Author Spotlight: Glendora Dvine

Glendora Dvine has been a nationally accredited licensed counselor since 2007 in South Georgia and has always had a passion and drive to help others. She is the founder of Dvine Systems GA a mental and behavioral health practice that has been in operation since 2010. Dvine Systems GA provides an array of therapeutic and professional services to the community.   Through Dvine Systems GA, Glendora has become recognized for her passion in three primary areas; 1) Family safeguarding through healthy mental living 2) Parenting Strategies/Intervention and 3) Developing one’s vision for life.

Glendora acquired her bachelor’s in psychology and master’s in professional counseling.  After completing her studies, the Detroit native relocated to the Metro Atlanta area to plant her roots and began to uplift and inspire her community of families. She speaks on various platforms (schools, private and government companies, etc.) motivating, encouraging and inspiring others to keep moving in their purpose of life.  Glendora’s favorite two types of clients are someone who is trying to get through something or someone who is trying to reach a goal.

Glendora received a life-threatening challenge in 2013 being diagnosed with breast cancer, after several procedures and months of recovery Glendora persevered to become a breast cancer overcomer and from there a motivational speaker and author. She published her 1st book in 2016, entitled “Leaving Legacies – Breaking the disconnect between parents and millennials”. (amazon.com/author/glendoradvine – eBook), a guide on safeguarding families which include worksheets.  Her focus of writing reflects her passion to educate parents and caregivers on new ways to parent their children by embracing new habits and being mentally aware of old patterns. Glendora also has created “Just In Time” online educational courses, which are parenting courses that center on positive communication, quality family time, and family unification.

Fancy: What sparked your interest in psychology?

Glendora: I’ve always been a person that helped people with their problems. I was always in people’s business. When I graduated from Master’s School, I had a party and my husband held a toast. He stood up and said, “I want to give a toast and say finally, she can get paid for being in people’s business and stop taking my money to help them.” So, pretty much, I’m always helping someone. I think I am a natural servant.

Fancy: So tell us a little bit about Dvine Systems Georgia in your own words and in layman’s terms.

Glendora: Well, Dvine Systems Georgia is a counseling agency, but it’s a system of networks, so we link up with a lot of different community entrepreneurs, educators, council people, and overall influencers. We connect with others in our community to help better serve our community, which is why it’s a system network. We really try and put forth energy and effort in helping our community be great and leave a legacy. So for over 10 years, we have offered counseling- individual, family, couples, marriage, we see an array of disorders and behaviors being versatile by accepting over 13 different insurances.

Fancy: As long as I’ve known of you and your brand, I never made the connection between the network that you’ve been building and the systems part within the business title. It’s actually really cool to hear you say that because I was really impressed with a lot of the things that you’re doing. However, I did notice that your three primary areas of counseling pertain to the family. What was your own family like growing up?

Glendora: Well, I was raised by my father. My mom left when I was five, and my dad raised me and my two brothers. He was very strict in relation to you don’t ask, don’t borrow, or beg. “You can go out there and get it yourself. Try not to do it on credit because you should have money if you really want it. So if you don’t have money to afford it, you don’t need it” was more of his philosophies. So it almost felt like a militant upbringing, but I honestly see now that it was a lot of structure and morals that really he was providing. He was keeping me and my brothers safe. He was actually making us understand how to have integrity and also understand what his legacy was.

Fancy: That’s really deep, but I’ve said before that you seem like a very purposeful person, which brings me to my next question. You are a certified sex offender specialist, and I’ve heard of a little of your backstory about it, but what influenced you to want to work within this population?

Glendora: Well again, it stems from my community. So I service a lot of children, and one of my philosophies is if you want me to see your child, you must also make an appointment with me for yourself as well. Because I’m not going try and help your child or pour into your child when they are connected to you, and I don’t know if you really are provoking this issue or there may possibly be an action you can take to help decrease this issue. This allows me to better understand if I may need to help the parent understand how to work with the issue also. Therefore, it’s a mandatory requirement.

But what inspired me to obtain certification was the fact that I was getting a lot of African-American kids who were charged with sexual molestation or sexual battery. When they’re charged with these kinds of sexual crimes, the charges stick with them for life, especially the molestation. I also didn’t like the fact that so many of them were coming through the office for such trivial things or things they did while calling themselves “dating”. I understand that our culture has dating twisted and our children are claiming they’re dating while in elementary and middle school, and the kids that were coming to see me were in middle school and over-sexualized. They were saying things that made me look at them like, “Wait, hold the hell on!” It was like they were talking about how to make Kool-Aid. So with all of that being said, the kids were facing charges and really didn’t have anyone to counsel them without the parent driving over an hour away.

That’s when I thought, “You know what? I can help these children because all of them are basically saying that they don’t have anyone to talk to at home”. They’re getting information from friends, social media and technology, and half talking parents. I realized I need to find a better way to treat them because I couldn’t treat them the same as an adult. I believe adults understand what they are doing from the moment they did it. For a child, I feel like they are trying to experiment with what they have been told or taught, so they don’t have that understanding of the full ramifications of what they’re doing.

