Last night I completed the trifecta of events for The Thurgood Marshall College Fund Weekend
. I attended the VIP Post Dinner Reception in honor of the TMCF Staff and the 21st Anniversary Awards Dinner & Leadership Institute Management Team. (Was that a mouthful or what?)
The event was held at The Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers in the Lenox Ballroom.
I had a plus one so I scooped up my girl Deb and we hopped on the D train for the short ride downtown.
I was sporting a purple full length dress by Veronica Lipscomb that hugged the few curves that I DO have...lol. And yeah....I was feeling quite fabulous! We got down to the Sheraton at about 7:15pm (we were 15 minutes late) and after checking in and getting bumped up from table 100 to table 66 we were quickly escorted to our table just in time to catch CBS2 This Morning anchor Maurice DuBois present The Community Leadership Award to Noel Hankin (Sr VP Moet-Hennessy).
We quietly took our seats, poured a few glasses of wine and proceeded to dig
into the beautiful Shrimp appetizer that sat before us. The whole event was a very classy, elegant affair. Actress Nia Long was the next presenter up and while she was presenting my eyes scanned the room and I caught a glimpse of photographer Keith Major and actor Malik Yoba (NY Undercover), I made a mental note to try and get a photo later.
After Nia's presentation vocalist Jon B. came on and played a few selections. He started off with one of my favorite tunes "Don't Talk" but I felt really bad for him....I don't know what the deal was but people began to talk over him and get up and go to the bathroom. You could hear plates clanging and everything. I guess they just weren't feeling him. Dang!
There was a brief pause in the program as the dinner was being served and I used that
opportunity to make a quick run to the ladies room. On my way back, I looked up in enough time to see Malik Yoba do a double take (lol....I love it when that happens!) but unfortunately I didn't have my camera at that moment. A few of the students recognized me and I stopped to chat and pose for a few pictures.
By the time I returned to the ballroom the Jackson State
University Jazz Ensemble had taken the stage and yeah....folks were STILL talking...lol. Rhonda Ross-Kendrick stopped by our table to greet me and to tell me she enjoyed my work on the runway at the Fashion Show Friday. As I was about to sit back down, another young man caught my eye and as is typical of 
me...I stopped him and asked him his name. I don't know what it was but I just saw something in him that made me want to find out what he was about. He reminded me so very much of my best childhood bud the late Thomas Brock Jr. I found out that his name is Jordan and he is a senior at John Jay HS in Hopewell Junction. He introduced to his father (they were both seated at the table next to ours) and we chatted for a while, took a photo and we exchanged contact info. He's quite the little cutie and I loved his energy! He hopes to attend a university in Texas in the fall and I get the feeling that he's gonna do really well.
By the time I sat back down there was a plate of grilled salmon covered with some sort of sauce accompanied by something that looked like a block of quiche (which you KNOW I wasn't touching...yuck!) and a veggie mix. Although it was um....cold (so was Deb's) I had several bites and I found it to be rather tasty.
The awards continued and there was another
musical performance by Tony Rich, who got a much better reception than poor Jon B. did. As we (Deb & I) scanned the program our heats began to race at the sight of the name of the final honoree for the evening....Janet Jackson!!!! When I heard the announcement coming from actors Michael Jai White & Malik Yoba 
baby I grabbed my camera and sprinted to the front to get some really good shots of the Diva!! So you KNOW my heart sank when I saw her mug UP ON THE VIDEO SCREEN accepting her award. I was totally bummed.
Anyway as the awards & the dinner ended we began to make our way into the foyer to find ou
t where the private VIP reception was being held. On the way out I ran into Walter Greene, Photographer Donn Thompson and designer Donna Dove (lol...been seeing those two all weekend!) and on the way up I saw Devon Christopher (Bleu Magazine) on his way down. We checked out the ballroom on the 3rd floor where the general after party was being held. Someone whispered the number of the suite where the VIP's were and we were off!
The first thing I did when we arrived at the suite (besides pose for a photo op) was snag a couple of glasses of bubbly! In the VIP area I met Mekhi Phifer
(who is every bit as foine in person as he appears on TV!) and Michael Jai White.
Deb, Nekeisha and I chatted for a bit in the hallway and we decided to head back uptown home.
It was an amazing weekend for me family!
“Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I'll understand.”
. I attended the VIP Post Dinner Reception in honor of the TMCF Staff and the 21st Anniversary Awards Dinner & Leadership Institute Management Team. (Was that a mouthful or what?)The event was held at The Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers in the Lenox Ballroom.
I had a plus one so I scooped up my girl Deb and we hopped on the D train for the short ride downtown.I was sporting a purple full length dress by Veronica Lipscomb that hugged the few curves that I DO have...lol. And yeah....I was feeling quite fabulous! We got down to the Sheraton at about 7:15pm (we were 15 minutes late) and after checking in and getting bumped up from table 100 to table 66 we were quickly escorted to our table just in time to catch CBS2 This Morning anchor Maurice DuBois present The Community Leadership Award to Noel Hankin (Sr VP Moet-Hennessy).
We quietly took our seats, poured a few glasses of wine and proceeded to dig
into the beautiful Shrimp appetizer that sat before us. The whole event was a very classy, elegant affair. Actress Nia Long was the next presenter up and while she was presenting my eyes scanned the room and I caught a glimpse of photographer Keith Major and actor Malik Yoba (NY Undercover), I made a mental note to try and get a photo later.After Nia's presentation vocalist Jon B. came on and played a few selections. He started off with one of my favorite tunes "Don't Talk" but I felt really bad for him....I don't know what the deal was but people began to talk over him and get up and go to the bathroom. You could hear plates clanging and everything. I guess they just weren't feeling him. Dang!
There was a brief pause in the program as the dinner was being served and I used that
opportunity to make a quick run to the ladies room. On my way back, I looked up in enough time to see Malik Yoba do a double take (lol....I love it when that happens!) but unfortunately I didn't have my camera at that moment. A few of the students recognized me and I stopped to chat and pose for a few pictures.By the time I returned to the ballroom the Jackson State
University Jazz Ensemble had taken the stage and yeah....folks were STILL talking...lol. Rhonda Ross-Kendrick stopped by our table to greet me and to tell me she enjoyed my work on the runway at the Fashion Show Friday. As I was about to sit back down, another young man caught my eye and as is typical of 
me...I stopped him and asked him his name. I don't know what it was but I just saw something in him that made me want to find out what he was about. He reminded me so very much of my best childhood bud the late Thomas Brock Jr. I found out that his name is Jordan and he is a senior at John Jay HS in Hopewell Junction. He introduced to his father (they were both seated at the table next to ours) and we chatted for a while, took a photo and we exchanged contact info. He's quite the little cutie and I loved his energy! He hopes to attend a university in Texas in the fall and I get the feeling that he's gonna do really well.By the time I sat back down there was a plate of grilled salmon covered with some sort of sauce accompanied by something that looked like a block of quiche (which you KNOW I wasn't touching...yuck!) and a veggie mix. Although it was um....cold (so was Deb's) I had several bites and I found it to be rather tasty.
The awards continued and there was another
musical performance by Tony Rich, who got a much better reception than poor Jon B. did. As we (Deb & I) scanned the program our heats began to race at the sight of the name of the final honoree for the evening....Janet Jackson!!!! When I heard the announcement coming from actors Michael Jai White & Malik Yoba 
baby I grabbed my camera and sprinted to the front to get some really good shots of the Diva!! So you KNOW my heart sank when I saw her mug UP ON THE VIDEO SCREEN accepting her award. I was totally bummed.Anyway as the awards & the dinner ended we began to make our way into the foyer to find ou
t where the private VIP reception was being held. On the way out I ran into Walter Greene, Photographer Donn Thompson and designer Donna Dove (lol...been seeing those two all weekend!) and on the way up I saw Devon Christopher (Bleu Magazine) on his way down. We checked out the ballroom on the 3rd floor where the general after party was being held. Someone whispered the number of the suite where the VIP's were and we were off!The first thing I did when we arrived at the suite (besides pose for a photo op) was snag a couple of glasses of bubbly! In the VIP area I met Mekhi Phifer
(who is every bit as foine in person as he appears on TV!) and Michael Jai White.Deb, Nekeisha and I chatted for a bit in the hallway and we decided to head back uptown home.
It was an amazing weekend for me family!
“Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I'll understand.”
No comments:
Post a Comment