CulSire 1-Year Anniversary Program

Thank you! 1Where do you begin to say thanks to all the people that have lead you to this place and this time in yourlife?I have to first give thanks to my Lord and Savior for bringing me through and getting me to this place.There have been many ups and downs in my life, and He’s always stayed true to being with me in mydarkest hours. I’m amazed at the work He’s done in me. I don’t look like what I’ve been through and Ihave my right mind…for the most part (lol). I have to thank my mother for introducing me to the Lordat a young age, knowing that I would need His favor all the days of my life. My mother is hands down,the best human being I have ever had the pleasure of meeting and spending time with. She has believedin me and pushed me to be all that I can be, my whole life. I’m sure there are times that she had morefaith in me and my abilities than I had. There’s nothing like a mothers love and support to let you knowthat you can accomplish anything you put your mind to. Having my mother as my #1 supporter andmy son as my #1 fan makes me feel like I can take on the world. I’m so thankful to my son for beingpatient with me as I balance the roles of motherhood and first time, start-up entrepreneur. My son’s loveand support of my passion to lift and inspire the Black community is priceless; and I think he’s learn-ing a thing or two about taking care of his community and seeing the importance of being a leader forhis family and the next generation. Family is super important to me…I’d be nothing without the loveand support of my family! Thank you to my dad, my pops, my sisters and brothers, grandparents, aunts,uncles, cousins, and those friends that are so close I consider you family!When I started this journey I knew that something needed to be done in our community to show thebeauty that our culture possesses. I’m blessed that 1 million viewers found something beautiful and ofvalue at CulSire.com. I’d like to thank every single person that has supported CulSire by viewing thewebsite, liked a post, shared a post, leaving a comment, or liking our social media pages, or just talkingabout us with their friends and getting the word out. Knowing that people are appreciating the contentthat we share and supporting us in our journey to be a light on the Black community is such a wonderfulfeeling. Often times I’m asked why I have a business based around the Black community, it’ll never work,Black people don’t support Black people, Black people aren’t attracted to positive content. But we’reproving the naysayers wrong! I believe, if you give people something that makes them feel good, and beproud about who they are and their community…they will come! Here we are, one year after launch,in 217 countries and territories, having 1 million visitors and viewing over 3 million pages. Thank youfor showing me and the world that you don’t have to sell negativity to be successful. I salute you all andthank you from the bottom of my heart.Lastly, I’d like to thank my right hand lady who’s been rocking with me since before the launch Ms.Anjela Childs. I’m so thankful and appreciative of her love and support, not only of myself, but of thecommunity as a whole. As the first team member of Team CulSire she has played an instrumental rolein the direction and voice of CulSire. I don’t know what this past year would have been like if she wasn’tat my side giving me strength and encouraging me forward. The good Lord saw fit to give me a doublescoop of favor when he brought me Jamie Robinson, who has taken my marketing game to a whole newlevel. Jamie, your expertise and professionalism, has been a great addition to the team. I don’t knowwhat I did before you, but I’m glad I don’t have to live life without you! Thank you both for taking on mydream and working it like it’s your own. I love you both, more than words can ever say and more than I’llever be able to show you.I’m looking forward to what year two has to offer CulSire, and I know that with God and the supportLaNéesystem I currently have, THERE’S NO LIMIT to where we can go.

ContentsThe Year In Review ........................................................................... 3Founder Biography ........................................................................... 4Dr. Umar Johnson ............................................................................ 6The Village Symposium .................................................................. 7Meet the Panelists ............................................................................ 8Meet the Entertainers ...................................................................... 9The CulSire Team ............................................................................. 10Our Sponsors .................................................................................... 11 events Friday, March 13 | 7pm - 10pm An Evening with Dr. Umar Johnson | Private Fundraiser & Banquet Caribbean Palm Restaurant 7049 E. McDowell Road, Scottsdale, AZ 85257 Saturday, March 14 | 11am - 3pm The Village Symposium: Solutions for Economics, Education and Family in the Black Community South Mountain Community College Library 7050 South 24th Street, Phoenix, AZ 850422

