EPIC Kush + EPIC Mission
In 2025, we’re renewing our commitment to making a difference in our communities and maximizing our giveback. We work to incorporate charitable giving and volunteer opportunities into every aspect of our business and company culture. This January, we are proud to announce the release of Epic Kush, a special philanthropy strain created in partnership with Dr. Topeka K. Sam and the Ladies of Hope Ministry, benefiting formerly incarcerated women and their families.
Dr. Topeka is an advocate for criminal justice reform and former federal prisoner. She grew up in Long Island and attended college in Baltimore, where she began facilitating drug connections with her romantic partner at the time. She eventually left school and went to work for Amtrak, until one day an old acquaintance reached out with an offer. In 2013, Dr. Topeka was sentenced to over 10 years in federal prison for drug trafficking charges. After filing an appeal, writing a letter to the judge, and participating in a drug program, her sentence was greatly reduced. Dr. Topeka was released in 2015 and later pardoned in 2020.
Her experience of incarceration in federal facilities taught her that prison and jail are not conducive to healing or rehabilitation, for anyone. While inside, she met people from all walks of life including doctors and lawyers, senators and some folks who had never had jobs. In spite of their differences, everyone struggled with accessing the same things when they got out: safety, resources, and a place to go. Many people leave prison no longer able to continue in their careers, losing licensing and having to start over after decades in their field. Some are released only to find out that their spouses have left, or familial relationships have changed. Folks often leave incarceration in need of mental, emotional, physical, and financial help, and women especially are most vulnerable to this.
Dr. Topeka feels fortunate to have been able to stay with her parents after getting out and wants everyone to have the type of support she received while reintegrating into society. With this new perspective, Dr. Topeka founded the LOHM, the Ladies of Hope Ministry, which is focused on providing direct services, rights advocacy, and community engagement. The LOHM offers support with housing, finances, reproductive health, professional skills, groceries, and childcare, as well as advocating for prison reform and addressing policies that harm people who have been arrested or incarcerated.
We are proud to partner with Dr. Topeka and the LOHM on Epic Kush in order to support a special project benefiting formerly incarcerated Michigan women. Following similar endeavors by Dr. Topeka and Vanee Sykes in New Orleans, New York, and Miami, the team acquired a 30 unit building in midtown Detroit, and are setting up a portion of the units as affordable transitional housing for justice-impacted individuals and families. Proceeds from Epic Kush will go to the LOHM with the goal of providing these individuals with more than just safe housing, but with everything they need to get back on their feet.
The name Epic Kush comes not only from the fact that the kush itself is, indeed, epic, but from EPIC, an acronym created by Dr. Topeka, that stands for Ending Poverty and InCarceration for women and girls. In her words, you cannot end incarceration unless you end poverty first – the poverty of “both your pockets and your mind.” The kush is epic, the mission is epic, the work is epic, and when Dr. Topeka suggested the name, the High Minded team overwhelmingly agreed – perfect. Epic.
When asked the most important thing she wants people to know about her work and advocacy, Dr. Topeka says without hesitation, “Every single woman and girl deserves a safe place to live.” It is incredibly meaningful to her to be a part of this project in particular, she explains, where women have come together to invest in a project to support other women. The building is underway, but the LOHM still needs a lot of support to be able to help justice-impacted families truly thrive. This includes helping provide everything from furniture to security systems, to school supplies to healthy food and toiletries. With every purchase of Epic Kush, you’ll help make these resources accessible to local Michigan families.
Dr. Topeka says it is important to her to work with a legal weed company in giving back to a community that has been so deeply impacted by the War on Drugs. “It’s incredibly powerful that a cannabis business understands the importance of working with an organization that not only focuses on incarceration, but on women and reentry.” While some states have begun to attempt to right their wrongs, she says, there are “thousands of people who are incarcerated on the state and federal level for cannabis, people serving life sentences for weed. They should be free.” Dr. Topeka hopes this campaign will elevate that message, and set an example. She calls on other cannabis companies in legal states to partner with systems led and justice impacted non profits in order to support the communities they profit from.
Epic Kush is available for purchase starting January 6th at the most popular cannabis dispensaries in Michigan, including high quality local names, Timber Cannabis Co. and Cloud Cannabis. Even more epic, Epic Kush will be available in potent weed flower, live resin vapes, tasty gummies, and powerful concentrates. Each purchase of Epic Kush supports Michigan women who are navigating rebuilding their lives post-incarceration. Don’t miss your chance to give back to justice-impacted families while enjoying one of the best weed strains in Michigan! Find out where to purchase Epic Kush in your area by visiting our Where to Buy page.
