About us
Where We Started
In the summer of 2021, Torie J. Anderson-Lloyd gathered a small group of women at Belle Isle Park in Detroit. No sponsors. No stage. Just a blanket, some snacks, and sixty Black women who needed a place to exhale after a year the world spent trying to survive.
That gathering became Black Girl Picnic and it hasn't stopped growing since.
The Growth
What started as one woman's picnic blanket is now a 758% growth story in its second year alone and a movement that hasn't lost its roots even as it's scaled.
Who We Are Now
BLK GRL Conglomerate is a Detroit-based nonprofit advancing the wellness, literacy, and economic power of Black girls and women. We've grown from one picnic into four interconnected programs over 4,175 touchpoints across our community to date:
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Black Girl Picnic™:Our flagship gathering, now heading into its 6th year
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1000 Books for Black Girls : In 2025 we placed 745 books placed in the hands of Black girls and women, paired with personalized literacy support
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Black Girl Bus Ride: A mobile healing experience to Lake Michigan with licensed therapists on board
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Black Girl Bonfire: An intimate extension of the Picnic weekend, built for deeper connection
What Hasn't Changed
We still believe what we believed at Belle Isle in 2021: Black women don't need saving. We need space to rest, to remember, to rise. Every program we build protects that space, and grows it.
2027 Project Goals
Our Grandmothers Garden
Healing Communities
A living sanctuary honoring the wisdom and labor of the women who came before us. Our Grandmother’s Garden teaches wellness, sustainability, and storytelling through intergenerational workshops that root healing in land, legacy, and literacy.
Banned Books in The Park
Summer Reading Series
A summer reading series that turns resistance into ritual. Banned Books in the Park brings families, educators, and young readers together to reclaim stories that were never meant to be silenced. Each week, we gather in Detroit’s green spaces to read, reflect, and restore exploring literature by Black and Brown authors whose words challenge, heal, and ignite. With blankets, books, and belonging, we transform public parks into classrooms of freedom..