The year in reviewSOCIAL MEDIACulSire’s social media following is ever expanding. Our community of men (31%) and women(69%), mostly between the ages of 35 and 44 (29%) are active daily and extremely engaged. Ourthought provoking, original content keeps our followers entertained and informed about theissues concerning our community.Top 30 Cities Top 10 Countries “CulSire is a place that is1. Phoenix 1. United States melding our rich history and2. Atlanta 2. Kenya present passions to help guide3. Boston 3. United Kingdom us into a future that encour-4. New York 4. Canada ages zesty individualism and5. Chicago 5. Trinidad and Tobago cooperative success. Prepare6. Philadelphia 6. Nigeria for an enriching experience7. Brooklyn 7. South Africa when culture meets desire.”8. Los Angeles 8. Brazil — Cynthia Williamston,9. Washington DC 9. Jamaica CEO & Founder of Bridal10. Houston 10. Spain Tribe Magazine11. Dallas12. Baltimore User Access/Technology “CulSire supports ALL aspects13. Columbus Mobile 70 % of our people and our busi-14. Detroit Desktop 21 % ness enterprises. CulSire is a15. Nairobi, Kenya Tablet 9% one stop for all things Black16. Chandler, AZ and positive.”17. Charlotte Press — Ron Bryant founder of18. Indianapolis MyClickUrban.com Cutting Edge Cartoon19. Cleveland BlackEnterprise.com20. Las Vegas BlackNews.com “I love the site because I am a21. Tampa CNNiReport.com very practical person. I look22. St. Louis OnlineHappyHour.com for sites that can help me23. Sacramento Let’s Talk Real Live Radio be successful. I love this site24. Cincinnati because it does just that. Facts25. San Diego What people are saying: not fluff.”26. London, England “CulSire is a phenomenal — Shawn Hill CEO of Get-27. Bronx reflection of its phenomenal ting Skinny & Wealthy28. Oakland leader. It is LaNee’s decision29. Memphis to breathe life into this beauti-30. Miami ful platform that has allowedGoogle Analytics it to flourish. CulSire is very,Sessions: 1,003,943 very special.”Users: 871,587 — Dr. Boyce Watkins,Page views: 3,163,169 YourBlackWorld.netPages / Session: 3.23Bounce Rate: 4.01% Rod Brown, C.O.O. at 3% New Sessions: 78% OnceLogix calls it “the vir-% Returning Sessions: 22% tual USA Today for people of color.”

founder Biography Have you ever left your city on a flight across the nation and wondered what was happening in the Black com- munity in your destination city? As a Black business owner, have you ever wanted to connect with like-mind- ed business leaders across the nation? As a parent, have you wished for one place where you could find positive resources, information about education, scholarships, and youth organizations for your child? What about the yearning to have one website where you can be connected to several Black communities all in “one” place? LaNée Javet is the CEO of Legacy Jeté Brand Media, the founder of CulSire, and she is a Mogul Business Architect who helps entreprenuers and businesses elevate to their mogul stature. She too has those same desires for connec- tivity of Black communities and information. She had the idea to create a platform that would be dedicated to the strength and resilience of Black culture and the desires of all those who struggled and fought for the life and rights that she and many others have today. An environment that would cultivate a more connected global Black community through a one stop shop for Black information and from those aspirations … CulSire was born. LaNée’s goal was to help Black businesses grow, give young people something affirming and different to look at and to connect communities with provocative information through a single hub. She thought, “We can’t get on the same page as a people because there’s no one page.” There’s no one single place to be connected, to access resources and to find out what’s happening in our communities across the nation. LaNéJe avet4

The focus of the platform is to represent the aspirations we have as a people, which are the 5same that our ancestors had (those desires haven’t changed in centuries), and that is to see ourchildren grow up to be healthy, educated, engaging adults who are free to define their ownlives without restriction. Add to that focus a representation of how Black people live, the waywe see ourselves, how we engage, our experiences and customs, basically, our culture, and youhave “CulSire” - where culture meets desire.LaNée believes we have to take steps today, in this generation, if we’re going to improve life forthe next generations and to do that, we have to be well informed. LaNée launchedCulSire.com on March 15, 2014, to be the premier lifestyle, education, entertainment andempowerment destination for people of color around the world.LaNée’s ultimate vision is to see CulSire be a single point that includes state/city pages whereyou can find out what’s happening in your community and others. A place where you can findcareer resources, Black business directories, Black history, events, historical site information,and other points of unity. Where you can find education, youth resources and scholarshipinformation, and where Black family, life, beauty and positive images are showcased.The commitment to this endeavor did not come without intentional sacrifice. Realizing itwould be a huge undertaking and commitment to initiate this type of movement, LaNéeworked while she went back to school and obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in OrganizationalInnovation and her Master’s in Business Administration. Then in 2013, she resigned from hercorporate position to pursue her vision full time.LaNée Javet brings a true entrepreneurial spirit and drive to better the Black community. Shebelieves that CulSire will not only help the state of Black people in our generation but will alsocultivate a better global Black community for us all. She is committed to the advancement of“that global community today more than ever before. Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.’ We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other peo- ple will not feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as chil- dren do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone and as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give others permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” — Marianne Williams

