The Jamaican Women of Florida, Inc. (JWOF) celebrates its first anniversary on Saturday, April 19, 2014 with a Reggae/Jazz Brunch and Fashion Show at the Broward Convention Center 1950 Eisenhower Blvd., Port Everglades, Ft. Lauderdale, Fl 33316.
Patrons will be entertained by Jamaica’s jazz genius, Eugene Grey and his five-piece band, known for his eclectic style combining jazz, reggae and contemporary music. Also performing will be songstress Sabrina Williams, and next generation sensation, 11 year-old song-bird, Soleil Rowe. Jamaican-American designer, Hope Blake-Wade of Hope Wade Designs, New York, will introduce her high fashion trend to South Florida with a variety of fashions from her 2014 line.
Tickets for this special celebration are $75 each and can be purchased online at www.jamaicanwomenofflorida.com or mailing checks to JWOF, 3325 Hollywood Blvd., Ste. 206, Hollywood, FL 33025. For additional information, persons can contact 561-320-1391, or jwoflorida@gmail.com.
The anniversary celebration will feature a shopping component highlighting unique products – clothing, jewelry, art, plants and gourmet food items – from a selection of vendors from Jamaica and Florida.
At this event, JWOF will launch its “Powerful Women…Next Generation” Scholarship to a first or second generation Jamaican-American female high school student attending college in the Fall. JWOF is also exploring partnerships in Jamaica for cross-border mentorship of girls in the 2014-2015 year.
In April of 2013, twenty (20) founding members mainly of Jamaican descent launched the women’s group with the goal of mentoring, networking and personal development. The organization used its first year to grow its membership that has now more than doubled to over 50 women. During their inaugural year, the group hosted several events that brought value to its members and the community at large; these included a women’s health and wellness forum, weekly yoga classes; financial workshop, as well as networking happy hour. The event “Ole Tyme Jamaican Gran’ Market” will now become a signature mainstay for JWOF members as this holiday feature brought out a large audience to experience nostalgic moments of Jamaica during Christmas.
All these activities will continue to benefit our community as they have become part of our annual schedule of events, according to the JWOF President, Dahlia Walker-Huntington. She also mentioned that the vibrant women’s organizations have joined with several community organizations to work towards the development of the Jamaican Diaspora in Florida and have donated to needy families in the community.
The mentorship goal of the organization is well underway as JWOF members have partnered with the United Way of Broward County Reading Pals Program focused on attracting, training and deploying ‘volunteer reading pals’ to concentrate on engaging students in the lower-performing schools to encourage and enhance early literacy through active reading schedules.
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