Ms. Afrika Abney - Consultant Branding Blog

  On December 9, 2023 three young ladies from the Washington Metropolitan Region were chosen by a team of prestigious judges as recipients of the prestigious Discovering Me Scholarship Award presented by Esther Productions Inc. in partnership with The Black Student Fund. The winners were selected based on the quality of their essays that told of the challenges they have faced related to growing up without the presence and active involvement of their fathers in their lives. The young essay writers also discussed how they have come to build resilience and to appreciate their own value and independence. Kenya Thomas received the top prize of $1500.00 for her heartfelt essay. The newly established $500 President's Award also was later given to Simaya Hammond. In the middle school category, cash awards were presented to Vanity Ewart-Smith and Makda Nana; they were 1st and 2nd Place winners respectively, receiving more than $700 in total prizes. Kariana Bates received an Honorable Mentio

  THE HONORABLE ANITA JOSEY-HERRING, chief judge, Superior Court of the District of Columbia, was appointed to the bench in November 1997 by President William Clinton. She was selected as chief judge on July 21, 2020 and was sworn in on Oct. 16, 2020. She has had a very distinguished career. As an Associate Judge, she served in the Family, Civil and Criminal Divisions of the court. In 2000, Judge Josey-Herring was appointed by the Chief Judge to serve as the Deputy Presiding Judge of the Family Court and later served as the Presiding Judge of the Family Court from 2006 through 2008. During her service in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, Chief Judge Josey-Herring has led numerous initiatives to improve the quality of justice and service to litigants and attorneys alike. She led the highly regarded Family Treatment Court Initiative that provides drug treatment and social services to mothers charged with neglecting their children due to substance abuse. Additionally, Chief

  Join Esther Productions, Inc and Black Student Fund for THE DISCOVERY SUMMIT AND SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS CEREMONY held on Dec. 9, 2023 at 125 Michigan Ave. NE, DC 20017, from 10:30 to 1pm. Great interactive workshops, food, door prizes and more. Each year since 2019, Esther Productions Inc. has presented a unique scholarship essay contest that invites young ladies aged 13 through 18 to submit essays that tell their stories about growing up without their fathers and building their resilience as they face that challenge. A group of accomplished artists, educators, clinicians, business and civic leaders serve as judges. Cash prizes ranging from $1500 to $500 are given to the top winners during the Discovery Summit and Scholarship Awards Ceremony. This year, the event is presented in cooperation with The Black Student Fund. The summit will have interactive workshops, food, door prizes and more. Register at https://www.estherproductionsinc.com/events-1/the-discovery-summit-scholarship-awards-c

Free Copy of Fathering Words by Mr. Ethelbert Miller on October 14th as he is the special guest for  Me, Myself & Our Story: The Art of the Memoir, Part 1 scheduled for October 14th from 10 am to 2 pm. It is presented by Esther Productions, Inc and The Institute for African American Writing.  There'll be light refreshments and a prize for the best draft essay as voted by participants. So, you won't want to miss this. REGISTER NOW. (Seating is limited to 10) -  https://www. estherproductionsinc.com/ events-1/me-myself-and-our- story-the-art-of-memoir-part-1 "Moving beyond the loss of both his father and brother, E.Ethelbert Miller tells the story of how love survived in his family. When Miller was about ten years old, his father told him how he considered leaving his mother. Years later, now a writer and a father, Miller looks back on the simple remark and how it shaped him. In Fathering Words, Miller explores his development as an African American writer, the responsib

 DISCOVERING ME…WITHOUT PERSONAL ESSAY CONTEST presented by Esther Productions Inc. & The Black Student Fund opens on September 1, 2023 for submissions. Submit your essay Sept. 1 through Oct. 31, 2023 WIN CASH AWARDS (Up TO $1500), GIFT CARDS, PUBLICATION YOU CAN HAVE IT BUT YOU HAVE TO SUBMIT YOUR ESSAY FOR A CHANCE TO WIN! Questions please send them to estherproductionsinc@gmail.com. Discovering Me…Without You Essay Contest was launched in 2019 by the Fatherless Daughter Empowerment Project, a division of Esther Productions Inc. The essay contest is designed to educate the public about the importance of fathers in the lives and development of girls and women. Nationally, more than 24 million children are growing up in homes without their fathers. In the Washington Metropolitan region at least 60 percent of homes are single parent households, many of them headed by women. The contest is intended to provide a platform for some of those children, particularly fatherless girls. Most

