2015
Scholars
Left to Right: Annika Lars, Cameron Henderson, Madison Triplett, Braxton Williams, Savannah Sinclair, Jon-Rene Glover, Michaela Jordan and Logan Patton
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Fashionetta 2015 Was Unforgettable
Left to Right: Madison Triplett, Kristina Smith and Joan Williams, Mother of the Year
the Pasadena Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. sponsored its 27th Annual Fashionetta Salute to Mothers and Scholarship Recipients Luncheon and Fashion Show at the Glendale Hilton. The room was packed with many guests dressed for the occasion which truly was ‘A Grand Affair.’
Guests were dressed to impress as they shopped, bid on the Silent Auction items and socialized. The vendors came prepared to sell with unique, well-priced merchandise. The ladies around the room stepped out and made statements with their hats and fascinators. Aundrae Russell with KJLH “Spread the Word” was the Master of Ceremony for the day. He was pleasant on the eyes for the many women in the room and entertained everyone as he moved the program forward. During the day, seven Scholarships and one Book Award totaling over $12,000 were given to eight college bound graduating seniors from the San Gabriel Valley. These students represented John Muir, LaSalle, Harvard-Westlake, Polytechnic, Marshall and St. Francis High Schools. These students are headed to colleges across the country. Everywhere from New York and Harvard Universities in the East to Kalamazoo University in the Midwest to UC Santa Cruz, University of Oregon, Loyola Marymount and UCLA here in the West. These awardees will use the scholarship monies to pay for books, tuition, housing or transportation. The women of AKA are proud to help these student achieve a higher education and help move them down the road to success in life. Mrs. Joan Williams was honored as the Mother of the Year. Joan Williams was Miss Crown City 1957. If you know the story, she didn’t get to ride in the Rose Parade in 1958 like previous and post Miss Crown City’s because the City of Pasadena figured out that she was black. When the women of the Pasadena Chapter of AKA learned of her story, they wanted to honor and make her day special. In order to help achieve this goal, the 1985 Rose Queen Kristina Smith and the 2015 Rose Queen Madison Triplett crowned Joan Williams and presented her with a beautiful bouquet of roses. She then walked the runway with her granddaughter while a presentation scrolled on the screen, Nat King Cole’s ‘Unforgettable’ played in the background and the room gave her a standing ovation filled with love. The program continued with a Fashion Show that featured clothes from the Velvet Monkey and the Dena Burton Collection. There was also a scene that focused on the creative hat designs of Arturo Rios. Clothes from vendors like Hazelz Bags and Foo Foo Fashions were also highlighted during this fun show that had something for everyone. The models varied in ages and sizes so guests could easily envision themselves in these items. Needless to say, the vendors were very busy after the fashion show as guests shopped and took home many of the things that they had seen on the runway. It was a fun day for all that attended and the monies raised will be used to give future scholarships and care for the costs of the Programs of the Pasadena Chapter of AKA. Some of these programs are the Annual Health Summit, the Scholarship Workshop, Sister Chat and more. The Pasadena Chapter of AKA thanks everyone that attended. If you want to make a tax deductible donation to support the programs, you can go to the Pasadena/Altadena Ivy Foundation website at thepaif.org. |