special guest Dr. Umar Abdullah-Johnson is a Certified School Psychologist who practices privately throughout Penn- sylvania and lectures throughout the country. Umar is a blood relative of Frederick Douglass, the great Black abolitionist and orator. As a school psychologist Umar evaluates children ages 3-21 in an effort to determine if they have educational disabilities and a need for spe- cial education services. Umar is considered a national expert on learning disabilities and their effect on Black children, as well an expert on helping schools and par- ents modify challenging behaviors that can ultimately lead to disruptive behavior disorder diagnoses in Black boys. As a child therapist, Dr. Umar specializes in working with at-risk, violent, suicidal and depressed African- American boys and girls. For five years he served as JDro. humnasronthe youngest of five African-American male school psychologists in the 5th largest pub- lic school district in America - The School District of Philadelphia. Dr. Umar has been featured on various Black talk shows, college campuses, workshops, conferences and panels in the United States and beyond. In addi- tion to his media appearance, Umar is a highly sought after motivational and informational speaker, his speaking engagements vary in form from workshops, to expert panels throughout the country. Dr. Umar is considered an authority on the education of African-American children and on mental health in the Black community. At 38 years old, Dr. Umar Johnson is a shining beacon in the fields of Black Psychology and Black Education. Dr. Umar has presented before embassies, stadiums, museums, schools, universities, churches, correctional facilities, community centers and international audienc- es. With the genealogy of Douglass and determination of Garvey, Bro. Johnson’s Fire is unstoppable!!!6

the villagesymposiumSolutions for Economics, Education and Family in the Black CommunityThe Village Symposium is an annual discussion Saturday, March 14, 2015hosted by CulSire to continue our quest to find The Village Symposiumsolutions for economics, education and families South Mountain Communityin the Black community. As the voice of the Blackcommunity, it is our desire to keep the lines of College Librarycommunication open so that we understand theimportance of uplifting our own. Solutions for our Sequence of Eventschallenges should be discovered and communi- • Welcome: Monica Craig, Event Hostcated so that each of us can respond in a proactive • National Black Anthem: Lead by Collette Blakeneyway. • Introductinon of CulSire: LaNée Javet, Founder • Introduction of Dr. Umar Johnson: LaNée JavetOur inaugaral event will feature Dr. Umar John-son and will include a solution-based lecture and Dr. Umar Johnsondiscussion concerning our community. Guest 150 Years of Freedom 1865 – 2015panelists include entrepreneur and philanthro-pist, Andre Hatchett of BuyBlackNYC.com and Songstress Collete Blakeneymarriage advocate, Aukesha Cherry of WeLo- Poet Qosmic QadenceveOurMarriage.com. Hosted by Monica Craig ofHigh Living Concierge, this event will also include Introduction of the Symposium Panelsinger/songwriter Collette Blakeney and poetry Panel Q & Aby Qosmic Qadence.Join us as we kick off this tradition during ourfirst anniversary festivities. Add your voice to thediscussion and do your part to help discover solu-tions to some of our most challenging issues. 7

Guest panelists Andre hatchett Andre C. Hatchett is a nationally acclaimed entrepreneur and philanthropist. Hatchett is the owner of Priority Notary, Inc. and co-founder of BuyBlackNYC.com. Hatchett, also known as “Mr. Buy Black,” is the driving force behind the national Black Business Challenge social media cam- paign that encourages African-Americans to patronize Black- owned businesses, record feedback about their experience via their cell phone, and then post the footage online using the #BlackBusinessChallenge hashtag. The campaign, which was ini- tially planned for 30 days but has increased to 395 days, garnered the attention of media outlets and sparked mass appeal in Black economics. aukesha cherry Aukesha Cherry is Co-Founder of We Love Our Marriage, which promotes healthy, joyful and sexy marriages through its marriage resource website [www.weloveourmarriage.com] and exciting events. Aukesha writes, speaks and teaches about the power and benefits of marriage. Over the years, she has come to the realiza- tion that husbands and wives hope to create beautiful memories, accomplish remarkable things together and have an amazing life. She is passionate about sharing tools and valuable information to help couples reach those goals and build lifetime marriages. Hosted by monica craig Monica Y. Craig is a Holistic LifeStylist, Motivational Speaker, Holistic Entrepreneur and Minister. Monica recently launched High Living Concierge a luxury lifestyle concierge service that creates experiences for men and women that place Holistic wellness as priority.8

