Ms. Afrika Abney - Consultant Branding Blog

  UNFINISHED BUSINESS, UNTOLD STORIES: A Look Beyond the Immediate Horizon at The Future of Children’s Literature Written by African American Authors is one of the panel discussions that is a part of the  African Americans and Children's Literature: A Symposium and Exhibition which is scheduled to take place on March 2, 2024 at 3pm. The presenters include Kwame Alexander, Tricia Elam Walker, David Miller, Tiffany Mitchell Patterson, Leroy Nesbitt and Joy Jones. " Kwame Alexander has written 38 books, three of them in a chair next to a fireplace at his neighborhood Panera Bread. He now writes in a penthouse in London, where he lives. But, he misses the writing studio he built in Virginia a few years ago. It has huge windows, a large painting of John Coltrane, 3000 books, heated floors, a blue couch, and a loft which was Randy’s idea. When he’s not writing, Kwame’s playing Softball with his soon-to-be six feet tall middle school daughter, walking around London listening to au...

  TRUNKS, SATCHELS AND THE US POSTAL SERVICE: Book Distributors and Store Owners Tell Their Stories About Getting Black Books into the World By Any and All Means Necessary is one of the panel discussions that is a part of the  African Americans and Children's Literature: A Symposium and Exhibition which is scheduled to take place on March 2, 2024 at 2pm. The presenters include Courtland Cox, Paul Coates, Vanessa Williams,  Shirikiana Gerima,  and Kojo Nnamdi.   " Courtland Cox is President of CCAP Consulting, LLC, which was incorporated in the District of Columbia in July 2011. Presently, Mr. Cox is part of the DCPEP team that works with the Department of General Services (DGS) of the District of Columbia Government. As part of the DCPEP team, Mr. Cox is responsible for making sure that there is compliance with federal and District law pertaining to CBE and workforce participation on all DGS projects. In 2009, Courtland Cox served as a Consultant to the O...

  SEEING OURSELVES IN THE RIVER, IN THE MIRROR, IN THE WORLD is one of the panel discussions that is a part of the  African Americans and Children's Literature: A Symposium and Exhibition which is scheduled to take place on March 2, 2024 at 12:45pm at Trinity Washington University. The presenters include Jennifer Lawson, Justin Johnson, Keesha Ceran and Joy Jones " Jennifer Lawson  first marched for civil rights in 1963 as a 16-year-old in what became known as the Children’s Crusade, in support of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. who had been jailed in Birmingham, AL.  She attended Tuskegee University and eventually left to work full-time with SNCC in Lowndes County, Alabama where she drew billboards, comics, booklets, and leaflets in support of the Lowndes County Freedom Organization, publicizing the work of the people of Lowndes County and their political party's symbol, the black panther.  She is featured in an award-winning 2022 film about this subject,  Low...

    REMOVING THE MASK, AMPLIFYING OUR VOICES is one of the panel discussions that is a part of the  African Americans and Children's Literature: A Symposium and Exhibition which is scheduled to take place on March 2, 2024 at 9:30am at Trinity Washington University. The presenters include Carolivia Herron, Wynn Yarbrough, and Bernard Demczuk " Car­o­livia Her­ron  is a retired pro­fes­sor of com­par­a­tive lit­er­a­ture who directs the Epic­Cen­ter­ing the Nation­al Mall cre­ative writ­ing pro­gram for at risk youth. She is best known as the author of the chil­dren’s book Nap­py Hair.  She is a speak­er with the Pen Faulkn­er Writ­ers in Schools pro­gram, an African Amer­i­can Jew, and an active mem­ber of Tifer­eth Israel of Wash­ing­ton, DC." " Wynn Yarbrough  teaches Creative Writing and Children's Literature at the University of the District of Columbia. He is the author of two books: a volume of poetry,  A Boy's Dream  (Pessoa Press, 2011) and...

  Me, Myself and Our Story: A Creative Writing Institute in Poetry,Short Story and Memoir Writing   Feb 10, 2024, 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM EST 901 G St. NW, Washington, DC -Room 401-E Esther Productions Inc. is presenting a professional creative writing institute providing instruction in poetry, fiction and memoir writing. Course of study will provide six weeks of focus and instruction on each topic. That is six weeks of poetry, six weeks of fiction and six weeks of memoir writing.  The Institute is for young ladies 15-19 years old who have an interest in creative writing. The first session will be in poetry. Students should be prepared to attend all six sessions. Registration is required; seating is limited. So register now!  - www.estherproductionsinc.com/events-1/me-myself-and-our-story-a-creative-writing-institute-in-poetry-short-story-and-memoir-writing For more information: write to estherproductionsinc@gmail.com Please note these workshops are only for young ladies ...

A frican Americans and Children's Literature: A Symposium and Exhibition Mar 02, 2024, 8:30 AM – 6:30 PM EST 125 Michigan Ave NE, Washington, DC 20017, USA COME LEARN THE STORY AND LEGACY OF WASHINGTON, DC’S AFRICAN AMERICAN AUTHORS OF CHILDREN’S LITERATURE—Past and Present, including May Miller Sullivan, Sterling Brown, Maxine Clair, Gwendolyn Brooks, Daphne Muse, Lucille Clifton, Eloise Greenfield, Jason Reynolds, Kwame Alexander, Jennifer Lawson, Courtland Cox, Adjoa Burrowes, E. Ethelbert Miller, Carolivia Herron, Aisha Rice, Tricia Elam Walker, jonetta rose barras, Sheila Crider, David Miller, Michelle Meadows, Leah Henderson , Michelle Green, Lakia Wilson and others.  This event is curated by award-winning author and public scholar jonetta rose barras in partnership with humanities scholar Bernard Demczuk Ph.D. ,The Black Student Fund, The Institute for African American Writing, Teaching for Change, Social Justice Books, Buck Wild Media, and Lesa Warrick. Major funding has be...

    "A stretched canvas is simply a canvas that has been stretched over a timber frame with mitred joints. A canvas panel is a canvas wrapped board. Canvas panels are much flatter, they can be framed and are a great option for quick projects, while canvases are larger in dimension and don't need to be framed. Canvas panels are the perfect solution if you like the weave of a canvas but not the 'bounce' that you get when canvas is stretched on a stretcher bar frame. You can enjoy painting on a rigid surface that has the texture of your favourite primed or unprimed canvas by fixing it onto a wooden panel." I have created many paintings on both. 

   In 2023, I provided services for the following events. Among them include Kaleidoscope: Women of Color Reflection on Life;Membership Announcement: KALEIDOSCOPE WOMEN’S WRITING COLLECTIVE; Women Blossoming: A Traditional Tea & Celebration to Inspire and Empower;THE NATIONAL RECONCILIATION WEEK: FOR SELF & FAMILY 2023;Me, Myself and Our Story: The Art of the Personal Essay, A Writing Workshop for Girls; 5th Annual Discovering Me Essay Contest; and The Discovery Summit & Scholarship Awards Ceremony. Additionally, I have exhibited several of my abstract paintings during the virtual art exhibition and poetry reading which took place on February 19, 2023. ​ Also, Esther Productions, Inc purchased one of my abstract paintings on June 23, 2023 and on December 3, 2023, Esther Productions, Inc purchased two of my abstract paintings. Untitled. 5". Acrylic on canvas board. March 4, 2023. $25.00. Afrika Abney When I created this painting, I was thinking about how I feel abou...

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 Mention....

       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 substanc...

     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-sch...

  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, ...

     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 fathe...

  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

  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