Education is just one of the many issues that parents have to be concerned about. Another is HIV/AIDS education, a subject that some parents find too serious to discuss with their children. Not actress Sheryl Lee Ralph, who is the mother to daughter Coco, 13, and son, Etienne, 16, and who established a foundation devoted to HIV/AIDS awareness.

One of the things that Ralph hopes to pass along to her children is an awareness of the issues around them. Ralph is married to Pennsylvania State Senator Vincent Hughes and commutes between Los Angeles and Philadelphia. Perhaps following in his mother’s footsteps, Ralph’s son, Etienne, has sponsored an orphan child in South Africa through World Vision International. Ralph recounts how her daughter Coco, who may yet be a young diva-in-training, chastised a young man for verbally disrespecting her. She and her girlfriends staged an intervention to let the boy know that his language was unacceptable. ‘I was like, ‘You go, girl! Mommy doesn’t have to pick up the phone. You handle your business!’

Even with her hectic schedule, Ralph stays active at her children’s school and tries to lead them by example. ‘I try to be the best possible person that I can be,’ she says. ‘I try not to cuss out anybody. I believe that if you want to see change, even in your own family, you have got to be the change that you want to see.’

Words transcribed From Ebony/Jet by REAL GOSSIP 101

Scans  provided by Blackcelebritykids(Thanks to CHI-CHI of urban-Hoopla.com)

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