Lagniappe Summer 2023

LAGNIAPPE STAFF

Editor

Kristin Durand

Assistant Editor

Kylie June Tahana

League Photography Vice Chair

Bailey Morrison

Writers

Angela Oufnac, Holly Adkins Paczak, Taymika Sharrieff

Photographers

Delana Lynn Photography, Kristin Durand, Junior League of Greater Covington, Rachel Kellogg, Nancy Kirkeby, Kendra Reade

PUBLISHER STAFF

Art Director

Ali Sullivan

Production Manager

Rosa Balaguer

Production Designer

Meghan Rooney

Chief Executive Officer

Todd Matherne

JLNO BOARD OF DIRECTORS

President Holly Adkins Paczak

President Elect Ashley Cangelosi Llewellyn

Secretary Elizabeth Vincent Frein

Treasurer Nancy Kirkeby

Assistant Treasurer Trish Thibodeau

Business Council Director Tara Waldron

Communications Council Director Kristin Durand

Community Council Director Kathryn McLeod

Membership Council Director Lindsey Labadie

Planning & Development Council Director

Erica Washington

Ways & Means Council Director Amy Flower

Nominating Committee Chair Michelle Clarke Payne

Sustaining Advisor to the Board Jeanne Boughton

2022-2023 President’s Farewell Message

What a year this has been! From our building renovation to our first in-person Women's Leadership Summit, the 2022-2023 League year has been one of resilience, growth, learning and fun. I am grateful for the many contributions from our membership enabling the Junior League of New Orleans to invest in our community and ourselves. As our 99th year comes to a close, let us take a turn to celebrate all that our members and partners helped JLNO accomplish this year.

We celebrate that our headquarters is now a fully renovated and up-todate space that will allow us to continue training, leading and serving our community while also being a space for other partners to use. We see our newly renovated space not only as an anchor for our mission and members but also as an invitation to our community to help us in our work.

We celebrate what we have accomplished as an organization over this past year to impact our community. We invite you to view these achievements in our League Year In Review on page 8.

We celebrate the investments we have made in our communications infrastructure, and we will be unveiling a new, redesigned website in the

coming weeks. We thank Deep Fried for their partnership in this work, as well as a new partnership with Gambel Communications. They will help us reach members of our community who may be unaware of the mission and work of JLNO, and help us tell our story of 100 years of service to the Greater New Orleans area.

We celebrate that the Junior League of New Orleans was chosen as a Woman of the Year Nonprofit organization for New Orleans CityBusiness

As we bridge into our centennial year, I am grateful for our members and community partners. Together, we have accomplished so much. Cheers to a great year!

Holly Adkins Paczak

2022-2023 President Junior League of New Orleans

Photo by Delana Lynn

Photo by: Delana Lynn Photography

The Junior League of New Orleans Hosts Successful In-Person Women’s Leadership Summit

Written by: Alexis Oufnac | Photos by: Delana Lynn Photography

On January 20, 2023, the Junior League of New Orleans (JLNO) held its highly anticipated Women’s Leadership Summit (WLS) presented by Ochsner Baptist. Attendees from across the city gathered to hear from inspiring speakers, participate in informative panels and engage in various activities aimed at promoting women’s leadership. After being held virtually for the past two years, the first in-person version of this nascent program was met with both excitement and acclaim.

JLNO President, Holly Paczak, and Dr. Michelle Johnston gave opening remarks. There were six panels, three fireside chats and a keynote address from Karen Swensen, an award-winning news anchor and journalist known for her advocacy for women’s rights. As noted by Tara Waldron, JLNO Business Council Director, “Karen Swensen did a wonderful job of inspiring the women of our community. By sharing her story and vulnerabilities, she showed attendees how to mold their past challenges into strengths they carry with them to create new experiences, opportunities and adventures.”

In addition to the educational sessions provided by the speakers, the summit featured a vendor marketplace with local businesses providing products and services aimed at helping women achieve their life goals. Attendees enjoyed networking bingo, a meditation moment and even a fitness stretch session to rejuvenate their minds and bodies. These activities were designed to provide attendees with an opportunity to recharge and to network with other like-minded women.

The summit provided three learning tracks, each offering attendees a unique perspective on how to develop their skills. Building Your Brand focused on helping attendees understand how to present themselves effectively in various settings, from the workplace to social media. Leveraging Your Leadership aimed to empower women to take on leadership roles in their

communities and organizations. And Crafting Your Care emphasized the importance of self-care and its role in creating a successful and fulfilling life.

