Despite all our digital connections, we are in the midst of what U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has described as an epidemic of loneliness. That sense of isolation is what Nicole Kenney wants to address with Hey Auntie!, an emerging social support network that is connecting Black women across ages and life stages. The platform “designates a nurturing relationship that may be biological but is more often what we call a ‘fictive kinship,’ emotionally significant bonds not based on blood or legal ties,” Kenney says. “Every child is your child.” 

Kenney is a longtime advocate for the power of intergenerational wisdom as a nonclinical social support network for Black women to remind them of who they are and who they can be. Her documentary, It Starts with Me, was shown at the 2017 Congressional Caucus on Black Women & Girls Mental Health briefing in Washington, D.C.  “Our purpose is to deliver culturally competent support to help Black women thrive, and while I celebrate aunties across the globe, this specific influence is rooted in the historical and cultural lens of the Black aunties from my West African heritage,” Kenney says.

Guided by her own auntie

Nearly a decade ago, Kenney was at a career crossroad that was starting to feel like a crisis. A graduate of Smith College with a masters from Johns Hopkins, the young communications professional may have looked successful from the outside while actually struggling to navigate her career and the world at large.  She knew she needed help but wasn’t sure where to turn and was reluctant to reveal her vulnerability.

“I was 32 at the time and hit a mental health tipping point due to the years of anxiety and pressures of navigating academia and workplaces as a Black woman feeling obligated to uphold the expectations of the Superwoman schema,” she says.  A conversation with one of her own aunties, health educator Dr. Deborah Roebuck, pointed Kenney in a new direction. 

“The last place you need to be when you are in a low place is by yourself,” Roebuck told Kenney before sharing her own struggles to find her way. These stories created a connection that made Kenney feel less alone. And that planted the seed for Hey Auntie!

Accelerating Hey Auntie!

In 2021, Kenney was accepted into a six-month incubator/accelerator to develop her Hey Auntie! pitch for the Well City Challenge, a social impact partnership between Independence Blue Cross and the Economy League of Greater Philadelphia that rewards innovative solutions to health and wellness issues.

Upon winning first place in the competition, Kenney used the $50,000 award to conduct market research that yielded insights about the women most likely to engage with the platform. She was surprised to discover that almost half were over 50, frequently experiencing life disruptions and seeking a chance to engage and give back to a community in need. While many saw Hey Auntie! as an opportunity to teach a rising generation, they also expressed a desire to learn from younger peers.

She received additional funding as recipient of an Innovation Fellowship from CoGenerate, a nonprofit supporting co-generational solutions to pressing social problems. Rather than investing in new technologies, she employed existing website tools and familiar virtual engagement platforms. “Utilizing established technologies simplifies communication and makes everyone one feel included,” she says.

Building the network

A private network available through application, Hey Auntie! brings together Black women of varying ages who would not meet any other way. They agree to community guidelines called “Auntie’s House Rules,” governing norms developed by Kenney. She also acts as an initial “icebreaker” until the relationships become self-sufficient. Members gain access to a biweekly newsletter, can connect in peer-to-peer discussions, and participate in Q & A with experts. They can also engage the private Slack channel for group or one-on-one conversations, and take advantage of a vetted 1-to-1 matching service that unites a more seasoned woman with one who is beginning to navigate a similar season.  

Currently, subscriptions are free, but Kenney has formed Hey Auntie! as a for-profit company. As the platform grows and generates engagement metrics, she will be experimenting with paid membership. “We are also exploring B2B sales with financial firms and insurance companies that have dedicated affinity groups and expect this aspect of our business to become a key revenue driver,” she says.

Awarded the 2021 “Invention of the Year” from Technical.ly, a regional news organization focused on mid-Atlantic tech entrepreneurs and startups, Hey Auntie! currently has about 700 members, many in Kenney’s home base of Philadelphia, one of the country’s most significant West African enclaves. The platform also includes members across the United States and internationally, from England to Kenya.

Without early marketing efforts, the platform’s growth has been grassroots. Numbers are growing in response to Kenney’s frequent speaking engagements and through member word of mouth. “Explosive growth is not part of our ethos: The safety of our community is our utmost priority,” she says. “As a relationship-building business, we need to protect our digital community from messages of judgment, perfectionism, and cyber violence so often directed at women—especially Black women.”

The path forward

Kenney continues to apply to business accelerators and social impact fundraising initiatives. Hey Auntie! was one of 30 semifinalists out of more than 3,000 applications for the 2023 J.M. Kaplan Fund’s Innovation Prize, early-stage support for entrepreneurs with 21st-century solutions to urgent social challenges. It was also a semifinalist in the pitch competition at the 2024 Good Soil Forum, focused on under resourced entrepreneurs.

“Even when I don’t advance to the finals, I’ve won,” she says.  “Of course, I want the additional funding. But just applying puts me in the orbit of people who are deeply encouraging. Sometimes, it’s as simple as being asked thoughtful questions or hearing someone say, ‘I believe in you, keep going.’ Sometimes it’s a connection to a new opportunity.”

Acting on one of those suggestions, Kenney was accepted into the University of Pennsylvania’s PennHealthX SDoH Accelerator. The program pairs students with startups focused on health equity, the first of its kind nationally. “We aim to demonstrate how multigenerational connection and collaboration is a dynamic force for good,” says Kenney. “And why innovators closest to the challenges should be those closest to designing the solutions.”