About Us | Unashamed Inc.

Our Mission

The mission of Unashamed Inc. is to foster emotional health in disadvantaged and at-risk youth and young adults that have experienced incarceration, homelessness, foster care, domestic violence, and teen pregnancy. Through various programs and services, we “plant seeds” to equip youth and young adults with the tools they need to dismantle unhealthy generational patterns and transition from surviving to thriving. We seek to support, inspire, and empower young men and women who have found themselves in these difficult situations and sow seeds of hope, resiliency and the skills needed for a positive future - even when they can’t see a future in sight.

Our Vision

Our Vision is to be an organization founded on the support and future success of abused, abandoned, or neglected youth and young adults, ensuring they have an opportunity for a healthy, successful life.

EVERY YOUTH NEEDS HOPE!

Our Values

Unashamed’s values are based on our foundation’s integrity and diligence toward excellence.

STEWARDSHIP

We act responsibly and caring as a philanthropic steward.

ACCOUNTABILITY

We are accountable for achieving quality outcomes for our funders, donors, sponsors, strategic & community partners and beneficiaries.

DIVERSITY

We seek and embrace diversity and multiculturalism at all levels of leadership including the composition of our Board of Directors, staff and volunteers, and will always promote and support diversity in all of our programs, events, services and activities.

INTEGRITY

We operate with the highest degree of integrity, openness and transparency by treating all parties with respect, fairness and honesty in all relationships.

INNOVATION

We seek continuous improvement and always think creatively outside the box to provide innovative ways to make the greatest impact to the individuals, families and organizations we serve.

PROFESSIONALISM

We maintain the utmost level of professionalism on all levels and create a culture of respect and honor for both personal & professional development including promoting and supporting the importance of mentoring and how it can motivate, inspire and make a difference for future generations.

Our Promise

We make five promises to every Unashamed youth and young adult:

We love you, even when you hate us.
We will always tell you the truth.
We’ll be with you, until you don’t want to be with us.
You have a choice.
When we say yes, it’s our best yes.

In those five promises, each youth and young adult finds love and support. They find truth and honesty. They find security, and they are served in excellence.

But most importantly, they find hope, and the opportunity to live their life unashamed.

Our Founder

Sana Latrese

At the tender age of 4, Sana and her twin brother were removed from the care of their mother, and placed into the foster care system after it was discovered that Sana was being sex trafficked to support her mother and grandmothers drug addiction. Despite these early setbacks and emotional traumas in her life, Sana has emerged as an unashamed woman, boldly sharing her story. By the grace of God, Sana has impacted hundreds of women all over the United States by sharing her personal journey of denouncing shame and walking through an intense healing journey.

Despite the traumas she faced at a young age, Sana has turned her life around and is now making a positive impact in the lives of others. Through her advocacy work and personal story, she aims to bring awareness to issues such as sex trafficking and the foster care system. Sana's dedication to helping others has led her to work with organizations such as the Department of Labor, and the Department of Children and Families (DCF) in various roles including as a QPI Champion (Quality Parenting Initiative) and as a speaker and co trainer for the Queen Esther Initiative, a faith-based, foster care and adoption recruitment and support program designed to increase the number of licensed foster and adoptive families in the state of Connecticut.

In 2020, Sana published her memoir, "Everyone Will Know It Was God," where she courageously shares her life story, including the experiences of abuse, foster care, and teenage motherhood. Through her book, Sana hopes to inspire others to overcome their own traumas and find healing.

Sana's work and story have gained recognition from various media outlets, including Sheen Magazine, Voyage Dallas, and AOL.com. In addition, she was honored as one of the 100 Women of Color, celebrating her contributions to the community and the lives of others in Connecticut and Western Massachusetts.

Sana's personal life is filled with love and stability, as she has been happily married to Joshua for 16 years, and they have two children together, Jamir and Janai. She currently resides in Middletown, Connecticut, where she continues to advocate for those in need and share her story of resilience and hope.