So I now service teens 18 and younger, and I created a program for juveniles who have sexual offending problems or who have been charged. The program is currently used in my community at the county courthouses. Also, as part of the program, in the last eight weeks of the program, the child actually goes back to the parent and they complete an activity about decision-making that they do together during those last weeks.

I’m trying to create a real relationship between this child and their parent without there being a wall built up. So that was the whole point of me creating the program because it wasn’t anything out there to involve the parent. Most programs just involve the perpetrator or allege perpetrator. At the end of the program, I created it so that the parent has a discussion with the child to gather more about what the child has learned related to sex and decision making. The parent now understands a little bit more about where the child’s decision-making skills are coming from and why.

Fancy: I’m just still kind of blown away by the child offenders and how you’ve built the program, but now I curious as to how you went about the process of building that type of relationship to work with the County. Did you pitch them?

Glendora: Well, my clients pitched it for me because they would mention they are already seeing a therapist. Kids would get in trouble and then the court date might not come as soon. Now the parents are freaking out, the kid just knows some ish has gotten serious but doesn’t really understand. And then next thing you know, the parents are trying to run and find some type of counseling. When they come to me and they tell me what’s going on during the assessment, I’m already like, “Hell yes, we need to get started.”

This way they can say, “Well, I already started counseling for that particular issue. “ So then, the court will have me or the parent come back around and give them the outline of the program. Parents will take that back to their lawyer, who will present it to the prosecutor and submit it to the judge and it goes from there.

Fancy: So three years into your practice, you were diagnosed with breast cancer, but you beat it. How did it change your life and your work?

Glendora: Honestly, it didn’t because I was more like, “Okay, so what are we going to do because I’m not going to make my life doctor’s appointments. Just keep it moving?” Plus my family was very supportive, so I really didn’t focus on it. I even went back to work early. As soon as the doctor was able to take the tubes out of me, I was like, “I can’t sit in this house. This is making me depressed, so let me go hear other people’s problems.” That made me happy. Yes, I couldn’t do that girl. I’m just really not a good patient. It’s too boring. I don’t want to sit.

Fancy: Oh, wait, I thought that’s where your “One life, keep it moving” motto came from, from overcoming that experience.

Glendora: No, girl, that’s just been me. And I had a double mastectomy too because the cancer was only in one, but I was like, “Listen, do both of them. I don’t have time.”

Fancy: Wow…

Glendora: Of course, I get sad, I get down, and I mope, but my family doesn’t do those things. So it doesn’t last long, and reality comes back. Everyone around me is always like, “You laugh at disappointment; you laugh at sorrow; you laugh at everything!” I laugh because God is in it all and positivity is there somewhere. So let’s find it. Have that negative moment, but it can’t be any more than a moment.”

Fancy: Yes, that’s a great perspective. I realized we hadn’t discussed your book yet. Please tell us about it.

Glendora: My book is called Leaving Legacies: Breaking The Disconnect Between Parents And Millennials. Basically, it’s a behavior therapy book because it’s actually a to-do book; an enlightening book on how to honestly communicate effectively. I’m highlighting assertive communication and I’m pointing out that the reality is, we were raised in an aggressive communication style. That’s what most were taught. Now we have to reteach ourselves to talk assertively and honestly. It’s a conscious decision that we have to practice because it’s a skill. So, I’m really trying to get parents to understand how they’re talking to their children and how to stop for a second, regather themselves, and understanding how to talk to themselves first. This way they can clearly relay the message to their children, instead of responding so quickly no listening or misunderstanding.

Fancy: So what other events or upcoming projects are you working on?

Glendora: This year, I’m joining several nonprofit boards. I just took part in an event called She Cares which was for a nonprofit called the RefresHer Community Inc. It honored women who are caregivers of elderly parents, foster moms, or who take care of their severely disabled children. We honored 33 women and we put on a really beautiful, formal event. Two gospel singers came and serenaded them, they ate, and we gave them a plaque, a certificate, and a whole bunch of self-care items in a goody bag.

I’ve also started working with two other nonprofit organizations that are related to mentoring girls and empowering women, She Steams Foundation and Project Blossom Foundation. I have a lot of girls that come through my office and I always need some kind of system, somebody else to connect them with. But also, I have a 13-year-old daughter who can participate, so she’s been active with the Project Blossom Foundation. I’ll be helping more with fundraising for all three nonprofits this year to better empower women and mentor girls.

The last project in the works is one I had a vision of and that we’re working to put together. We’re hosting a Rekindle Your Relationship event. I’ll speak on effective communication in relationships as a licensed professional counselor, and we will also have a comedian to perform and offset me. The event will take place this spring (2020). And of course, I’m still creating more online parenting courses located on my website under “Just in Time” tab. Finally, I am booking keynote speaking engagements for summer and fall 2020.

Connect with Glendora and Dvine Systems GA below. 

Website: http://www.dsgeorgia.com/

Instagram: @glendoradvine

Facebook: DvineSystemsGA

Book: amazon.com/author/glendoradvine 

Also look for Glendora as a guest on Theories & Thoughts Podcast March 10, 2020, as we’ll be discussing effective communication in relationships.