25 Women to Know, 5 Young Women honored as pledges pour in for new Club 25 scholarship
The pledges poured in as the tears flowed out.
A celebration luncheon for the 2024 Class of the Tallahassee Democrat's 25 Women You Need to Know and the 5 Young Women to Watch Thursday became a remarkable display of generosity and commitment to the education of future women leaders when over $11,000 in pledges was raised in the room for a scholarship for the student winners and future honorees.
The event was organized by Club 25, the alumni group made up of almost 500 women leaders who continue to meet to donate resources, time and expertise to our community.
The Democrat has been highlighting women leaders in the community for the last 18 years.
"The women you’ll meet or be reacquainted with today often serve on the front lines. Other times they lead from behind, " Democrat Editor William Hatfield told those gathered at the Tallahassee Community College's Innovation Center downtown. "But each of their contributions make Tallahassee a better place to live, work and raise a family."
The event, which was catered by LUXE Personal Chef & Catering Services LLC and Sonya Scott, concluded with Kingdom First Realtor Christic Henry, the president of Club 25, announcing an inaugural scholarship for the five student winners. The scholarship began with a $1,000 donation from Henry and $250 from Katrina Rolle, President and CEO of the Community Foundation of North Florida.
During the presentation, Tallahassee City Commissioner Curtis Richardson raised his hand and said he wanted to make a $500 pledge in honor of his two daughters, past recipients of the Five Young Women to Watch, who have become the first Black sisters from Florida to attend the U.S. Naval Academy.
What followed was more raised hands as former 25 Women winners and business leaders added contributions ranging from $100 to $1,000. Tallahassee Rep. Allison Tant bounced around the room recording the pledges. When the speeches were done and the faces dried of tears, the new scholarship had raised $13,500.
Henry told the Democrat afterward she was "overwhelmed and amazed" by the response.
"It was the most organic and emotional outpouring of generosity on the community level that I have ever seen outside of church, and that is saying something," Henry said. "It started with our hometown newspaper deciding to honor women, and has morphed into a movement to invest in the future of young women throughout our region. That is the definition of legacy and Club 25 Women is honored to play a role in keeping it alive."
If you'd like to contribute, contract club25women@gmail.com for details.
The complete list of honorees with links to their full profile that ran in the newspaper and online are available at tallahassee.com.
5 Young Women to Watch
Haniah Rose Edwards, Senior at Rickards
Aria Fisher, Senior at Leon
Kavyashree Kadhirvelu, Senior at Rickards
Riley Long, Senior at Leon
Jordyn Synii Sams, Senior at Lincoln
25 Women you Need to Know
Winifred L. Acosta, Assistant United States Attorney
Monique Akanbi, Field Services Director, Society for Human Resource Management
Carrie Boyd, Founder of The Network of Real Estate Investing Women
Anita Bushnyakova, Chief Financial Officer/Director of Finance and Operations of Kids Incorporated of the Big Bend
Hetal Desai, Administrative Law Judge, Division of Administrative Hearings
Dot Trotman Ealy, VP/Market Manager at Cumulus Media Communication
Morgan Evers, Founder, FINACIOUS
Carla Juarez Farley, Manager in Corporate Communications at IEM
Joanne Gallagher, CEO/Founder, SOAR
Kimberly D. Hankerson, Assistant Vice President for University Advancement at FAMU
Delshuana Jackson, Principal, Bond Elementary School
Ashley Leland, Intake counselor with Oasis Center for Women and Girls
Karen Miller, CEO at Tallahassee Lenders Consortium
Chelsea Johnson Muir, Teacher/Coach Godby High School
Teresa Palmer Nix, Owner, Catering With Care, LLC
Dr. Temple Robinson, Chief Executive Officer, Bond Community Health Center
Mary Stafford, Vice President, Senior Business Development Officer at Prime Meridian Bank
Dr. Selika Stackhouse Sampson, Director of Continuing Education at Florida A&M University, College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Shannon C. Smith, Managing Director, The Moore Agency
Dr. Calandra Stringer, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Tallahassee Community College
Josefina "Josie" Tamayo, CEO of Volunteer Florida
Brandi J. Thomas, Attorney/Managing partner at Akbar Thomas Law
Gwendolyn Thomas, Retired administrator/educator Leon County Public Schools
Reenee Williams-Walter, Rapid Response Coordinator, Career Source Capitol Region
Brenda Williams, Executive Director of Tallahassee Housing Authority
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee Democrat 25 Women to Know, 5 Young Women to Watch honored