Out & About: Continentals hold annual Scholarship Fundraiser and Fashion Show 2019

New York. London, Paris, Milan and City Ave.

Continental Societies Inc., Philadelphia Chapter hosted its annual fashion show and scholarship luncheon Saturday, Nov. 16, 2019, at the Hilton Hotel on City Avenue.

Hundreds of ladies came out for an afternoon of food, fashion and fellowship. Diedrelaithe Gibson Smith and Millicent Bryant were the co-chairs for the event with the help of fashion coordinator El Peay. The afternoon was hosted by Nathan Townsend.

The Scholarship Committee of the Philadelphia Chapter Continental Societies Inc. is on a mission to provide scholarships and support to high school students, and to continue a supportive relationship with scholarship students throughout the four years of college. The fashion show is their largest scholarship fundraising event.

Chapter President Debora Brown said, “It is an honor and privilege to host such an extravagant event each year. The fashion show is one of our major fundraising events that maintains the viability of our Mission Statement, supporting underserved children and youth in our communities. Through the five-point program, Health, Education, Employment, Recreation (HEER) plus Arts and Humanities, we are able to interact and aid these targeted youth”.

This year’s scholarship recipients included Khiyyiel Smith who is a junior at Howard University and Brianna Zane West who is a freshman at New Haven University.

The afternoon’s festivities kicked off with the Continentals strutting down the runway to Sister Sledge’s “We are Family”, dressed in “flame red” from head to toe accented with white pearls and their identifying red rose wrist corsage.

The chapter members are as follows: President Debora K. Brown,Second Vice President and Public Relations Officer Gloria Toxey Jones, Recording Secretary Millicent Bryant, Financial Secretary Diedrelaithe Gibson Smith, Treasurer, Historian and Past National President Kathleen Williams, Scholarship Chairperson and Past Regional Director Louise Moss, Yvonne Lee, Yvonne McIntosh and Lynda Tapper Smith.

Special guests included the Regional Director Christine Davenport who is a member of the Anne Aundel County (Maryland) Chapter, past scholarship winners and others from the Metropolitan Chapter of Continental Societies Inc.

Debora K. Brown ended the festivities by saying, “As chapter president, I would like to take this opportunity to thank our many supporters because you make it possible for us to give these scholarships, and we are quite appreciative. We hope to see you next year”.