By Arthia Nixon
Houston, Texas… Teenage siblings known for their philanthropy, entrepreneurial spirit and being MENSA members are now creating a legacy for themselves and other children during Black History Month with the release of a coloring book showing people of African descent in a positive light.
“Representation matters and we decided to launch our book in time for Black History Month,” said Shane and Nigel Mushambi. “We didn’t see a product like that in our local stores so we decided to create one and make it available online.”
At 15, Shane has completed 11 college credit hours, including College Algebra and Engineering. Shane enjoys playing video games outside baking and school, building computers, and researching obscure facts. His brother Nigel is 13 and has also excelled in math, completing pre-calculus in his 7th-grade year. He boasts the highest score in the state of Texas on the Noetic Math exam. Outside of school, Nigel has spent many hours speaking to youth about entrepreneurship and the importance of giving back to their community.
Together, they are mathematicians award-winning authors, public speakers who have spoken to crowds of nearly 500, and co-founders of 2 Bros In The Kitchen, a pastry company which has baked hundreds of cookies to show appreciation to teachers during COVID. They have also donated some of their profits to hospitals in the African nation of Zimbabwe.
Their latest project, entitled ‘Legacy’ is a book they hope will empower youth to see themselves as the kings and queens portrayed not just for Black History Month, but every day of the year. ‘Legacy’ is divided into five sections, encouraging youth to dream, achieve, work, track and learn.
“We have positive, inspirational images of African Americans pursuing occupations uncommon for our race, such as business owners, entrepreneurs, judges, doctors, engineers, and more. It also includes coloring pages with special needs individuals achieving goals,” Nigel and Shane explained. “We also have motivational quotes from past to current African American leaders paired with a coloring page to bring it to life and there are engaging journal pages with thought-provoking questions that each family member can complete as self-reflection. We also have a space there to provide the readers with an opportunity for setting goals and tracking their progress. The most important thing we want people to know about the book is that it is filled with activities that will help them learn about their heritage and the amazing accomplishments of African Americans past and present.”
The brothers, whose parents are from the USA and Zimbabwe, say it is important for youth around the world not just in one country to feel represented. As teen authors, they also hope to inspire others to use their talents regardless of their youth and to not give up even when others think they may not have it in them.
“Quitting is not an option and it is okay to take ‘life breaks’, but keep moving,” they said. “We have been blessed with so much talent. It would be a waste not to use our talents to inspire others.”
‘Dear Legacy’ is available on Amazon and at other retailers. For more information visit www.2brositk.com
