- So sometimes you meet someone and wonder,
"How the hell did they pull all of that off?"
And that is actually immediately what I thought
when I learned about my next guest.
She's basically a super mom.
Who is as thoughtful with her own kids,
as she is with everyone in her community.
And she also refuses to let anything get her down.
Take a look.
- My name is Brianna.
I'm a single mom of six children.
Actually I feel like a mom of 350 children,
because that's how many kids
attend the school that I work at.
Not to mention all the kids on the sports teams
that I coach.
(guitar strumming)
Last summer I really hit a rough patch
and the bills started to pile up,
and I found myself in some deep financial trouble.
Finally we had to make a decision as a family.
So we moved out of our house and into a trailer.
The adjustment was very difficult for everyone.
We don't know if you or your kids
are gonna even be able to handle it.
There is very little space,
and really no privacy for anyone.
This has made me realize how many friends we truly have.
And the love and support from our community and our school,
has truly been a blessing.
Right now we're just trying
to stay positive and strong as a family,
until things turn around for us.
(audience clapping) - Wow.
Please welcome Brianna Taksony y'all.
- Thank you.
- I mean you have a little army.
You're like a whole band.
- They're kind of incredible. - They're very nice.
- I made those.
- Yeah isn't that crazy?
I think that all the time when I look at my kids.
I'm like, "I did that."
And it was hard and miserable,
and I never want to do it again.
(Brianna and Kelly laughing)
So Brianna,
what got you through this past year?
Cause it's been a rough year.
- What gets me through everyday
are definitely my kids, my mom, my family.
They just keep going.
And every single day is something that we just get through.
And at the end of the day we have each other,
and we love each other
and it keeps you going.
- It's great that you have that kind of outlook.
Where you stay so positive.
But you went from being an attendance clerk at the school,
and now you are leading up sports activities and coaching.
- I do. - How did that happen?
- Okay so years ago,
my kids played youth football,
and cheer and all that.
And my daughter joined the cheer team,
and they didn't have a coach.
So I said, "I'll coach."
I was not a cheerleader in high school.
I've never coached cheer or anything.
I didn't know anything about it.
- Bold. Meet Charles.
(guests laughing)
- So I did a lot of YouTube,
and asking for help from other people around us.
So I coached cheer for a couple years.
And then when my little guy was three,
he wanted to play baseball so bad.
And our league at home,
you couldn't start till you were five.
So I was on the board of little league,
and they said,
"Well there's this division.
"We can start it if you want to head it up."
And I said,
"Yes let's go."
So I started The Spirit Division
for three and four year olds.
That year we started super late.
It was like--
- First of all,
that's remarkable.
We already have enough going on as parents,
and we're working and everything.
And the fact that you're like, "Sure I'll do that too."
- Sure. - That's remarkable.
Let's applaud that and then move on.
- Thank you.
(audience clapping)
- Brianna,
life has changed for you though.
In the package you were telling us
that you had to move out of your home.
Everybody hits hard times.
I know my family hit it several times when I was younger.
And everybody I think can relate to that.
But what is it like?
I mean that's six kids in a trailer girl.
- It's like we're camping. - Where's your me time?
I mean I'm in therapy.
They say, "Find me time."
- So it's crazy.
The quick answer.
My me time,
I go sit in my car.
You have to have a minute to yourself.
So my kids will go for a walk.
They'll call my mom and say,
"Grammy can I spend the night?"
So we all need to take our me time.
- I can imagine the fights though.
Cause I have kids,
and we have a bigger house.
I'm saying they have space to go somewhere,
and yet World War III happens a lot.
- So I really,
really thought that this
was just gonna be it for our family.
It's just gonna be the downfall of our family.
And what I've learned,
is that when you have to be close,
you get a lot closer.
- You have an amazing outlook on life.
- Thank you. - I'm just saying,
a lot of people would just constantly see those hurdles.
And it would hold them back.
Its remarkable.
Well all of Brianna's kids are with us actually.
Including her 13 year old daughter Sienna.
So Sienna,
your mother is incredible.
Is she always this positive?
Or is this for TV
and she's making us all feel bad about ourselves?
