2016 Debutante Coterie

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NEWO LEANS ADVOCATE THE

S E V E N DAYS • H O M E D E L I V E R E D • LO U I S I A N A O W N E D

2016 DEBUTANTE COTERIE

MAKING AN

IMPACT

For today’s debs, philanthropy starts early BY VICTOR ANDREWS | vandrews@theadvocate.com Progressive, determined and caring: These terms apply to any and all of the young women included in the 2016 coterie of debutantes for the greater New Orleans area. With proven track records of philanthropy, academic achievement and career goals set on making a difference, the 61 profiled individuals bring a cosmopolitan and energetic flair to a host of futures that include the worlds of medicine, finance, communications, engineering, cinema and art. Their volunteer accomplishments have taken them to far-flung places in Latin America, Africa and Europe. Educational options will bring even more to different parts of the globe, from the Iberian peninsula to the Australian continent. On the go and on the move, they attend colleges, universities and high schools throughout the country, from New York to the Carolinas,

across the Gulf South and on to the West Coast in California and Oregon. Some will take advantage of the opportunity to expand cultural and educational vistas in academic meccas around the world, stamping their passports and making their mark in foreign climes. Determined, energetic and excited, these debs are also dedicated to giving and philanthropy, in areas ranging from social justice to the environment, education and health. In this, they follow the example of the two women from the preceding coterie, profiled on this page. In the meantime, they will be celebrated and honored for what they have done thus far in life and what they hope to accomplish in their early forays into adulthood, both individually and collectively. The women featured in this section will be

presented at one or more organizations that recognize debutantes through a seasonal fete or Carnival ball. The presenting societies include the Bachelors’ Club, Le Debut des Jeunes Filles de la Nouvelle Orleans, the Debutante Club, the Mid-Winter Cotillion, the Original Illinois Club, the Pickwick Club and the Young Men Illinois Club. Some of the debutantes are presented by their organizations during Carnival. Many of the young ladies will go on to serve in some of the courts of the area’s oldest and most storied tableaux. They will all have something in common for the next few months, no matter what the future holds: They will have made memories that will last their lifetime. Filled with purpose and philanthropy, what interesting lives they are certain to be.

HELPING HANDS

Malonda Maxine McElwee

Agnes Robeson Bell

Gratitude inspired former deb to give back

Education was the key to her season of service BY CATE ROOT

BY R. STEPHANIE BRUNO

Former debutante Malonda Maxine McElwee has confidence, grace and a strong aptitude in science and math. But she may stand out the most for her commitment to service. Malonda was presented by the Young Men Illinois Club last year. This spring, she graduated from Hammond High Magnet School, and in the fall, she’ll matriculate at Santa Clara University in California, where she intends to pursue a degree in engineering. But until September, Malonda will focus on helping others. She’ll spend June at the Tangipahoa African American Heritage Museum, where she works at a day camp centered on science, technology, engineering and math. The four-week camp

It was just a few days before Christmas about 10 years ago when Aggie Bell (officially Agnes Robeson Bell) was overwhelmed by gratitude for all she had. Then a sixth-grader at Trinity Episcopal School, Aggie reflected on how fortunate she was to have a loving family, a beautiful home and a host of friends. As she pictured herself opening gifts on Christmas Day, a thought struck her. “I’m not really sure why, but I started thinking about all the children who did not have the privileges and comforts I had,” said Bell, a former debutante and now a senior at Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tennessee. “And I decided I wanted to do something about it.”

äSee EDUCATION, page 15G

äSee GRATITUDE, page 15G

Special to The Advocate

Special to The Advocate

SUNDAY JUNE19, 2016 SECTION G


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