TrailBlazers Impact

Have you ever wondered what life on the Queen Elizabeth II cruise ship was like? Christine Markey was an entertainer on that ship and recalls some fascinating stories about life on the ship. Truly, you won't want to miss this one! Top Takeaways: • What people wore and did on the QE II in a different era of cruising! How fun! • How the weather influenced the direction and destination of the cruise...

Are you worried your child may be abusing substances? Is your child being bullied? Have you heard about teenage suicide and worried? Listen to this episode of one mother's journey through that world. Hear Jamie talk about what she tried - what worked and what didn't. Philanthropist and entrepreneur Jamie Amelio has dedicated her life to helping children—from founding the ground-breaking charity Ca...

Ep. 95 - Florence Champagne is Chairperson and CEO of the Open My Heart Foundation. Florence suffered a heart attack in 2012 and, as a result, she had emergency open heart surgery. Due to being uninsured at the time, she did not readily receive the necessary diagnostic testing and life-saving treatment. She found that she was not alone and met other African-American women along the way, who were e...

Hear her story from growing up without lunch money to advising millionaires today on investments. Regardless of how much money you have, her advice will help you set a plan in motion to get rich. Successful entrepreneur and investor, she mixes fun, wit and wisdom as she shares practical, easy-to-understand financial advice. From her Financial Diva podcast to her book, "It's All About the Money, Ho...

Sarah Rodriguez Amador was born and raised in México. She grew up between 2 worlds: Mexico the country of her mother with a strong sound of fiesta and Cuba the island of her father with a powerful rhythm. The versatility of her voice allowed her to become one of the lead singers of the production shows of the 5 stars resort Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya and also as singer on a Big Band playing in lux...

Laura Yamanaka has an extensive history of leading and supporting women in business as the past president of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO), President of the Los Angeles chapter, and Chair of the NAWBO Institute. She has been featured in Los Angeles Business Journal and a Los Angeles Times article “Nurturing Female Entrepreneurs.”  She is president and co-owner of teamCF...

Hilary Lentini runs an in-demand marketing firm in Los Angeles. Her team is known for really listening to their clients and building long-term relationships that support their brands. Lentini shares how taking a leap of faith by coming west, initially to support her husband’s career, turned out to be the springboard for future success. Los Angeles is a city that’s welcoming and with opportunity bu...

Like many successful businesses owners, Linda Gorin got started at her kitchen table. Creating fun and memorable gift baskets began as a hobby, filling a few orders at a time. But customers loved the creative baskets that would make a friend’s day or bring joy to a significant other. One year later she and her husband launched their first standalone store in San Diego, which has expanded six times...

Dr. Carolyn Sue Williams shares part of her journey from a childhood with 11 other siblings in the Baton Rouge of the 1950s as an totally un-inspired high school student with only the prospect of "working in a white woman's kitchen" after graduation, to becoming one of the first handful of Black women in America to be awarded a PhD in political science in the early 1970s; an accomplishment even sh...

Thresette Briggs saw the joy and unintended consequences of entrepreneurship while growing up. Her father was a source of inspiration given his business leadership and determination to succeed. But that often took him away from the family, and his young death at 56 weighed on her ambitions. Entrepreneurship was the dream, but she describes “head trash” needing to be emptied out for the journey ahe...

With many European nations striving for 30 or even 40 percent, Berkhemer-Credaire says it’s time for the U.S. to catch up. The author of The Board Game, she shares how increasing womens’ presence on boards makes all the difference in building better companies and gaining wider perspectives to issues where women excel. SHOP for her book, Winning the Board Game, on www. TrailBlazersImpact .com www.b...

Renowned for her financial advice to women, Jean Chatzky has spent most of her career writing for financial magazines and offering her business knowledge in the media. She has authored 11 books, produces podcasts and is a motivational speaker. Hear about her journey from the Midwest to her successful life on the east coast. Learn about Jean’s initiative, Work and Save, which is a more effective an...

