Embracing Nature and Nurture
Want to find lifelong Madisonian Jasmine Banks when she’s not on the job nurturing vulnerable young adults at Operation Fresh Start? Head into nature. You may spot her birdwatching in the wee hours of the morning, leading an Outdoor Afro group hike in rugged terrain, ice fishing on a wintry day, or hunting pheasants in a grassy field. “Being outdoors truly is an addiction,” Banks says, adding that she loves “creating a group solely for Black and Brown folks where they feel safe, welcome, and can build community while reaping the benefits of Mother Nature’s embrace.”
Jasmine Banks was born and raised in Madison, the youngest of five girls. Banks praises her parents for their morals and values as well as the high expectations they had for their girls. Three of the sisters reunited after Banks saw a social media ad for a 52 Hike Challenge. “The goal was to hike once a week over the course of a year. For some reason, I thought it would be a good idea to sign up and invite my sisters to join me. We were all in our fifties and out of shape, so who better to do it with and keep me accountable? Over the course of 393 days, we completed 52 hikes and walked over 150 miles.”
Banks wants to encourage other BIPOC individuals to discover how much fun the outdoors can be, so she shares her passion on social media, whether for birdwatching or camping. “I started a hiking collective for Black and Brown folks. I always let folks know the pace of my hikes. They are slow-roll hikes. Hike at your own pace, and no one is ever left behind. It’s an incredibly welcoming space.”
Banks also found a welcoming space in the UW Odyssey Project. As a member of the Class of 2013, she earned six free UW-Madison credits and became part of a community of lifelong learners. “I gained incredible confidence in my ability as a student and writer, and Odyssey reminded me that I could do anything I put my mind to.”
While in the class, Banks read Martin Luther King, Jr. and wrote her own dream: “I have a dream to live my life to the fullest with no regrets, to not only teach what I know but forever appreciate the freedom to learn what I don’t. I have a dream to have the kind of knowledge that sets me free as well as my children and grandchildren. My heart, mind, and soul thirst for as well as thrive off making a difference, whether big or small. I am here for a purpose, and finding out what that is truly is worth its weight in gold. I have a dream that no dream is too big.”
Calling Odyssey “extremely empowering, enlightening, and liberating,” Banks claims it left her determined to use her voice to motivate others to take action. In an essay called “Why Vote?” she described a stranger she encountered at the City Clerk’s office. A middle-aged man with severe physical and mental disabilities pointed to words and phrases on a piece of paper glued to a tray attached to his old wheelchair. “Through his patient communication, I learned the needed information to fill out his ballot successfully. When the time came for him to sign his absentee envelope, panic again began to fill my body. How could he sign the ballot to make it official? With grace and patience, he guided me to his signature stamp. As I sealed and stamped his absentee envelope, he in turn gave me his bright, beautiful ‘we did it!’ smile. I had assisted in making this man’s silent voice heard and his vote count!” Banks’s essay won first place and was published in the Cap Times in 2012, when Obama was elected for a second term.
That same year, Banks lost her beloved mother to cancer and began a four-year journey to find a way to honor her memory. She founded Perfect Imperfections in 2016 after teaching herself how to make soaps, lip balm, toothpaste, deodorant, and other products using natural ingredients rather than the carcinogenic toxins found in storebought cosmetics. Banks was honored with the 2017 Black Business Expo Entrepreneur of the Year and the Madison Black Chamber of Commerce’s Home-Based Business Award. “My mission statement,” she says, “was ‘self-care is a divine responsibility,’ and it came from me feeling as if my mom knew that, after her passing, I needed something to help me navigate my grief.” She used her business as “a vessel to care for people,” helping them heal and be healthier.
Nurturing others also describes her full-time position now as the Deputy Director of Empowerment and Strategic Initiatives at Operation Fresh Start. “It’s truly the best job I’ve ever had,” she notes, explaining that she spends her days empowering emerging adults ages 16 to 24 on a path to self-sufficiency through education, mentoring, and employment training. Previously at OFS, she built and piloted a program called Drive to help OFS youth obtain learner’s permits and driver’s licenses.
When asked what she is most proud of, Banks points not to her work or the awards she has won (such as a 2023 YWCA Woman of Distinction Award) but to her family: “I’m proud that I’ve raised an incredible human being who has, in turn, raised two incredible human beings.” Banks’s daughter works as a hospice nurse; her oldest granddaughter hopes to become a pilot, and her youngest granddaughter is just starting middle school. Last year, Jasmine became a dog owner for the first time and says of Izzy, a Basenji-Collie mix, “I love her to death.”
What advice would Jasmine Banks give others? “Nature is my go-to when I’m struggling. Simply getting outside to walk around the block, sit on your front steps, or make your way to a city park allows you to reap the benefits of Mother Nature.”
