GIRLS INC. OF NYC HONORS FOUR OUTSTANDING WOMEN AND 25 STUDENT HONOREES AT THE 2022 LIFTING GIRLS UP GALA ON MAY 10, 2022

New York, NY, 2022-Apr-28 — /EPR Network/ — Girls Inc. of New York City announced today the honorees for Girls Inc. of New York City’s annual Spring Gala. This year’s Lifting Girls Up Gala will honor Thasunda Brown Duckett, President and CEO of Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association Of America (TIAA), La La Anthony, actress, producer, and philanthropist, Beatrice Dixon, Founder and CEO of The Honey Pot Company, and Janice Reals Ellig, CEO of Ellig Group. The gala, hosted by Abbi Crutchfield, will take place at Cipriani (25 Broadway New York, NY) on May 10, 2022, from 6:00 pm- 10:00 pm. Girls Inc. of New York City will celebrate 24 years of providing programs that transform girls’ lives, educating and inspiring thousands of low-income girls to better navigate gender, economic, and social barriers to be prepared for leadership and academic opportunities. 

For the first time, Girls Inc. of New York City will unify their annual College Shower, celebrating girls transitioning from high school to college, with the 2022 Gala. As part of the College Shower, student honorees receive scholarships and gift bags filled with supplies they need to arrive at college ready to learn. The proceeds from the gala will support Girls Inc. of New York City’s mental wellness, financial literacy, STEM, and college readiness and retention programs for underserved girls across New York City. The 2022 Lifting Girls Up Gala will also feature a performance from Arielle Jacobs, star of Broadway’s Between the Lines, and Smashworks, a nonprofit dance company in New York City. 

“The Lifting Girls Up Gala is about coming together to confront gender disparities and celebrate the success of our girls, despite the unique challenges of the past year. Attendees will have the chance to hear about the girls’ experiences directly and enjoy our annual College Shower.”  Dr. Pamela Maraldo, CEO of Girls Inc. of New York City.

2022 Girl Inc Gala Honoree Statements

“I’m proud to be honored by Girls Inc of New York City – an impactful organization with a critical mission. At TIAA, we do all we can to help close the women’s retirement savings gap in our country. By developing girls and young women to be strong, smart and bold, Girls Inc. ensures they will make smarter decisions about savings and investing as they grow up, leading to better retirement outcomes.” – Thasunda Brown Duckett

“As a New York native, I am undeniably proud of the accomplishments at Girls Inc. of New York City. This organization provides girls with exceptional resources and skills needed to become successful. I’m proud to be an honoree and supporter and I look forward to the 2022 Lifting Girls Up Gala.” – La La Anthony

“Girls Inc. is doing phenomenal work with underprivileged girls in New York City. I am pleased to be recognized as a 2022 Lifting Girls Up Gala Honoree. The mission of my company, The Honey Pot, is to broaden access to plant-derived feminine care, and I am honored to provide access alongside Girls Inc. of New York City to these incredible young women of New York City” – Beatrice Dixon

“At Ellig Group our objective is to enhance good corporate governance and cultures by placing more women and diverse candidates in senior level and board positions. Girls Inc. has done an extraordinary job of preparing young women to be Strong, Smart, and Bold through leadership initiatives. I am delighted to be an honoree with other outstanding women leaders to support the 2022 NYC Girls Inc. Gala” – Janice Reals Ellig

Thasunda Brown Duckett is President and Chief Executive Officer of TIAA, a Fortune 100 provider of secure retirements and outcome-focused investment solutions to millions of people working in higher education, healthcare and other mission-driven organizations. As TIAA’s CEO, Duckett leads a company whose mission is defined by financial inclusion and opportunity – goals and values she has upheld throughout her career. Duckett serves on the boards of NIKE, Inc., Brex Inc., Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, Sesame Workshop, National Medal of Honor Museum, Economic Club of New York, University of Houston Board of Visitors and Dean’s Advisory Board for Baylor University’s Hankamer School of Business. She is a member of the Executive Leadership Council, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. and Jack and Jill of America Inc. 

La La Anthony is an actress, producer, New York Times best-selling author and entrepreneur. La La is best known for her role as Lakeisha Grant on the hit show “Power,” which wrapped its sixth and final season on Starz in 2020. La La has since joined the cast of SHOWTIME’s “The Chi” and Starz’s “Black Mafia Family.” She will also be starring in indie drama Nine Bullets with Lena Headey and Sam Worthington. Additional projects include “Wu Tang: An American Saga” (Hulu), animated comedy “The Freak Brothers” (Tubi) and starring opposite Gabrielle Union in the recently announced Netflix feature film, “The Perfect Find.” La La has also written two New York Times best-selling books, The Love Playbook, which she is adapting into a TV series, and The Power Playbook. In January 2022, she launched her own hair care brand INALA, which was created to champion confidence and self-expression, while boosting hair health with a signature Rice Water Complex that replenishes and strengthens all hair types.

Beatrice Dixon began The Honey Pot Company in 2014 after a vivid dream from an ancestor, who inspired her to create a line of plant-derived feminine hygiene products offering women a healthy alternative to conventional feminine care. Ms. Dixon has received the Sundial and Unilever’s multimillion-dollar New Voices fund and was one of the first 40 women of color to raise over one million dollars in venture capital. She has been featured in T-Pain’s School of Business, BuzzFeed’s Ladylike series, Today Show, CNN, The New York Times, Entrepreneur, ELLE, and ESSENCE. Most recently, Ms. Dixon was recognized by Goldman Sachs as one of the 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs of 2021 at its Builders + Innovators Summit, Worth’s Worthy 100, Forbes’ Top 100 Female Founders, and Inc. Magazine’s Top 100 Women Entrepreneurs. 

Janice Reals Ellig is CEO of Ellig Group, a global game-changing executive search firm, with a focus on Reimagining Search by increasing the placement of women and diverse candidates in the executive suite and on corporate boards. Named by Bloomberg Businessweek as one of “The World’s Most Influential Headhunters,” Janice has 20 years prior experience in corporate America, including Pfizer, Citibank and Ambac Financial Group, which she helped take public. As the co-author of two books, Driving the Career Highway and What Every Successful Women Knows, Janice is a frequent media guest, writes numerous articles, and moderates discussions focused on enhancing gender representation in the boardroom and establishing DEI in the DNA of all companies.

For more information about the 2022 Lifting Girls Up Gala or to purchase tickets, please visit: https://www.girlsincnyc.org/gala2022

About Girls Inc. of New York City

Girls Inc. of New York City inspires girls to be strong, smart, and bold, delivering life transforming programs to girls and young women. Through education and advocacy, we prepare girls to navigate gender, economic, and social barriers to advance to a more equitable world. Girls Inc. of New York City’s positive outcomes are achieved through three core elements: people – trained staff and volunteers who build lasting, mentoring relationships; environment – physically and emotionally safe, where there is a sisterhood of support, high expectations, and mutual respect; and programming – research-based, hands-on and minds-on, age-appropriate, meeting the needs of today’s girls. Join us at www.girlsincnyc.org, @girlsincny, www.facebook.com/girlsincnyc

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