Sissy Ismail saw green but not in the way you might think. It was July of 2018 when Sissy began to notice the color green all around her. "I was pulling my car into Greenbriar State Park under the canopy of beautiful trees listening to the radio when the song Evergreen began to play. The artist sang the tree of life is evergreen. It never dies. It never dies, and I started crying, but I didn't know why. What I did know was that my spirit was so lit up by those words, and I thought, what does that mean; the tree of life is evergreen? I went home and wrote it down, laying it aside."
Sissy's story is of one of incredible odds and courage. At age 33, diagnosed with a terminal illness, the doctors told Sissy there wasn't any hope and had given her three months to live. She says, "With this diagnosis, we were catapulted into finding a different option." Sissy's story turns into a sometimes agonizing six-year journey back to health.
While researching healing options, Sissy says she began to be angry with what she was learning about traditional Western medicine's reliance on pharmaceuticals as the answer. Using alternative medicines along with some conventional treatment, Sissy slowly began to heal from her illness. She ate only organic fruits and vegetables, and juiced to cleanse her body of additional toxins. "It wasn't changing just one thing. I had to change everything. If I wanted to live, I didn't have a choice. I learned that everything that is given to us from the garden has powerful healing properties," she says, "Food is medicine."
From her experiences on the healing path and as a former nutritionist, Sissy says, "I wanted everyone to know how to live and thrive. I told everyone that I would go anywhere and tell anyone if they would allow me to teach them about natural things that heal the body. I asked God to send me anywhere!" Jumping at an opportunity that arose for her, she traveled to Atlanta. Sissy's sister had called to say she was needed there within 24 hours to speak to a family. "My heart is to bring resources to the lost and forgotten places, and this place was in need of an education on nutrition and wellness training. As we were finishing up, my sister mentioned we were staying at the Green family's home. My spirit lit up at the name, Green." The home was surrounded by evergreen trees, and to her delight, even the address was green. The house was on Emerald Lane. Recalling her journal in which she wrote the words of the song, Evergreen, Sissy recounts, "I said to my sister, this is what God had shown me years before when I kept seeing green everywhere! It was at this point I knew I was being led to start a foundation to bring products and knowledge to people, but we didn't know what that was going to look like."
Sissy's heart is for bringing hope, healing, organic products, and education to the community. With that goal in mind, The Evergreen Garden Foundation was launched to provide BeWell Baskets full of healing items that are as natural and organic as possible, and books to those who are in need. Each BeWell Basket is created for a specific classification that is titled Family, Bella (girl), Bello (boy), or Baby because different age groups have different needs. Sissy says, "They'll tell us their story, and we will fill the basket according to their needs."
"We know the need is there. Our website has applications and we don't take a screening because we hope that if you truly need it, you will ask for it. In-person and through this basket, we will teach and educate. The basket at the door is not the end of it because a big part of my job is to teach how food will heal the body. An herbalist provided the literature of condensed information on how to begin a Holistic life with links that connect to trustworthy places. If someone reaches out now, I will be the one they will speak with. Eventually, I'll need a staff to help me navigate our growth and to help with the volume. But in the meantime, I would like to be the one that's hands-on to deliver a basket and give a hug," explains Sissy.
The Evergreen Garden Foundation will need many hands to accomplish their goals. "We require donated resources, both product and money. We need recipients, and we need volunteers," says Sissy. She adds that the goal is to provide 100 baskets this first year. Each basket will have a value of $2,000. However, with wholesale licensing, it's possible to get it down to around $1,000, so the foundation could potentially give away 200 baskets in the first year with the long-term vision of giving away 1,000 BeWell Baskets per year.
Some might see Sissy's near-terminal experiences as a curse, Sissy sees it as a gift and God's plan for her life, and she's using her experience to change not only her world but her profession. She's gone back to school in pursuit of a Doctorate in Holistic Clinical Nutrition and Functional Wellness. Sissy's future began when she saw green. She knows her path was being revealed to her step by step for a purpose. She says, "I know I can do it. I can talk to people and share the heart of the vision, and I am trusting that it's going to come to us. It's a funny thing. My love language is gifts, and some time ago, I wrote down in my journal that I want to give gifts for a living, and I thought, how is that possible? And yet, here I am, going to be able to give gifts! BeWellBaskets.org
Tip 1: Eat organic when possible. Avoid the pesticides that are regularly sprayed on our fruits and vegetables.
Tip 2: Skip the candles and air fresheners. Opt for essential oils that gently release healthy fragrance into the air.
Tip 3: Use organic hair and skin care products.
Tip 4: Drink filtered water. Many water sources are contaminated with chemicals, pesticides, arsenic, lead, and other carcinogenic and autoimmune causing agents.
Tip 5: Switch to natural or organic laundry detergent and cleaning products.