  Greetings, I hope all is well with you. I would like to inform you DR. LINDA NIELSEN's conversation with jonetta rose barras has been postponed.  If you can please share the attached flyer with your community, I would greatly appreciate it.  Thank you

  Greetings, I hope all is well with you. I would like to inform you that  FINDING YOUR WAY FORWARD: Creating A Reconciliation Plan for You an interactive workshop with jonetta rose barras  has been cancelled.  If you can please share the attached flyer with your community, I would greatly appreciate it.  Thank you​

The streets of my own hometown have been very difficult to take long leisurely walks and stop to enjoy a scene or two without wondering if I am going to be subjected once again to gun violence? So, I spend my time expressing my pain, anger and experiences of growing up as a black girl listening to guns and fireworks. These sounds creating endless nightmares and terror. I pick up my paint brushes sometimes and other times, I create my paintings with my fingers and hands. Two years ago, I created numerous paintings. One of which entitled: Rage. Rage. January 1, 2022. Acrylic on Canvas. 16 * 20. Afrika Abney Before, I created my abstract painting on canvas entitled: Rage. I first applied white paint on the canvas. I entitled it rage because as a professional visual artist, I believe it is important to incorporate emotions and expressions into my artwork to let the audience know how I feel about my community, society and world. Each color that I chose to create my painting has a meaning.

THE NATIONAL RECONCILIATION WEEK For Self & Family June 9, 2023 12:30-1:00 pm A Virtual Event FINDING YOUR WAY FORWARD: Creating A Reconciliation Plan for You an interactive workshop with jonetta rose barras Ms. Barras is the The founder Esther Productions Inc. and The National Reconciliation Week: For Self and Family. She has been leading reconciliation coaching workshops since 2004. Ms. Barras is also an award-winning author of Bridges: Reuniting Daughters and Daddies (Bancroft Press 2005) and Whatever Happened to Daddy's Little Girl: The Impact of Fatherlessness on Black Women (RandomHouse 2000). https://www. estherproductionsinc.com/ events-1/the-national- reconciliation-week-for-self- and-family-june-9-2023-2023- 06-09-12-30   "The National Reconciliation Week advances the concept that leading a healthy centered, balanced life requires being in touch with our emotions and understanding the effects they may have on our physical, mental and spiritual health. The process

 ESTHER PRODUCTIONS INC. presents ESTRANGEMENT & RECONCILIATION: The Wound and The Balm a conversation during   THE NATIONAL RECONCILIATION WEEK For Self & Family June 5, 2023 12:30-1:30 pm   A Virtual Event The challenges of life can sometimes cause devastating traumas that can lead to personal or familial estrangement. What does estrangement look like? When we separate, losing our way, how do we find the path back to wholeness? How do we reconcile? Join us for the answers to those and other questions during a provocative, informative and entertaining conversation during a week of live and previously recorded activities. ESTRANGEMENT & RECONCILIATION features psychotherapist Dr. Nic Hardy, Tasha Smith, LCPC-S, LPC, CCTP-II, CTMH, CMC-1, NCC and Myla Johnson, Trinity University Washington senior whose award-winning research project focuses the impact of father absence and African American boys.  IT'S FREE. REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED at    https://www. estherproductionsinc

 THE NATIONAL RECONCILIATION WEEK For Self & Family June 7, 2023 12:30-1:00 pm A Virtual Event DR. LINDA NIELSEN in conversation with jonetta rose barras You’ve heard the tales: Dads’ incomes matter more than fathering. Dads’ parenting styles can’t measure up to Moms. Dads don’t have much impact on children’s cognitive skills. Are any of those statements true? A foremost international authority on father-daughter relations, shared parenting and separated parents,  Dr. Nielson, professor at Wake Forest University, will discuss her most recent book—MYTHS AND LIES ABOUT DADS: How They Hurt Us All (Routledge 2023). This groundbreaking publication slays more than 100 of the most damaging beliefs about fathers—some of them may be at the root of the estrangement in your family. Dr. Nielsen explains how to put an end to such harmful tales, allowing everyone—children and parents—to free themselves and their relationships.  JOIN US FOR A PROVOCATIVE AND INFORMATIVE CONVERSATION IT’S FREE! RE

