Olubunmi Kusimo-Frazier: Inevitable Woman to Watch

There are about 130,000 women in the Charleston, West Virginia, metropolitan area.  The YWCA has honored 107 of them over the last 30 years at the annual Women of Achievement event.  It is statistically improbable that two honorees would be related, and statistically remarkable that Olubunmi Kusimo-Frazier, this year’s recipient of the Woman to Watch award is the daughter of prior Woman of Achievement honoree Dr. Patricia Kusimo—an accomplished and celebrated educator and former director of the West Virginia Center for Professional Development, appointed by now-Senator Joe Manchin.

Statistics aside, it only takes a minute of talking to Olubunmi—Bunmi to her friends and colleagues—to conclude that her recognition is far from an improbability and in fact an inevitability.

Bunmi is a seasoned attorney, unafraid of challenges and opposition.  She’s used to thinking on her feet, having been a state prosecutor, served as a clerk to the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, and led a team of people to reorganize this state’s magistrate court system.  Now, she practices civil and criminal law, protects the rights of indigent defendants who have been accused of crimes, and is participating in an exclusive fellowship to try cases for major corporations all over the country.  From a lawyer’s perspective, there is nothing she can’t do.

As impressive as her career is, Bunmi resists being defined by her profession.  Her father, Joseph, is an engineer and Nigerian immigrant, and her PhD mom is from Miami with Bahamian roots.  Her brother Femi, a former college athlete and scholar, works in finance in New York City.  Bunmi’s life growing up in West Virginia was not your typical Appalachian upbringing, if there is such a thing.  Instead, it was a merging of cultures and influenced by generations of artists and doctors and college graduates.  These factors combined to make Bunmi who she is, but not having solid footing in one demographic can make it tough to forge one’s identity, especially when you are one of two Black kids in your high school class (though I will note that she was her class’s prom queen!).  It’s no wonder that she strived to “make it out” of West Virginia, like so many kids here that never quite felt like this state spoke for them.  But, like so many others, this state pulled her home after finding success at Florida A&M University and then Washington & Lee University School of Law.  And we are lucky to have her excelling in her career, leading community efforts, and working toward diversifying the legal profession here.

Today, Bunmi focuses less on fitting into categories and more on joy.  Her brand of joy involves art, spirituality, community, parenting, and deep-diving into esoteric academic theories.  Her husband, Stuart, is an artist, and if you’ve lived in Charleston long enough you’ve likely seen him on stage performing in community theater or improv comedy.  Together, they have a thriving fourth grader who embodies her dad’s creativity and her mom’s logical reasoning.  

Bunmi is quick to give credit to others when talking about her own success, but she does so without being deferential or submissive.  Her confidence is effortless and refreshing, and the product of hard work, skill, and experience.  As humble and appreciative of receiving this honor Bunmi is, she doesn’t think of her success as award-worthy because, to her, she’s just molding the life she envisions for herself.  However, she knows that she has accomplished a lot already and is capable of great things. This, and everything else about her, makes Bunmi a Woman to Watch.