1st Black-Owned Toddler Shoe Line Set to Make Its Debut With Legacy Retailer

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FIRST EVER BLACK-OWNED TODDLER SHOE LINE SET TO MAKE ITS DEBUT WITH LEGACY RETAILER

Yolandra Rodgers

New York, NY -- Tippy Tot Shoes, founded by Yolandra Rodgers, is famous for its luxury walkers for babies. As the first Black entrepreneur to launch such a shoe line specifically for toddlers, Rodgers will soon be expanding from selling online to selling at major retail stores across the country!

"My inspiration is drawn on the finest shoes for beginner walking toddlers. The foundation that I build today will become a legacy that will last long after me. Our company is growing rapidly while taking the business to higher heights and new-found territory. It's imperative that we evolve with something greater each year," said Rodgers, whose eCommerce store is preparing a soft launch of the Walkers Collection in partnership with a legacy retailer (TBA) starting May 15, 2019.

The debut of the Collection will kick-off in San Francisco, CA. The store name and locations will be listed on Tippy Tot Shoes website soon.

Once Homeless, Dr. Tommy Watson Tells His Powerful Story of Beating the Odds In Biopic Film

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ONCE HOMELESS, DR. TOMMY WATSON TELLS HIS RIVETING AND INSPIRING STORY OF BEATING THE ODDS IN NEW BIOPIC FILM

Dr. Tommy Watson

Nationwide -- Dr. Tommy Watson is sharing his empowering life story in a new film called Resilient that is scheduled to start filming in Charlotte, NC in the summer of 2019. Based on his award-winning book A Face of Courage: The Tommy Watson Story, the film tells the story of Watson's inspiring journey from homelessness, abandonment and childhood neglect to successful Big Ten football player with hopes for the NFL and later a fulfilling career as a school principal and motivational speaker.

Watson's parents were heroin addicts and shoplifters. He grew up in the Five Points area of Denver, Colorado, a crime-ridden neighborhood wrought with gang violence, drugs and poverty. Living in this type of neighborhood would create any number of obstacles and challenges for a young person.

However, Watson's biggest challenges were faced behind closed doors. Watson says that he and his siblings "paid a hell of a price" due to the actions of their drug-addicted parents. Fortunately for Watson, he was able to rise above the odds that consumed his parents, siblings, and many friends.

Producer of "Miracle in Rwanda" Honored in NYC

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LESLIE LEWIS HONORED BY NDABA MANDELA AND HAKEEM JEFFRIES FOLLOWING PERFORMANCE OF THE PLAY "MIRACLE IN RWANDA" SUPPORTED BY ONE HUNDRED BLACK MEN, INC. OF NEW YORK

Theatre Row, NYC -- Following the Friday evening performance of the critically acclaimed off-Broadway play Miracle in Rwanda at the Lion Theater, Leslie Lewis, co-creator and producer was celebrated for her heartfelt dedication to the healing of the Rwandan people through her art and her actions.  Ndaba Mandela, the grandson of Nelson Mandela political leader, and philanthropist who served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, spoke to Ms. Lewis in a pre-recorded video message played following the performance sponsored by One Hundred Black Men, Inc. of New York.

He congratulated her on the great work she was doing and wished her much success with the play. Mr. Mandela, recalled that while both South Africa and Rwanda suffered atrocities in 1994, both countries have made the conscious decision to move from the past in love and peace.

Link to Ndaba Mandella remarks:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1IexjmspqYieuaPhc9X-zTVvWR6Mhwq7x/view?usp=sharing

Hakeem Jeffries, attorney (D) member of the U.S. House of Representatives, representing New York's 8th congressional district in Brooklyn and Queens, honored Ms. Lewis with a Congressional Proclamation commending her commitment to the people of Rwanda and her remarkable talent as an actress, writer and producer.

App to Help Employ Thousands in the Black Community

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ENTREPRENEUR BELIEVES HE CAN EMPLOY THOUSANDS IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY BY EXPANDING HIS FREE APP

Steven A. Williams, founder of the Blue Book Black News app

Nationwide -- Did you know that African Americans are not only frequent users of social media, but also have helped build social media platforms like Twitter into the giants they are today by adopting and adapting them to their needs? This fact comes from Nielsen's 2018 report, 'The Digital Lives of Black Consumers.'

Despite African Americans being big users and influencers of the tech industry, they are not equally represented on its business side. In Silicon Valley, the percentage of Black creatives is minimal at every level. Although Milwaukee is growing a reputation for being a tech hub, this disparity exists here as well.

 Steven A. Williams is working to change that paradigm on a local level. He created the Blue Book Black News app because he recognized the need for Blacks to not just be consumers of technology, but to also create and own the platforms.

