“I was raised in a generation that was taught to respect elders,” she said.
As if that is not enough Bradley is also the Youth Leader at her church, Hopewell Baptist.
“I do whatever I need to do there,” she said, smiling.
With so much on her plate and so much in her heart, you might think Bradley has reached her limit but she is more than willing for her cup to runneth over. Now, she is hoping to bring her love of both the old and young together in a Foster Grandparents Program at the YMCA, and hopes it materializes in coming months.