Robin Carubba, WLS Co-Chair, spoke to the success of the event. “Our inaugural in-person Women’s Leadership Summit was such a success!  The summit could not have been possible without the tireless efforts of our team, generous sponsors, dynamic and engaging keynote speaker Karen Swensen and, of course, the eager and enthusiastic attendees. Karen Swensen’s message of pivoting your life, remaining hopeful through adversity and embracing life’s changes was truly impactful and inspiring.”

Attendees left feeling inspired and empowered to take on new challenges in their personal and professional lives. Many commented on the valuable connections they made with other attendees and the exciting new ideas they learned from the panelists and speakers. One such attendee, Valerie Menowsky, noted, “Sometimes it just feels right to be surrounded by women talking about women’s activities, concerns, health, goals and careers. There was comfort, there was approval, there was encouragement and, most importantly, there was validation that we can all be relevant change-makers and leaders by embracing our womanhood.”

The Junior League of New Orleans strives to empower women to be effective leaders in their communities, and the Women’s Leadership Summit is just one of the ways they are fulfilling this goal. As the city continues to recover from the pandemic, events like the Women’s Leadership Summit are crucial for bringing people together and providing much-needed opportunities for personal and professional growth. JLNO is proud to have organized such a successful and impactful event.

We can’t wait to share more details on the 2024 summit soon! •

Karen Swensen & Ursuline Students

Tara Waldron President-Elect

Kelly Rauser Secretary

Trish Thibodeau Treasurer

Ashley Cangelosi Llewellyn President

Paige Farrell Assistant Treasurer

Photos by: Delana Lynn Photography

Robin Carubba Business Council Director

Allison Shapiro Dandry Communications Council Director

Rachel Robinson Community Council Director

Blair Broussard Planning & Development Council Director

Sarah Howard Ways & Means Council Director

Dale Ellen O'Neill Nominating Chair

Hope Clay Membership Council Director

Kristen Koppel Sustaining Advisor to the Board

JLNO Champions Women Entrepreneurs at 7th Annual Pitch Competition

Written by: Taymika Sharrieff | Photos by: Delana Lynn Photography

On Tuesday, April 20th, JLNO held its Women Entrepreneur (WE) Fellowship Pitch Competition in the League's newly renovated headquarters.

Started in January 2016, the WE Fellowship supports a female business owner with funding, mentoring, access to meeting space in Uptown New Orleans, tuition to the JLNO Get on Board nonprofit board training program, business coaching and membership dues should they elect to join the Junior League of New Orleans.

There were three judges for this year’s competition. James Schoen is a motivational speaker for Outrageously Positive Living and Small Business Banking Manager at Fidelity Bank. Jonée Daigle-Ferrand is the publisher and owner of Inside New Orleans magazine, the Sanctuary Living magazine and TerraBella Living magazine. Laura Stirling Joffrion is co-counder and "plantrepreneur" of FAIT, as well as a 2019 WE Fellowship finalist.

This year’s competition featured five outstanding and inspiring woman-owned small businesses. Each finalist was given the opportunity to give a 10-minute pitch to the judges. This year’s finalists were Grey Bird Baking Co., the Meetery, Mommyfluent, Pillar Homecare and Rize.

Grey Bird Baking Co., owned by Taylor Moore, specializes in French macarons, cakes, cookies and other vegan and gluten-free desserts. Her mission is to provide quality, luxurious desserts for every occasion. Taylor started baking at the age of 11 while living in Indiana. Starting Grey Bird in 2019, Taylor states, “The inspiration was sparked in the emergency room. I worked night shifts often and found that my co-workers really appreciated the sweets whether we were really slow or slammed. They encouraged me to start my business.”

The Meetery, co-founded by Bayleigh Frickey and Stephanie Hilton, is putting an end to bad dates and making it socially acceptable for you to leave a date after one drink. With a commitment to safety, singles invite matches using a proprietary calendar which highlights popular date night spots in their city. Bayleigh says, “We focus on people getting off their phones and meeting face to face to have actual conversations.”

Mommyfluent, owned by Shay Claiborne, is an online toy store that offers toys and furniture for infants and toddlers. Their Mission is to engage, play and provide all things infants and toddlers. Shay admits, “It may seem like choosing toys for toddlers should be easy; however, the only thing that is easy is becoming

overwhelmed. When I became a mom during the pandemic, I decided to take the hassle out of searching for toys for parents and created Mommyfluent.”

Pillar Homecare, owned by Tamara White, is a Louisiana licensed homecare agency that provides non-medical homecare services to allow individuals in the elderly or disabled population to remain in the home by providing the appropriate level of support. Their motto is “Care done right, at home.” They aim to provide a safe alternative to care in the home, decreasing the need for premature nursing home placement and easing the burden of the primary caregiver. Tamara says, “There is no cookie cutter approach to home care.”

