Courtesy of Jojo Friday
Ryann Kress, Ms. Wheelchair Virginia 2020, is pictured speaking at last year's conference.
Even a global pandemic can’t stop Sisters of Change, a local organization that focuses on women entrepreneurs, from holding its third annual Cultivating Relationships Over Worldwide Networking (CROWN) Conference. It is scheduled for March 6 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Unlike the previous two conferences, this year it will be entirely virtual. Additionally, this will be the first time that the conference will take on a global perspective. Because of the expansion in reach, the old name of the conference, Changing Roanoke into One Winning Nation, was dropped and a new, more accurate name was adopted.
The theme for this year is “Resilience. Reflect. Release.”
“It is a conference for women in business or nonprofits who are interested in developing themselves professionally,” Jojo Friday, founder and CEO of Sisters of Change, says. “The day is for people from diverse backgrounds who are interested in coming together and helping other women.”
There will be two breakout sessions that cover a wide range of topics, including mental and emotional health, physical health, business 101 and how to start support groups.
“It’s very exciting as far as what the classes are going to be. They’re going to be taught by teachers who are worldwide. We will have teachers from Belize, Brazil, Australia, Germany and Singapore,” Friday explains. The maximum class size is capped at 40 in order to allow for a more intimate atmosphere. “If people are looking to build and form relationships across a worldwide network, the conference will do that.”
Friday cautions that although the conference will take on an international feel, Roanoke will still be prominently featured. Local speakers will include Trish White-Boyd, vice mayor of the City of Roanoke; Stevii Aisha Mills, author and founder of the BEAUTY From Head to Toe Tour; Shannon Dominguez, director of business development at The Advancement Foundation; Kat Pascal, co-founder of FarmBurguesa; Ryann Kress, Miss Virginia Wheelchair 2020 and others.
Courtesy of Jojo Friday
Speakers during last year's conference included, from left, Trish White-Boyd, Jojo Friday, Dot Kelly and Dr. Melinda Hill.
Roanoke’s very own Charnika Elliot, an entrepreneur, life coach, educator and author, will serve as the keynote speaker. She is the founder of Noah-Christian Center, Inc., a nonprofit organization that offers free educational services to youth in the Roanoke Valley. She previously worked as a teacher for Roanoke City Public Schools.
The conference will also include an hour of entertainment from a local all-female band and female comedian.
White-Boyd, who provided guidance at the founding of Sisters of Change, will make opening remarks during the conference concerning the city. In addition to holding public office, she owns and operates her own home healthcare business. As a professional woman, she knows firsthand how powerful of an experience conferences that educate and inspire women can be.
“The advice and recommendations from other women that are shared are phenomenally helpful,” she says.
She views the conference as offering a vital service to the area. Additionally, she is impressed by its growth over the past three years and is looking forward to seeing what it will do next.
“The CROWN Conference gives back to the community. All of the panelist are volunteers who are experts in different areas. They come together at the conference to share the same guidance they received along the way with other women,” White-Boyd notes.
White-Boyd’s advice to other women who are interested in starting businesses is to complete a market research study to determine what the demand is for their product or service. “You have to take the time and do your research to understand what is needed,” she cautions. She adds that it’s important for women entrepreneurs to follow their passion.
For Friday, the conference represents years of hard work and perseverance. Just four years ago, she was evicted from her home, was working three minimum wage jobs, was receiving government subsidies and had to visit a food bank several times a week. “I had three kids. I would go to work at 5 a.m. and wouldn’t return home until 11 p.m. I was frustrated beyond frustration,” she remembers. “I wanted to be a person who had a great career. I wanted to be a person who didn’t have to work so hard for money without having a college education.”
Things started to turn around for her when she met her now husband who introduced her to a mentor who taught her about budgeting. “My mentor changed the way I thought about money and thought about myself,” Friday says.
Armed with a better understanding of how to manage her finances, she went from living in poverty to making more than $60,000 a year.
“I firmly believe that even if you don’t have the solid college education that many people say you need in order to obtain certain career fields, you can provide a certain lifestyle for your family if you develop yourself as an individual and work hard,” Friday explains. “If women, especially single mothers, have someone that believes in them, I think it will change their lives the way it did mine.”
It was after unlocking her own potential that she felt obligated to help others do the same, which led her to start Sisters of Change.
Like previous years, 100% of ticket sales will go towards local nonprofit organizations, including Noah-Christian Center, Inc., Unlimited Potential Program, a division of Sisters of Change that provides practical and financial skill set mentorship to foster children ages 16-21 and an organization that helps provide seeds for families to grow for food and to sell.
Registrants are able to select which organization they would like their ticket fee to go to.
Tickets for the conference, which are $30 and include a free E-book by Mills, can be found at sistersofchange.com.
About the Author:
Aila Boyd is an educator and journalist who resides in Roanoke. She holds an MFA in Writing from Lindenwood University.