Is she always like this?
- There's some rough patches,
but she manages to push through it.
She always has a smile on her face,
and that makes everyone else smile.
- That's a boss right there.
Like holding it down.
- She's gonna make me cry.
- I know.
I'm sitting here going,
"I hope my kids would answer like that for me."
She's nuts.
(Brianna laughing)
- I'm sure they say that too.
- I hope they do. - [Brianna] Character.
We're giving them character.
- Brianna, your community has really rallied around you.
Tell us how that's happened.
- Last summer my boss,
I work with an incredible group of women.
So my boss nominated me for what was called a,
"School Standout."
It was on the news.
We don't have TV,
so I had to Google what that was.
I watched these School Standout clips
of what was on the news.
They honor so many amazing people.
It's all about people that work in schools
and all of the great things that they do
for their school, and their communities.
Just to be considered one of those people was incredible.
So she nominated me back in July,
and then in November,
they came out to school.
They did a story.
It was all really incredible.
Then she,
my boss and the news station,
actually set up a GoFundMe.
- Oh wow. - Yeah.
So people from--
- When they heard you had to move into the trailer?
- Yeah I was really secretive about it.
We didn't tell anybody.
It's very unconventional so I wasn't sure.
So that helped a little bit of people
that didn't even know.
People that were around me that I saw all the time,
had no idea.
Just the love and the support from the community,
and from our school, - Those are your people.
- And our school district.
Those are my tribe.
- Yes that's your tribe. - Those are my people.
- I love that.
All right,
well there are so many people who adore Brianna.
And they wanted to be here to celebrate her.
So say hello to the High Desert School Principal Alums.
(audience cheering)
Teachers. Parents.
(Brianna laughing)
- I love you guys.
Hi.
- Hello.
All right so this is Brianna's former principal Giselle.
Giselle, what do you think makes Brianna so special,
to not only her family,
but the community?
- Brianna you are our rockstar.
You're our heartbeat of our school.
You're our team mom.
And to be able to come into it
knowing that I have someone invested in kids,
and invested in the community,
who's gonna talk those tough talks with the kids.
And knowing we have kids that are pretty excited
when they come to the front office.
But I know that Brianna is part of our team
that's gonna deescalate,
and that the kids are gonna know that they're safe,
and that they're okay.
You're invaluable.
I wouldn't be anywhere without you,
and I just think the world of you.
- I love you. - Wow.
- Isn't she amazing?
- Don't deflect.
Accept the compliment.
So Tenley,
you wanted to say something to Brianna as well right?
- Yes - [Kelly] Go ahead.
- She means the world to everyone at our school.
She makes everyone smile when we walk into the office.
I just think so much of her
because she's there for me,
and everyone every step of the way.
When I was younger,
she would hold sleepovers at my house or anywhere.
And she'll be there sleeping on the floor with us,
whether it's comfortable or not.
And she'll always be there helping clean up the field
for softball or baseball.
She's always there for us.
- [Kelly] That's amazing. - Thank you kiddo.
- We both grew up with single moms.
Single moms already have their hands full.
What do you think?
A single mom with six kids holding down all of this,
plus taking care of the community.
- It's astounding. They told me the story and I was like,
"This can't be true."
Something's fishy.
How can you do coach.
I coached one year of baseball when my son was seven.
It was two hours a week,
just trying to get him to run
the right way around the bases.
I would go home like,
"I'm done.
That's all I can do and I have three kids."
To have these kids who clearly love you,
and adore you,
and you can see how much you mean to this community.
Getting involved in this way goes back to what I was saying
about the adults that plays these roles in children's lives,
are so vital,
and so important,
and so positive,
in such a formative time of life.
You grow older but you carry those memories,
and it can have a special place
that's very admirable.
My hat is off to you.
- Thank you.
- Well the Dwellsy platform
is where renters can find a home.
No matter what type of budget they have.
To help get Brianna and her family settled
into a more permanent home.
Dwellsy is going to pay $20,000.00
towards Brianna's housing needs.
That could be rent for a year.
(audience cheering)
Is that excited?
Will you take it?
(Brianna laughing)