Rize, founded by Sofia Viscuso, connects growing businesses to college students through short-term paid projects. This model creates a more flexible and accessible way for students to gain internship experience while providing businesses with an affordable way to test out talent. Sofia asks the question, “Why are there are 20 million college students in the U.S. competing for the same ten internships when there are 30 million small businesses that could be hosting an intern?” Her vision is to make sure no one gets left behind.

After the presentations were done, the audience had the opportunity to participate by voting for an audience

favorite, and Mommyfluent won that honor. Then came the moment everyone was waiting for. JLNO president Holly Paczak announced the winner of the 2023 WE Fellowship Pitch Competition - Pillar Homecare!

The owner of Pillar Homecare, Tamara White, is a registered nurse with 17 years of experience in critical care, trauma, community health, executive leadership and long-term care. She has an MBA with a concentration in Health Management and a Doctorate of Nursing Practice. Tamara was very excited to be this year’s winner and is looking forward to using the opportunity to grow her business. •

WE Fellowship Finalists (L-R) Sofia Viscuso (Rize), Stephanie Hilton and Bayleigh Frickey (The Meetery), Taylor Moore (Grey Bird Baking Co.), Shay Claiborne (Mommyfluent), Tamara White (Pillar Homecare)

JLNO was honored to have (L-R) Laura Stirling Joffrion, James Schoen, and Jonée Daigle-Ferrand serve as the 2023 WE Fellowship judges.

WE Fellowship Committee members share smiles of congratulations with Tamara White, 2023 JLNO Woman EntrepreneurFellowship recipients.

League Faces

2022-2023 JLNO President-Elect, Ashley Cangelosi Llewellyn (R) collaborated with other League leaders, including Amy Puerto, 2022-2023 Junior League of Greater Covington President (L), at the AJLI Annual Conference in Indianapolis on May 12, 2023. Photo courtesy of: Junior League of Greater Covington

JLNO members go "hog wild" volunteering at Hogs for the Cause, a barbecue festival dedicated to supporting families fighting Pediatric Brain Cancer.

Photo by: Kristin Durand

(L-R) Nancy Kirkeby, Kenyatta Miles, Candace Faubion Perez, Lauren Allen and Liana Narcisse proudly represented JLNO in Baton Rouge as part of League Day at the Capitol on April 20, 2023. Photo courtesy of: Nancy Kirkeby

(L-R) Councilmember Eugene Green, JLNO Business Council Director Tara Waldron, Period Supplies Chair Kendra Reade and Councilmember Helena Moreno display a signed proclamation declaring May 22-28, 2023 Period Poverty Awareness Week by the City of New Orleans. Photo courtesy of: Kendra Reade

It was a packed house at the newly opened JLNO Headquarters building for the February General Membership Meeting, held on February 14, 2023. Photo by: Kristin Durand

(L-R) Raven Aboulseoud, Sara Johnson, Renee Posecai and Nicole Favre greet sustainers at the Mint Julep party honoring 2023 Sustainer of the Year, Liz Creel, on May 3, 2023. Photo by: Kristin Durand

2022-2023 League Year In Review

Compiled by: Holly Adkins Paczak

We celebrate that over this year we have...

• Partnered with 60 non-profits

• Distributed $40,000 dollars in Community Assistance Fund grants

• Provided approximately 15,000 volunteer hours to our community

• Invested in our learning and leadership experiences by engaging in 3,000 training hours

• Trained 200 students in Safe Sitter® curriculum

• Provided holiday gifts to 110 Educare students

• Offered over 50 unique volunteer opportunities to our members

• Hosted over 250 attendees at our first in-person Women’s Leadership Summit

• Trained 20 participants for meaningful Board participation through our Get on Board program

• Offered over 40 training opportunities

Hosted over 1,500 attendees for Touch a Truck and over 700 students to Field Trip Friday

Distributed

• over 641,055 diapers to twenty-one partners

• over 139,055 period supplies to seventeen partners

• 16,000 Adult Incontinence products to eleven partners

Inspired 47 JLNO charity runners to fundraise for the Crescent City Classic

Had over 300 attendees and 30 vendors participate in our annual Holly Jolly Marketplace

Been honored as a Woman of the Year Nonprofit Organization by New Orleans CityBusiness.

Reopened our fully renovated Headquarters building at our 2023 February General Membership Meeting.

Adopted the new Mission statement of our parent organization, the Association of Junior Leagues International, through a membership vote. "The Junior League of New Orleans is an organization of women whose shared mission is to advance women’s leadership for meaningful community impact through volunteer action, collaboration, and training."