Many nonprofit organizations are born out of need and many are created from painful personal experiences. When I met Leshundra Robinson she asked me to speak at an anti-bullying conference she organized for the nonprofit she co-founded, UCAN of Memphis. I was blown away by her passion and compelled by her story to do more myself. […]
When I made the decision to become a professional speaker, I was excited that I qualified to become a member of the National Speakers Association (NSA). One of the most amazing connections I made through NSA was with this woman with a speaking voice that I admired. Through a Mastermind over Zoom, I got to […]
Living to 100 is an incredible feat especially if you make it there healthy, happy, and in your right mind. On March 10, 2022 Agnes Idella “Dorothy” Jones Owens celebrated her 100th birthday. I was honored to be with her at midnight, and this is what she said. With a Roaring 20’s/Great Gatsby/Harlem Nights theme, […]
When I entered college in 1997, I quickly got involved in various organizations including the Student Ambassador Board. This is where I interacted with the university president, Dr. Shirley Raines. Surprisingly, I didn’t pay much attention to the fact that we had never had a female president. I think the 18-year-old me didn’t even consider […]
When I published my memoir in 2010, I had no idea the opportunities (and challenges) it would bring to my life. One of the first was when I received the Women of Achievement Heroism Award. That’s when I met one of the founders of Women of Achievement and someone I would soon grow to admire, […]
It’s amazing the people you meet along your journey. For me it’s been especially interesting meeting people who use their life’s challenges, like I do, to help others. Joyce Kyles became my instant friend the day we met. She has an incredible story of surviving domestic abuse as well as being a mother among other […]
When I began my journey as an entrepreneur, I met this big, “chocolate” guy (Phillip Ashley Rix) covered in tattoos. Someone told me he was the chocolate man, and I soon learned that he was much more. Going from an ordinary college student who knew nothing about chocolate to become a well-known designer of the […]
No, I did not get excited when I signed up for an 8 am history class every Tuesday and Thursday morning. I was not a morning person nor a history-lover. Although Dr. Beverly Bond did not make it easy for me to get up early, she did make me enjoy and appreciate history. At least […]
The older I get the more I appreciate and want to know more about the history and the people who make an impact on it. One of those people is Coach Shirley McCray – the first female coach of a men’s football team. A fellow University of Memphis graduate and one of the people who […]
