Spelman College’s ninth annual Women of Color Conference goes Hollywood. This year’s attendees were treated to Tinseltown favorites Nicole Ari Parker (“Soul Food”) and A.J. Johnson (Baby Boy). The actresses-turned -entrepreneur and -fitness trainer, respectively, were greeted by a standing-room only crowd at the Georgia International Convention Center located near Atlanta’s airport.
The Wellness Revolution pre-conference workshops were a first for the annual affair. According to the program, “these critical workshops explore the connection between wellness and successful leadership, and provide attendees with a ‘wellness lens,’ through which they can view the topics of building wealth, entrepreneurship and paying it forward.”
Parker, who founded Save Your Do GymWrap — a fashionable headband to save your hairstyle while at the gym, exercising outdoors, or living an active lifestyle — was joined by Dr. Brenda Wade, CEO of Heartline Productions. In tandem, Parker and Wade illustrated how loving yourself and having a positive self-image aid in maintaining good health and generating wealth.
Wade informed attendees, “The leading symptom of depression for African American women is hyper-irritability,” and tips to overcome are having “positive beliefs, thoughts, feelings, words and actions.”
When a svelte Johnson took the platform, she invited all attendees to join her in the “The AJ Zone” where she opened her toolbox filled with motivation materials including Sherri Rose Shepherd’s book His Princess and her daily health supplements, reminding the captivated audience that their body is their temple. Johnson’s fiery exhortation challenged us to “commit to our spirit, be prepared to feed and fuel the temple, and ask ‘what do I need to do to execute my truth?’”