  When I was a student, I learned about oil painting. Oil paint requires proper ventilation and takes longer to dry. The above features demonstrates Ms. Afrika Abney working on creating her oil paintings on canvas. Rocky Roads. Oil on Canvas. 16 * 20. May 1, 2023. Afrika Abney Rocky Roads is about the imbalance that humans face when traveling from one place to another place. Soft gradients of pink blend together with hints of yellow and purple, creating a calming and dreamy effect.  The use of subtle variations in hue and shading adds depth and dimension to the composition.

  “A star becomes a sun, under the pressure of darkness.”-  M. R. Noble "Some thought magic came from the mind, others the soul, or the heart, or the will."-  V.E. Schwab I created Dark Magic based on how some people use magic for their own personal agenda or some spiritual purposes. While others do not have a purpose for magic at all. What is the meaning behind dark magic? Dark magic symbolizes how some people want to have the power of humans. This creates an overwhelming sense of imbalance. Dark Magic. May 12, 2022. 14 * 18. Acrylic on Canvas. Afrika Abney

Please join Ms. Lesa Warrick and other members of Kaleidoscope Writing Collective at Women Blossoming.  Kaleidoscope Women's Writing Collective, a diverse group of poet and fiction writers at various stages in their career. They released their first book this year "Women of Color Reflecting on Life." LESA WARRICK is a proud mother of one son, Courtney Jr. (CJ), but she mentors and pours into the lives of young people daily. She is a National Board-Certified Exceptional Needs Teacher who enjoys working with children of all ages, but her passion is working with students with special needs. She also has a passion for teaching young people about empathy and compassion through civic engagement and service-learning projects as she believes in blessing others so that her life can be blessed. During her personal time, she loves listening to gospel music, journaling, volunteering, walking, and traveling. Ms. Warrick credits much of her personal growth to her strong faith and the

  Kaleidoscope Women's Writing Collective, a diverse group of poet and fiction writers at various stages in their career. They released their first book this year "Women of Color Reflecting on Life." Sharon Burton, Kanimozhi mv, and Betty Nyangoni are among the members scheduled to appear reading new and published works at 4:00 pm. (an open mic will follow from 4:30 to 4:45 pm) SHARON BURTON is an artist, poet, and creativity coach based in the Washington, DC area. She is a visual artist whose preferred medium is collage and mixed media and has exhibited her art in galleries, art venues and other settings across the country since 2007. Her work can be found in private collections in Atlanta, Washington, DC and other places across the country.   In 2018, she started writing poetry as a form of creative expression after dealing with a life lesson. In 2019, she compiled a chapbook of 35+ poems which she self-published for her friends and family entitled Moon Rising in Capri

MEET ADDISON SWITZER at WOMEN BLOSSOMING  ADDISON SWITZER is a professional actor who has been on most of the local stages, including Arena, Shakespeare Theatre, African Continuum Theatre and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. He has appeared on popular television programs like The Wire, and SWAGGER. Mr. Switzer has most recently been seen with Julia Roberts, Matt Damon and Don Cheadle in The Kennedy Center Honors Awards in Washington, DC. Mr. Switzer is also co-chair of the board of directors of Esther Productions Inc. and its visual director. A native Washingtonian who currently resides in Cheverly, MD., Mr. Switzer is president of Buckwildmedia.com at 4:00 pm during the Women Blossoming Celebration will present an original dramatic monologue. Esther Productions, Inc presents Women Blossoming: A Traditional Tea & Celebration to Inspire and Empower May 06, 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM EDT Trinity Washington University 125 Michigan Ave NE Washington, DC 20017, USA IT'S F