If you haven’t already heard about it, chances are you will soon enough. And if you’re a young female, it’ll be great news. Tough luck if you’re male…Stand by – maybe your chance will come.
Young ladies, prepare to be empowered. The Girlfriends Foundation, mastered by Kimtara Amory-Clarke, is here to “empower, educate and enlighten women on their journey to reaching their full potential”.
“It’s about building a network and learning from the experiences and achievements of others,” says the married mother of three, ages five, four and two.
Kimtara, with a vision and passion of assisting others in need, started Girlfriends Expo, the forerunner to the establishment of the foundation with her husband Paul in 2009.
“We felt there wasn’t enough for Girlfriends to do together, that had true meaning and we felt there was a need to create more experiences that brought them closer.
“…A place where ladies could share and learn in a non-intrusive environment. At the end of the day, if you advertise a seminar, your numbers are limited. However, if you bring them to an event and show them a good time while educating them and exposing them to products and services that are unique and fun. We all win!”
Kimtara’s days in pageantry opened her eyes to the difference between a night of excitement and self-confidence: “I noticed that girls would hit the stage and glow, but when they stepped off, there would be tears and questions of, ‘Was I good enough?’
“We need to empower girls and create a more confident society. Not arrogant – confident. They are the future mothers of our nation…Some of them are raising the men of tomorrow.
“Someone has to help them and that’s what The Girlfriends Foundation sets out to do.”
This graphic artist informed that the Girlfriends Foundation was conceptualized to help young women with dreams to achieve their goals.
“Ours is the proactive approach. We want to encourage young ladies out there to make their dreams a reality.”
So the foundation set up the Pillars of Society, a Hall of Fame featuring women living right here in Barbados. Women that you could look up to, talk to and ask for guidance where necessary.
“The Pillars of Society Awards was started in 2009 and held in conjunction with our sister company, Girlfriends Expo.
“Each year since then, we awarded three women who would have made strides in their various fields; ladies who would have influenced the lives of many young people already…women we look up to, and who would assist us on our mission.
In 2009, Girlfriends honoured the late Dame Olga Lopes-Seale, Marvo Manning and Maize Barker-Welch, three women who paved the way for others to take the reins in journalism, politics, acting and philanthropy.
In 2010 the foundation celebrated the arts and saluted Jennifer Sealy, Cecily Spencer-Cross and Indra Rudder.
According to Amory-Clarke, these women not only dedicated their time unselfishly to the arts, but they treated every child that passed through their programmes as their own.
The foundation boasts a membership of 500 “and growing” and is currently building on programmes to encourage more socialising among members. It is working with strategic partners like Divi Southwinds and the Sparman Clinic, to design packages that step up from the realm of group meetings to interactive social networking sessions.
This Saturday, the Pillars Of Society Awards comes off at Divi Southwinds. The list of inductees for the “hall of fame” includes Robyn Fenty (Rihanna), entertainment; Dr the Hon. Esther Byer-Suckoo MP, empowerment; Cecily Reid Sealy, entrepreneurship /business; the Hon. Mia Mottley MP, public service professionals; Karen Meakins, sport; Gaynelle Marshall, media; and Woman Of The Year, Mara Thompson MP.
Kimtara says the honorees were more than receptive to being selected as Phenomenal Women.
“They have been more that supportive all the way. Some were surprised, but they have all been truly honoured to be selected. The title Phenomenal Woman was adapted from Maya Angelou’s poem of the same name, and speaks to what the foundation is trying to achieve with its members.
This is the first awards event that has been separated from the expo.
“This year we felt we should separate the event and give it its own stage where the evening is truly theirs and all the focus and attention was on their night,” said Kimtara.
As far as alliances go, the Girlfriends Foundation works closely with The Youth Advocacy Movement. Both the SAVE Foundation and the Breast Cancer Society have worked with the expo for the past two years. It has also collaborated with the Ministry of Health’s HIV Aids division last year.
“We hope to encourage more women’s groups to join us in the future, so we can all find a way to build together for a common good,” she said.
The Girlfriends Foundation has two levels of membership, which can be accessed through its website www.GirlfriendsFoundation.org. It also has a presence on Facebook and Twitter.
Of its future plans, Kimtara said: “This year is a busy year for us. We have just expanded our reach to Jamaica and The Bahamas, and we are in negotiations with London and Dallas for the staging of Girlfriends Expo.
“It will give the foundation a wider reach as it is our intention to expose those territories to a bit more of what Barbados has to offer.
“The core group of exhibitors we see locally are small businesses with unique product lines, and we want to take a sampling of that with us to each territory we visit.
“The foundation also has a number of project on the cards. The Walk For Change will be our next big fund-raiser, and we want to encourage all Barbadians to join us for that event.” (MH/PR)