You probably already know Keshia Knight Pulliam. You watched her grow up on TV as the loveable, youngest Huxtable, Rudy, on the hit TV classic, The Cosby Show. Since the series ended, Pulliam has more than made her mark on Hollywood.
From Emmy nominations and People’s Choice Awards to sharing the big screen with A-listers like Tyler Perry and Queen Latifah, the New Jersey native who resides in Atlanta, GA., has proven to be a star in her own right. But what really makes the actress shine isn’t what she does in front of the camera, it’s the work she’s doing behind it.
Five years ago, Pulliam had a calling that she just couldn’t ignore. After taking a step back from show business in order to get her degree at Spelman College, the actress knew that cranking out hit TV shows wasn’t the only thing she wanted to do with her life. “At Spelman, I was an honors scholar, which is a community service based scholarship,” Pulliam told Guideposts.org. “If you’re familiar with Spelman, it’s located in an area of Atlanta that has a lot of lower income neighborhoods surrounding it. I always knew that my niche was with kids and I had always known that I wanted to do my own nonprofit, so I decided to start the Kamp Kizzy foundation.”
That was five years ago. Today, Pulliam’s foundation–which caters to girls ages 11-16 and offers a summer camp that helps young women from all socioeconomic backgrounds empower themselves through curriculum based workshops–is gaining plenty of awareness, and her dream of offering a safe place for girls to grow and discover their own individual power is about to get even more attention, thanks to a new TV series called Changemakers.
Premiering tonight on the ASPiRE network, Changemakers is a half hour reality series that features celebrities who are making a difference and giving back to their community. The first episode spotlights Pulliam and her foundation. She said, “I’m excited they’re bringing on air shows that inspire people and show people that are helping others because you don’t really find that a lot on TV. I hope it inspires other people to see how they can be an agent in their community.”
For Pulliam, aiding her community meant reaching outside of her comfort zone in order to start her own nonprofit. “I just jumped in with both feet,” the actress said. “I knew it was what I was supposed to do and I just went for it. It’s something I wanted to do for a long time and what I’ve found, just in life, when you’re living your purpose and doing what you’re supposed to do, it kind of comes together for you.” From creating the curriculum taught in the camp’s workshops to raising funds and recruiting family members to help run the organization, Pulliam has been hands on since day one. “It’s very near and dear to my heart,” the actress said, “and it just grows steadily every year.”
The camp is now able to host over 100 girls every summer, inviting them for a five day stay on the campus of the Atlanta University Center. While there, the teens attend workshops on topics ranging from body image and social media etiquette to health and well being and the girls get involved in community service projects in order to give back.
Pulliam said that it wasn’t just her desire to help others that launched Kamp Kizzy, faith played a big role in her journey as well. “It’s part of my everyday life,” she said. “We’re blessed to be a blessing to others. That’s something that I know. It’s about how you give back and how you uplift other people. I know I’ve been given this amazing platform and it’s not just about me, it’s really about how I can help others with the visibility.”
Pulliam is planning on using her notoriety in the acting world and her partnership with ASPiRE’s Changemakers series to bring attention to the work her foundation is doing and viewers can expect to see everything when it comes to the behind-the-scenes operations at Kamp Kizzy. “They were there, they got to see Kamp Kizzy in action,” Pulliam said of the new show. “They got to talk to the girls so you’ll get a real in depth look into Kamp Kizzy and what we do.”
Apart from Kamp Kizzy, the actress has plenty of other projects lined up. From working on getting her curriculum in schools to hosting workshops in the Bahamas and starting a boy’s version of the camp called Project James, Pulliam plans on being busy, but the star shared her own secret for staying grounded and fulfilling her life purpose. “I always stay centered with what’s important in my life,” Pulliam said. “I’m very much about family. I meditate daily. It’s all a part of just doing things that I absolutely love doing and moreover, doing things that just feel right. Sometimes you have to quiet yourself to hear the whispers of your angels that are trying to guide you.”
ASPiRE’s Changemakers series premieres tonight at 8 p.m. EST.
