By Fletcher Word
The Truth Editor
The third annual Business Brunch Vision Board Social Event, held by TaShara Brown’s Confidence in a Cup, was held on Saturday, February 25 at The Bay, a gathering spot at The Docks.
“I got a vision to do an event to bring others together and manifest their dreams,” said Brown as she opened the speaking and fashion portion of the afternoon’s brunch. “The business brunch vision board social event was created. I began to invest into small business owners who wanted the confidence and resources to excel. Over the past three years we have helped hundreds of business owners with resources and development in every area of entrepreneurship – from financial literacy, business funding to mentorship.”
Saturday’s event at The Bay began with a brunch buffet, once again prepared by Chef Michael Gaston. The chef had prepared a buffet that included shrimp & grits, assorted Danish, bagels and spreads, assorted fruit, a salad bar, fresh vegetables, sesame cilantro ginger rice, teriyaki glazed chicken breast, honey garlic salmon, vegetable medley stir fry along with an assortment of cupcakes, cheesecake and cookies.
During the course of the event, vendors offered their products and information on the upper level of the meeting place.
After the brunch, the program opened with Brown’s address, followed by a fashion show organized by ReAnna Stevenson, a stylist and owner/operator of ReStylz. Stevenson and her models offered a glimpse of a half dozen outfits for the guest to enjoy.
The followed speeches by Mohamed Awad, owner of Innomark Group and Wayne Whitmore, entrepreneur. Awad spoke on the subject of marketing and Whitmore on the topic of sales.
The keynote speakers for the afternoon were Todd Simon of Legacy Home Loans and Sandy Spang, City of Toledo Deputy Director for Economic Development. Spang brought a message of the numerous types of services the city offers for small business owners
Spang was also the recipient of the Legacy Award while Chef Gaston was honored with the 2023 Community Leadership Award.
The highlight of the afternoon was the naming of the 2023 Who’s Who of Toledo Award Winner. This year’s nominees were Kathryn Tucker, senior vice president, regional manager at PNC; Doug Keetion, master stylist and co-owner of Studio-3 2 Nine Salon Suites and Spa and Zia Cooke, a graduate of Rogers High School and currently a star on the University of South Carolina Woman’s Basketball Team, the defending NCAA champions and undefeated so far this year.
This year’s honoree was Cooke. She was unable to attend and accept her award in person but she sent a video and a relative accepted the award for her.
The afternoon concluded with a Vision Board/Network Social Hour.
