Be The Change: Myriam Kalmogho

The honor of being an ambassador of Africa

When Myriam Kalmogho moved to the United States in 2000 to attend Shasta College, she recognized that many people in her new country would not know much – if anything – about her homeland. She decided, therefore, to make herself “an ambassador for people from Africa.”

While representing an entire continent might seem daunting to some, Myriam sees it as both an honorable duty and a deep delight. “I’m from Burkina Faso, but people will not see that; they will see Africa,” Myriam explains. “For a lot of people, I might be the only African they get to interact with. So I had better be my best! When people hear there is someone from Africa, I want them to say, ‘Oh, yes, I had a good experience interacting with Myriam.’ I want to leave a positive mark and be as part of the community as possible.”

Making a mark with cultural reciprocity

Myriam’s mark on the Redding community, which has been her home since she returned to the North State with her two daughters in 2013, includes founding a nonprofit organization called Reciproka in 2020. Reciproka fosters cultural reciprocity – the exchange of mutual respect and appreciation between cultures. “We’re using cultural reciprocity as a tool for bringing understanding and respect between people, culture and nations,” she says. “You gain from a culture, whether that is conscious or unconscious, intentional or unintentional. At the heart of it, we are all humans and we are really all striving for the same thing.  Our humanity is common to all of us, so how can we really use that and build bridges of understanding, respect and inclusiveness for all of us?”

The ways Myriam’s native and adopted cultures illuminate each other illustrates cultural reciprocity. “I have learned a lot from American culture and it helps me also see the value of my culture and also question some aspects of my culture,” Myriam says. At the same time, she sees how traditions and values she grew up with in Burkina Faso can benefit and enrich the North State. People in her mother country, for example, tend to take life with a little less high-paced intensity than Americans. “I went back home for a visit,” she recalls, “and everyone said, ‘Come on, Myriam, relax!’ Everything is so much nicer and lighter that way.”

A taste of Africa in the North State

While she values the slower pace of life, Myriam’s own pace of life remains busy. On top of founding and maintaining Reciproka, she juggles a full-time job at United Way and full-time motherhood of two teenage daughters. Most of her extended family still lives in Burkina Faso, and Myriam deeply enjoys taking her daughters to explore their roots across the world.

For those who cannot travel across the world with her, however, Myriam works tirelessly to share her experience and learning in the forms of conversation, song, dance, food, stories, art and more. In addition to a number of small events since its inception, in 2024 Reciproka created an annual Taste of Africa event, bringing together an impressive array of people representing the African diaspora. This year’s event has expanded from one day to three (May 23-25, 2025), featuring an Afro Occidental fashion show, dance and drumming workshops, a youth empowerment program, a mini-African film festival and, of course, true tastes of Africa through a variety of food vendors.

All are welcome to join in and learn traditional African dance at the Redding Taste of Africa celebration. Photos by Pamela Newman.

Just in time for Taste of Africa, Reciproka is also opening the doors of its first building – 550 Cypress Avenue in Redding. This physical space will allow Reciproka to host more regular African and multicultural events and experiences, a community closet and youth activities.

Abu Bakr Salahuddin, the imam for the Muslim community in Redding, has known Myriam since her days as a student at Shasta college. Abu applauds Myriam for making this cultural center happen: “She works very hard raising children and doing the work through Reciproka – everything she does works to make the community better. If I were to give a reward for life, it would be to her.”

The rewards of connection and community

For Myriam, the work itself is her reward for life. “Life is really exciting – it’s not boring!” she says with a laugh. “It’s fulfilling. I do things that fill my cup.”

As she fills her own cup, Myriam fills the cups of others with connection and community. Her work reflects her passion for people and her generous heart, eager to share the best of both of her worlds. Through cultural reciprocity, Myriam highlights for the North State the brightness of diversity and the beauty of being human.

Ready to sample some cultural reciprocity? Sign up for the Taste of Africa Pre-Festival Gala fundraiser gala (givebutter.com/PQG4vG), plan a family outing to other Taste of Africa events this Memorial Day weekend, May 23-25 or check out Reciproka’s other upcoming events by visiting reciproka.org/event.