Today we’d like to introduce you to Nichola Cotto.
Hi Nichola, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I started by knowing that I wanted to make a difference in the second half of my life and not focus on making a paycheck. My husband gifted me a camera, and I began to learn digital photography. I then found a place to volunteer and give back, as I knew, through my church home Celebration. That’s really how it all began. It was then I knew that whatever it was, it had to be with a camera in my hand. I set up a makeshift photography studio in my home and just started taking pictures of whoever I could. I had a friend come into town after traveling across America to bury her mother after passing from breast cancer; she stopped in as she was driving through Texas. I asked her if she wanted to spend the night, which she did, and it was just a great time catching up. That evening I asked if I could take pictures of her, she was, of course, ready and willing and was about to get dressed up with makeup, etc. I asked if I could take pictures of her mastectomy scars. She had tested positive for the BRCA genes and undergone a bilateral mastectomy and hysterectomy. She was more than willing to share, so off we started taking photographs. My friend had a huge butterfly tattoo on her back, and her surgery’s scars intersected with those. The butterfly’s wings lay perfectly on top of those scars, one of the most beautiful things I had ever seen.
I knew I had to share it, so I asked permission to share it on Facebook, to which she again obliged. I called that night and asked if any woman or girl had a scar or a mark or a trauma they had, whether physical or hidden. I want to photograph them for free. The following day my friend left; I got my cup of tea and opened my email. My inbox was full of women reaching out to share their “Scar Stories” It was at that moment that We Are Not Broken was born. I read everything I could get my hands on about nonprofits. I knew it had to be a nonprofit. Shortly after that, I began the paperwork to incorporate and then filed my IRS paperwork. It took 21 days for me to receive my IRS determination letter for We Are Not Broken. Four years later, We Are Not Broken is a registered trademarked nonprofit with another trademark pending and copyrights pending. We published the first coffee table book of scars, volume one, and have told over 500 stories. We Are Not Broken has featured scar stories from Africa, Canada, and the United Kingdom. We have a National and International We Are Not Broken day, and we have won nonprofit of the year for 2022. To this day, my inbox stays full.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has only sometimes been a smooth road, but how could it possibly be? Your biggest lessons are learned through the pain of struggles. The most challenging initially was convincing people that I am truly passionate about scars and all they represent. I learned early that changing people’s perceptions about scars would be a long road. However, what I decided to do was not change people’s perceptions, but I needed to create a new culture around scars. A culture that would ask a woman with a scar, “Wow, your scar is a beautiful representation of strength. Would you please share with me your story of how you overcame it?” rather than hearing, “look at the scar; what’s wrong with her?” I welcome the struggles. I welcome failures. I welcome the pain; I can only learn the strength and enjoy the triumphs.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
What is beautiful? What is desirable? What is a flaw, and who determines that there is a flaw? These questions have answers, but the truth is usually not found in them. We Are Not Broken was started to combat this enemy that preys on the female population of our world. Our society has taken marks of triumph – the signs of victory – and turned them into something shameful. Women have been brainwashed into thinking we need to hide, cover up, remove or alter, often through a painful procedure. The hidden emotional scars of rape, child loss, and abuse are unseen, yet the turmoil and self-inner torture are as real as it gets. A woman with only one breast, because she lost the other to a mastectomy in her battle with and victory over breast cancer, is immediately told when and where she can have a “rebuild” rather than praise her appearance as healed, whole, and beautiful.
The girl who has a scar on her body because of a life-saving operation is quickly sent to a plastic surgeon because instead of viewing her scar as a beautiful memory of a life-saving intervention that kept her here on this earth to live a full life. It is seen as something that needs to be “fixed” or “altered” to make her more appealing. For women or girls with any scar, whose appearance is anything other than the airbrushed, unflawed people plastered on every cover of nearly every magazine in every store. And for the sweet girl who feels she doesn’t compare to the girl on YouTube, Facebook, or Instagram who seems so perfect, We Are Not Broken was created for you. Women endure the pain, suffering, and loss of self-worth and self-esteem every day while trying to live up to the standard that the world sets before us are unimaginable, yet they are very real. And that Is why We Are Not Broken exists.
What is that we offer? We offer a safe space for women to come in and be served, for a woman to have her hair and make-up done by a professional hair and make-up artist to have a professional photo shoot in a professional studio, and a video shoot by our amazing 5 time Emmy award recipient videographer. In the very near future, we will be offering professional counseling services to all our women who are still processing their trauma. All this is done at no cost to the women we serve. We want to proudly share those “Scar Stories” to empower others to do the same.
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
How much your story matters. Everyone has a “Scar Story” everyone. Freedom comes when we share them.
Contact Info:
- Website: wearenotbroken.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wanbscarstories/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wearenotbroken2019
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/WANB2019
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/wearenotbroken
- Other: https://linktr.ee/WANB2019
Image Credits
Image credits to Todd White & Nichola Cotto
