Help Our Cause - Fun Raise Her

Curlee is a Bay Area Black and Women Owned Business featuring an all natural hair and skin care line. We take pleasure in using the finest natural and organic ingredients to make our products. We have a variety of products to help clients reclaim their curls, grow, and maintain healthy hair, take care of and promote silky smooth skin. Everyday we hear testimonies from our very loyal customers based on how the products have changed their lives and how much they appreciate our affordable prices. We pride ourselves on educating our clients on how to use the products to take care of their hair and skin for the best results. To that end, we will host private parties, provide at home consultation, and will do demonstrations using the products. 

Affiliated with Bay Area Black Business and Bay Area Organization of Black Own Business, Shop Oakland Now.

Born and raised in East Oakland, CA, in addition to pouring into, loving on, and enjoying life with her beautiful baby girl,  Makalah devotes a lot of her time, effort, and heart into uplifting the many communities in which she graces. Currently working as a Therapist and Clinical Intervention Specialist, supporting schools and Families in Oakland on best practices towards a truly inclusive and unconditional environment. Through this, she strives to teach children how to be their very best no matter what they may feel or have been told limits them towards a life that will enable them to thrive.

Cherri Wright-Taylor works as an Office Coordinator at UCSF, in the OBGYN Department. She has a Master’s degree in Organizational Leadership from Saint Mary’s College and received her Bachelor’s in Women’s Study at Mill College. As an Office Coordinator, Cherri is responsible for all floor operations, which include giving on-boarding presentations for new hires and staff returning to the office. She is also responsible for making sure the department runs at optimum capacity. Cherri has been recognized for her work in Diversity and Inclusion within the OBGYN Department and the UCSF larger community. Cherri has also worked in the financial aid departments of Diablo Valley College (DVC) and Touro University. Her passion for supporting her community with information regarding access to higher education and financial aid services stems from her own personal journey and challenges in achieving her educational goals. She had to navigate systems of higher education without much guidance and now wants to pass on her knowledge to the next generation. She has lived in Oakland, California for seven years and considers it her home. She has one adult son and is the proud grandmother to Kingston, her “mini-me.”  She spends her free time critiquing white supremacist culture and gardening.

Family Business - Father and Daughter

Nieves Cinco de Mayo

For many years, Luis had a vision of opening and operating his own landmark ice cream shop like the one from his native Guadalajara. With some entrepreneurial experience under his belt, he applied to open an ice cream store in the Fruitvale Public Market (Oakland, CA).  Luis was accepted into the incubator program and was so enthusiastic about creating his own artisan ice creams, that he traveled to Mexico twice to take classes. As part of his business model, Luis planned for his family to play an important role in the enterprise. He opened Nieves Cinco de Mayo in 2008. With his parents by his side, his mother worked the cash register and his father promoted the business. Now to date, Luis has two locations in Oakland, CA and one location in San Francisco, CA. Two of his daughters, Griselda and Emily, joined forces in their father's business. The business has expanded; yet remains family centered. Their ice cream is made by hand with flavors from vanilla to more exotic selections like rum raisin. 

Nieves Cinco de Mayo was featured on KPIX, The East Bay Express, The Contra Costa Times and San Francisco Magazine.