Meet Evan McCrary of 1010 Healing Center in Pasadena

Today we’d like to introduce you to Evan McCrary.

Evan, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Before I begin, I am going to be honest. Sharing your story in a transitional space or the “in between” is very interesting. This gap space between the person I was, feels very far away and the person I’m becoming is still taking form. However, I’m learning that in order to re-imagine myself, I have to reflect and write out that story to lay the blueprint for the new. 

I have deep roots in the Pasadena area. My family has played important roles in supporting the Black community through the development of a local church. Providing this safe and spiritually restorative space for people to pursue a deeper connection to a higher power, learn about themselves, and connect with a larger community, taught me that they understood how their purpose driven pursuits (prior to moving here) will always be useful wherever you go. 

I went to very progressive schools in the Altadena and Pasadena areas that taught me the importance of community and creating your version of freedom. In each environment, we had the freedom to explore our passions and self-expression while understanding that these pursuits and discoveries are meant to impact the greater good. This solidified the understanding that what is in you (desires, pursuits, passions etc.) weren’t just placed in you for your own journey. They were placed there to be shared amongst the collective to inspire, encourage or educate others. 

This experience was driven home through my participation in the Delta Gems and Academy program lead by the Pasadena Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated. This youth-based program and their mentorship was integral to my development as a young woman. I began to gain a deeper understanding of how important it is for me to utilize my passions and pursuits to further the community goal of liberation and freedom. Through various volunteer projects, speaker series, and other community facing activities, I saw how even at fifteen years old, I had the power to impact change and contribute to the collective. 

Through my family’s encouragement, I signed up for an Historically Black College University Tour. This tour changed my whole life. I knew when I walked onto the campus of Clark Atlanta University that this is where I needed to be. After graduating from high school and the program, I attended Clark Atlanta University (Atlanta, GA) for my freshman year of college and then transferred to Morgan State University (Baltimore, MD) where I earned my Bachelor of Science in Psychology. 

Although simplified above, this transition from one HBCU to another was challenging. I left Clark Atlanta due to the impact of the recession on the school and my family’s concern about how I would continue to fair in the environment. The time at home was rough due to loss in connections, depression surrounding the loss of a planned life and anxiety of the unknown and my future. However, if not for my family, family from Clark Atlanta, and mentors it would have been a lot harder to get back up and moving. I learned then that coming back home was my time to slow down, recalibrate, return inward and shift.

Attending both schools were two of the best decisions I’ve made in my life. They were home and incubators that spurred a learning and unlearning process I didn’t realize I needed. While I was there, I saw Black Women and Men moving in their authenticity, power and moving and shaking, but ultimately doing it from a place of love for their community and the next generation. Both environments provided me with opportunities to grow my leadership abilities, expand myself academically, connect to my history and create my future. They showed me that I, as I currently am, am enough and that there is power in that. 

Returning home from those experiences was its own transitory period. Although I had a lot of support waiting for me at home, there was a period of mourning my college life and friends that were now no longer easily accessible, a stable schedule, my mentors. In this in between period, I had to do the work of integrating these experiences and lessons to shift my perspective. Slowing down, reflecting and leaning on my community showed me that while there was a loss and I have every right to grieve that, I have to use what I’ve learned to continue the pursuit of my purpose. I poured that energy into various volunteering opportunities that ranged from supporting the Delta Gems and Academy program, volunteer for the Annual Young African American Women’s Conference (hosted by the Pasadena Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated) and serve as a mentor for local group homes. These experiences taught me that what I have gained in my experiences did not have to wait until I had a couple of letters behind my last name. I did what I could with what I had and learned so much from the young women I worked with that ultimately impacted my pursuit of social work. 

I attended and graduated from the University of Southern California School of Social Work (prior school name). I will absolutely say that my social work program was not to be taken lightly (lol). Not only are you learning how to work and support others in their growth, goals, and overall wellbeing, but you are learning how to take honest looks yourself. Thankfully, with therapy under my belt (personally and educationally), doing that work in my various classes was an invitation. The experience in this program deepened my pursuit of my why or my purpose. It made every decision, pursuit, paper more intentional….it also showed me how running away from my TRUE purpose would catch up with me.  