The Blue Book Black News app is free to download for users on Androids and iPhones. It currently has over 1,000 users. "Our focus is providing news, resource and entertainment information that is specifically tailored for the Black community," stated app creator Steven A. Williams. "We know that the Black community is heavy users of smart devices," he added. "We connect with them where they are and provide credible and relevant information."

Black Author Gives Women of All Ages a Voice

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NEW MEMOIR GIVES WOMEN OF EVERY AGE A VOICE

Indianapolis, IN -- From magazine articles and social media posts, the world around us is constantly telling women how to look and how to behave. With aspirations of large followings and celebrity-status, many women get swept away by the illusion of success and acceptance.

Often, in this pursuit, they lose their own voices and morph into someone other than their most authentic selves. A new book, No Weapon! My Journey to Win peels back the layers of one woman's quest to find her inner most self and her voice.

Throughout the newly released memoir, she shares her journey to self-acceptance and self-love with the world.

Discover Why This Special Dad And His Son On The Autism Spectrum Created Super Heroes To Learn By

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Led Bradshaw And His Son Jacob Create Super Hero Series To Help Educate Special Needs Kids 

Led Bradshaw and his son Jacob Co-creators of the Jet Jetpulse Comic Superhero Learning Series. Interview by Kamau Austin with Led Bradshaw.

Led Bradshaw is a quintessential father and then some.  His love for his son on the autism spectrum Jacob, and his commitment to help him succeed is also complimented by his concern for helping other children with similar challenges.

Bradshaw discovered a way to use his talent for art and drawing to connect on a profound level to help his son to learn using his love of superheroes.  I was able to get Led to take time from his busy parenting and professional schedule to answer some questions on the innovative and inspirational development of the Jake Jetpulse comic superhero educational series.

Interview with Led Bradshaw 

Kamau: Can you tell us a little about your background and your son's life growing up?

Led Bradshaw: I'm a Brooklyn born comic book artist/writer, graphic artist and Level 1 Teaching Assistant. Art is my life and it presents me with a ton of challenges yet none are more challenging or exciting than being a single father to an amazing 7 year old boy named Jacob.

Ever since I was I a kid, all I ever wanted was to draw comic books or saturday morning cartoons. It was always in my dreams. That's all I ever wanted.

Autism became a part of my life when Jake was diagnosed at the age of four. I created Jetpulse comics by embracing his special interests and pull him into learning.

Jake created the story for Jake Jetpulse through illustrations that he drew and hung on the refrigerator. After school, we'd sit and draw together for 30 minutes everyday.

Kamau: What inspired you to go into developing your comic book series with your son?

Led Bradshaw: before Jake was diagosed with autism, His mother and I noticed that he was having difficulties paying attention and learning in class. He was very self-directed and spent a great deal of time focusing on superheroes. Understanding this subject as his special interest, I incorporated 25 minute art activities into his daily routine.

At first, we focused on understanding emotions with colors. Then using those colors to communicate our mood in pictures. After several weeks of this, Jake started drawing himself as a caped superhero named "Ultra-Jake".

I encouraged him to draw more pictures of Jake and his superhero adventure. We worked together to flesh out the world that his character lives in, his strengths, weaknesses, as well as his allies and villains.

The "Ultra-Jake" character became such a big part of him; So much, that he'd dress up like his character to play. That's when I got the idea to draw the character myself and include his daily homework into the adventure.

Kamau: What is the name of your comic series and some of the leading characters?

Led Bradshaw: The name of our comic book series is "The New Adventures of Jake Jetpulse" with Jake as the main hero. he's joined by his best friends, Julia Santiago and Marrz the Troll. The characters were created to represent the three characteristics of autism.

Julia Santiago is the brains of the team. Her incredible intellect and knowledge of everything technical makes her an incredibly valuable member of the team. She's more into building fighting robots than hanging out at the mall with her friends.

Marrz is a member of a race of beings who dwell in the "Under-Boroughs" of New York City. they're a noble race of trolls who live to protect an ancient suit of armor that, if in the wrong hands, could spell doom for everyone on the planet. While lost and hungry on the surface, Marrz gets in trouble by stealing Julia's lunchbox. Jake helps Marrz return the stolen lunchbox and Julia forgives him for taking it and offers to help the giant troll. This is how they become friends.

Black-Owned Potato Chip Brand Celebrates 3 Years

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FAMILY-OWNED POTATO CHIP BRAND CELEBRATES 3 YEARS IN BUSINESS

Nationwide -- The road to entrepreneurship is a long one, but once there, the ability to maintain can be just as hard if not harder. The Anderson family, founders of Symphony Chips, pride themselves on working together to sustain their business and continue their growth. Dondre Anderson and his two daughters, Amina and Amari, have gone through several obstacles to get to where they are today.

The largest obstacles they've had to overcome were first packaging, then supply chain and finally marketing. Their packaging issue was both the look and then finding the right company to produce their very vibrate and alluring potato chip bags.