The strength that I have now is not never surrendering, but learning how to surrender in everything.”

Stephanie Miku used to believe that strength meant never surrendering. But after surviving years of abuse and weeks in solitary confinement in prison, she found her real strength after surrendering all that used to protect her and re-building herself from the ground up. She found support for that at Cincinnati Union Bethel, where strong women took her in and lifted her up. She also found support at the Cincinnati start-up accelerator Mortar—her Strong Woman photo shows her at Mortar pitch night, just before she received her first standing ovation as she shared the genesis of her business plans for the future, beginning with her own Caged Bird Ministries.