A native-born New Yorker, Luana M. Graves Sellars quickly discovered that weather wise, she was really “a misplaced Floridian”. Even with her degree in Journalism and Black History, she wasn’t yet prepared to live on Hilton Head Island, one of the most culturally rich and historic areas of the South. But a passion for her Gullah Geechee roots led her to become a cultural influencer and preservationist through her writing which is focused on educating others, as well as documenting Gullah culture, its history, and people.

In 2021, she started the company, Sankofa Communications, expanding into visual media by creating, writing, directing, and producing long and short cultural videos and documentaries.The Founder of the nonprofit(s) Lowcountry Gullah and the LowcountryGullah Foundation, Luana is also a keynote speaker and community activist who is doing her part to sustain and preserve Gullah Geechee culture for future generations.

Sellers notes, “A Greater Sense of Self begins with my own personal journey in uncovering that not only am I a Gullah, and the cultural grounding that’s associated, as well as the genealogy research that led to the discovery, and the incredible, yet unexpected connections that unfolded along the way.”