Coping well with adversity is a learned skill. People need to not let emotions get carried away and gives several examples of people with adversities and how they have moved through it. Grieving is a lifetime event but Eileen Lenson helps people find a way to not let it destroy them and find purpose in the loss they had. She discusses the signs of teen suicide. She says, "Kindness begets kindness....

Andrea Campbell survived cancer not once, but twice. While such an experience could drive many to despair by fighting through the ordeal twice, she ultimately came to a place of catharsis, healing, and purpose. The ordeal presented Campbell with stark choices about what to do. She felt she had been playing things too small, so it was time to ditch the corporate job and embark on a journey to her t...

In this interview, Virginia W. Harris, National President, National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc., with 60 chapters and thousands of members nationwide, shares reflections of her start as a servant-leader that, more likely than not, was planted as a seed when she found herself as one of only three Black girls integrating an otherwise all White high school in south Georgia during the early 196...

Emily Josenhans wants to help people ditch the artificial sweeteners. She started Domaine Santa Grape Nectar to give a healthier and more holistic alternative that adds a natural sweetener to food and beverages. Building a healthy product is informed by her work as a nutritionist, where she helped clients make healthier diet choices prior to launching her business. Hear Josenhans describe the entr...

Antonio McGinnis grew up in a difficult housing project where he recalls constantly seeing drugs and violence. Basketball was his escape. It was the path to a college education and a life far away from an upbringing where he experienced abuse from a caregiver. After playing for Texas A&M and professionally overseas, he returned home one summer and broke his ankle — ending his basketball career. To...

Jamie Amelio’s heart was moved by a child in Cambodia who begged her for a dollar. She was bothered by why a child would need to be out asking for money, and the encounter stayed with her. This drove her to launch Caring for Cambodia and invest heavily in building a charity that works to give children education and a future. The experience models her philosophy of staying bothered. If something bo...

Jatrice Martel Gaiter shares the influences and the value of a pay-it-forward career started in her early 20s and serving her well into her 60s. With a childhood defined by parents who stressed the importance of education as the gateway to a life full of opportunity, risks and rewards; and finding purpose in the pain of others, Jatrice provides a heart-moving backdrop to her stellar career path. F...

Tyra Jarvis has had to retool her life many times. She’s worn an array of hats: consultant, project manager, blue collar roles, and ultimately an entrepreneur. Now through her company Kefi Coaching LLC, she advises business leaders in connecting passion, dreams, and the power of their mind to create a meaningful path. Transitions can be frightening, but they can launch powerful change. Her toughes...

Beth Cole’s history of social change dates back to the presidential campaigns of Bobby Kennedy and George McGovern. This demonstrated commitment caught the attention of McGovern’s campaign coordinator, Frank Mankiewicz, such that when he assumed the position of president of NPR, the federally financed radio network of news, public affairs, and cultural programming for much of America, he brought B...

Ana Bermudez would often find fashion inspiration on TV from her favorite shows. Yet finding the items in real life was a chore. It’s why she launched TAGit, a visual search engine that helps users find and buy items that pop up on TV shows. As a female tech CEO, she knows the challenges that women leaders and investors face, which is why it’s critical for women to support one another through both...

Dawn Simmons shares her journey as a former math teacher, flight attendant, along with the lessons-learned as a Black woman working on Wall Street and joining with other women to crack that Glass Ceiling. She shares her advice on the "little things" that can help a woman with aspirations to join and Succeed in a Wall Street firm and the early start of her journey to add her voice with others to re...

Kara Mac grew tired of hauling around extra shoes. Like many working professionals, she would start her commute in one pair, change to another at work, and then swap shoes for an evening event. For two years she sketched and prototyped dozens of shoe concepts. She landed on a design for boots with swappable heel covers that she terms “candy” accessories. After 25 years in the fashion world, she qu...

Children’s natural language is play. That’s why therapist Janie Stubblefield used a technique in her practice called play therapy, which helps her foster deep connections with kids who need healing from trauma, bullying, anxiety, and other mental health challenges. She takes an outside-the-box approach to making therapy more accessible with a mobile practice that goes where her clients are instead...