Pursuing macro social work (e.g., policy, law, government, etc.) and being in the environments for that work, showed me that this was a piece of that purpose. It wasn’t my driving force or lit my soul on fire. This was devastating because again, so many goals and plans had been built around a plan that I learned now, wasn’t truly or deeply authentic to me. I love everything about the experiences, people, and lessons I learned during my time there, but to have that realization meant I would have to now pivot. If my goal is to be the most authentic expression, liberated, free and aligned person, keeping myself in a space that was a “good fit” but not fully me, was me cutting myself short and off from that divine force. Finding the balance of both experiences and pursuing both is important.

Today, I work for a company where I work in both the Community Relations and Philanthropic arms. In my position, I work both internally and externally with our community partners and corporate sponsors in the development of opportunities and programming. Being a social worker in this environment and position has allowed me to combine all of my experiences into one and truly create an impact in my own community. I’m able to build and establish meaningful, intentional and sustainable connections and programs to support the Pasadena/San Gabriel Valley communities and wider region. 

I realized though that while this work is meaningful, I am a therapist and healer at heart. Through various life experiences and supports, I gained an understanding of my soul journey and purpose and that lead to me learning about energy work and healing. I am a certified Reiki Master (via the Salt Lounge Long Beach) and certified Akashic Record Practitioner (via Teacher training with Houiea Love). With my own personal journey of evolving into my authentic self, I’ve has been able to create a space for women of color to “take off their cool”, find community during their emotional healing, transformation, rebirth and embodiment processes with 1010 Healing Center. My mission is to make space for women of color to get comfortable in the vulnerability of healing using guidance of therapy and energy healing modalities.

So, to make a short story long, my journey has been about change, valuing the “In between” space, and the quest for authenticity.

Has it been a smooth road?
I love the art of reframing and having compassion for your journey, but honestly no. I could talk ad nauseum about the personal and professional challenges (small and large) and their impacts or how navigating through loss, perceived failures, heartbreak, etc. have thrown me into some of the darkest places. My family, especially my grandmothers, their prayers and teaching me about the importance of faith, coupled with practice of calling on our ancestors for strength, love and protection, were the keys of getting out of those places. However, what I’ve learned from my spiritual mentors (Tanai and Wes Holder, owners of Salt Lounge in Long Beach) is don’t avoid the work. Its uncomfortable and experiencing depression, anger, frustration, apathy and a host of other emotions in that space makes it really challenging to continue searching for the light (especially in 2020). But the recalibration, the vision, the perspective shifts, strength, gifts you get in there are * chefs kiss*.

These challenges were only mitigated by journaling, deep prayer, ugly cries to my ancestor’s friends and family, ENERGY WORK and THERAPY (knock out combo). The recognition of that support both local and far away reduced those feelings of loneliness and fog. However, the most important key has been turning inward to connect with self (coming home to self), questioning self, accountability honesty and vulnerability, all together got me out and together. Each time I’ve taken this journey I’ve been able to shift into more authentic and aligned and move from my heart more. I still experience fear and doubt etc. but as the awareness comes in, we move it through anyway and give grace along the way. 

We’d love to hear more about your business.
In short form, with my own personal journey of evolving into her authentic self and working with others to support that healing work, I was inspired and guided to, create a space for women of color to “take off their cool” and find community during their emotional healing, transformation, rebirth and embodiment processes with 1010 Healing Center. My mission is to make space for women of color to get comfortable in the vulnerability of healing using guidance of therapy and energy healing modalities (e.g., Reiki and Akashic Records).

In my own journey, I have used Therapy and Energy (Reiki, Akashic Records, Chakra Balancing, etc.) to journey into self. I thought that not utilizing my social work and psychology degrees wouldn’t come in handy in this pursuit until I realized that using both methods provided a holistic look at self. As much as I will do Reiki on myself or work with my spiritual mentors to see beyond my blocks, I will go to therapy and address the behaviors and thought patterns to shift as well.

As a new business, I am most proud of being able to know that I could utilize all personal, professional and educational experiences to create something for women of color to receive support and be assisted in their healing. They are the magicians of their healing and I’m here to support that magic and transformation.

Is our city a good place to do what you do?
I feel like Pasadena is a good starting place for a business like mine. The benefit of being out of the hustle and bustle of Los Angeles, I think it gives people the ability to relax a bit more because they are able to take the 110 north and get some quiet and reprieve.

If someone was just starting out, I’d recommend really immersing themselves in the area. Get a scope of who is doing what and what’s available and really build authentic connections. You never know where they will take you.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: @emick1
• Business Facebook: 1010 Healing Center (@1010HC) 
• Business Instagram: @1010healingcenter10

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