Entertainment Collette Blakeney Singer/songwriter Collette was born and raised in the heart of South Carolina. In 2008, she released the debut album “Experi- ence Collette” with a fresh new take on hip-hop soul. She went on to earn the 2010 John Lennon International Songwriting Compe- tition with the single “Keep Christmas Alive,” and performed as a featured artist in GAP retail stores’ Born To Play concert series. Following a successful Kickstarter album funding campaign, Collette rewarded fans’ generosity with an EP titled “Coco By Request” – and in the process, earned a nomination for Female Vocalist of the Year at SoulTracks.com. Collette’s singles have been featured domestically and abroad by Music Choice TV network, CentricTV.com, Okayplayer.com and SoulBounce.com among many others. She’s shared the stage with Chrisette Michele, Noel Gourdin, Rachelle Ferrell, Talib Kweli, MC Lyte, Jon B., Dwele, and Anthony David. In 2012, she was featured on the Danny Swain single “Keep Your Head To The Sky” which grabbed the attention of hip-hop impresarios Questlove and Jay-Z as reported by Okayplayer.com. Qosmic Qadence Born from very humble beginnings in Washington, D.C., Muwie or Qūe (as he’s affectionately referred to by family and friends) is a Poet; Author; Song Writer; Spoken Word Artist; outside of the fictitious box thinker & impassioned Motivational Speaker, who lives to inspire life in others. ‘Qosmic Qadence’ would be introduced to creative writing in 2nd grade & through the years has continued to nourish a relationship therein. He believes that, “Creative writing affords the holder of the pen an opportunity to share insightful craftiness soul gener- ated.” In late 2007 he began to compose creative works with a fury never before experienced. He has since penned over 600 poems, quotes, songs & other inspirational content, on various aspects of life. 9

The culsire team anjela childs Anjela M. Childs, Founder and President of Virtually Unstoppable Assistants, is CulSire’s Chief Operation Officer/Managing Editor. As a highly skilled Virtual Assistant, she handles everything from executive level office support to project management keeping the organization on track. Responsible for the performance of all Department functions, she plans, organizes and directs the day-to-day operations at CulSire ensur- ing that the company goals are being supported. Born and raised in Boston, MA, Anjela always had dreams of being a lawyer so she went to college where she studied Criminal Justice and English but her entrepreneurial spirit took over. She started many busi- nesses from event planning to a green residential and commercial clean- ing company. In 2006 she was reading an article in the Black Enterprise Magazine about a virtual assistant and she knew she finally found her calling. Before she could finish the last paragraph, she was already map- ping out her next business venture. Anjela is also the Co-founder of a grassroots group called United Sisters of Color where a handful of women provide services to Boston men, women, children and families in need. United Sisters of Color’s mission is very simple: Sisterhood and Service. Anjela wanted to provide a plat- form where black women can rebuild the bond with each other while giving back to the community they live in. jamie robinson Jamie Robinson is a highly regarded marketing professional who has been breathing new life into old brands for almost 15 years. Jamie’s pas- sion for the marketing industry fuels her desire for continued growth, leaving her ahead of the curve as marketing technology expands. Her consumer-focused approach leaves customers delighted and increases her clients’ ROI. Equipped with over a decade of experience branding, promoting and positioning companies with different types of sales models including e-commerce and direct-sales, Jamie has joined the CulSire team as a marketing mentor and consultant. She’s run a successful creative and marketing firm called Mahogany Squared since 1999 and in 2013 started a mentoring company for Black business owners called Black Owned10 Marketing.

Our sponsors 11

12

13

14

15

16

iZania, a Black business community created to facilitate the growth of Black-owned businessesand to be an advocate for social issues in the Black community. www.izania.com 17

18

19

20