Mother-daughter duo trying to heal Philadelphia community from ground up

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A mother-daughter duo in West Philadelphia is working to heal the trauma in their community from the ground up.

They start at the literal roots at their therapeutic little oasis called Plant and People, a passion project that sprouted out of this stressful year.

"This is a pandemic baby. So we both found ourselves gardening more, planting more, and as a result, we wanted to share that with other people because it was so therapeutic and so healing for us," said Cherron Perry-Thomas, co-owner of Plant and People. "We wanted the community members to see that yes, you too can have beauty, you too can have wellness in your own community."

Perry Thomas and her daughter Amma come from a family of medicinal plant healers.

After a year of unrest, they wanted to create a retreat: a place to heal in their hometown.

Amma came home from school in New York during the pandemic and decided to grow this business here at home.

"The most important place that you can do work at the end of the day is where you come from. And I'm just lucky that I get to do that with my mom," said Amma Thomas, co-owner, Plant and People.

They carry houseplants but also supplements, herbs and nutritional products.

Their goal is to open a Plant and People in every community because they believe everyone should have a chance to heal and find wellness right where they live.