The Westfield Area Y is hosting its 16th Annual Achievers Fundraising and Recognition Banquet on Friday, March 7th from 7:00 pm – 11:00 pm at L’Affaire in Mountainside. Keynote Speakers for the evening will be Gabrielle J. Williams, Youth Entrepreneur and Angela Meryl, Professional Stuntwoman via video presentation.
Keynote Speaker Gabrielle Jordan Williams is a 13-year old entrepreneur, jewelry designer, author, motivational speaker and philanthropist. She launched her jewelry business, Jewelz of Jordan at the age of 9. At the age of 11, Gabrielle received national recognition for her #1 Amazon Bestselling book, “The Making of a Young Entrepreneur: A Kids Guide to Developing the Mind-Set for Success”. She is now an accomplished speaker and loves promoting entrepreneurship and the importance of pursuing one’s dreams.
She has inspired thousands of individuals across the country and continues to speak to both adult and youth audiences on developing the mind-set for success. Gabrielle loves to give and donates a portion of the profits from her book to her favorite charities. Gabrielle also volunteers as a Youth Ambassador for the Tigerlily Foundation, in which she is responsible for carrying out Tigerlily’s message about breast health, education, wellness and empowerment for girls and women and has been featured on several television stations, news and online publications such as NPR, NBC4, Fox5 News and ABCs Good Morning Washington. She has received several awards and recognitions and was recently a speaker at TEDx Rock Creek Park.
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“Words of Wisdom” Speaker, Angela Meryl, a former model and make-up artist from Willingboro, New Jersey, received her first stunt gig alongside actor Sinbad, in the movie First Kidd. The game changer occurred when she came crashing through a glass table in the opening scene of Kill Bill Volume I, while doubling Vivica A. Fox. That performance garnered industry wide recognition and applause from peers in the business and fans of the film.
Her release of “STUNTS: THE HOW TO HANDBOOK…Secrets From An Award Winning Hollywood Stuntwoman,” has been well received by a long list of media outlets including Entertainment Weekly, The Tom Joyner Show, The Buzz Bissinger Show, The B Smith and Dan Show, NPR’s “Tell Me More,” Black Enterprise Magazine, Essence Magazine, Upscale Magazine, The Philadelphia Enquirer and more. The book thoroughly chronicles Meryl’s experiences in the business. It begins with an accounting of her experience on The Oprah Winfrey Show, which took place during the eve of the finale season.
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The original Black Achievers, now called Achievers, began at the Westfield Area Y 16 years ago and matches youth with achieving African-American and other minority professionals as role models in an effort to raise the academic standards of young people, expose students to diverse career options and inspire them to reach their goals. Achievers also participate in community service activities, celebrate their history, culture and traditions, receive college prep tutoring and essay assistance.
The Achievers program is funded in large part by this Annual Banquet. Funds raised by the banquet go directly to the program and scholarship, enabling youth to participate for little or no cost. The fee for this event is $75 per person. Journal Ads can also be purchased in all sizes and need to be submitted with camera ready art work or business card no later than March 3rd. Please contact Janice A. Carthens at (908) 233-2700 x227 or e-mail jcarthens@westfieldynj.org or Nadya Lawrence at (908) 456-6409 or e-mail nlawrence@westfieldynj.org for advertising details, to reserve your seat or to discuss other ways of supporting the program. Detailed information about the Westfield Area Y’s Black Achievers Annual Banquet can be found by visiting www.westfieldynj.org.
