Join the CYP Club for a moderated panel discussion focused on “Community Impact” on Tuesday, May 7th from 5:30-7pm at Ohio Brewing Co. It’s a part-social, part educational after-work conversation featuring community leaders from around central Ohio, opportunities to learn about local causes, interactive Q&A, and great connections.
This event is free to attend and all are welcome!
Panelist Bios
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Trina Jones is a social worker, storyteller, and encourager with a passion for seeing others overcome the barriers they face. Trina seeks to offer solutions through sharing her lived experience in the foster care system and to provide hope for healing and healthy relationships.
Over the years she has had many professional accomplishments that show she continues to grow and develop opportunities for people to live thriving lives. She started her professional career providing direct services to women coming out of trafficking through Safe Harbor House in Springfield Ohio. She has since linked arms with Think Tank Inc and helps co-facilitate trainings around helping people understand the human experience of poverty. Trina has a Bachelor's Degree in Social Work from Liberty University and is the Senior Administrator for Turning Point Home in Columbus Ohio.
The Turning Point Home is a sober living home for previously trafficked women where they can learn to live independently through mentoring, support and encouragement. In addition, on-site classes are offered in areas of trauma recovery, healthy boundaries, life skills, employment, parenting, culinary, exercise and more."
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Robert Fournier is a compassionate and energetic professional, with over fifteen years experience managing relationships at both multinational investment firms and non-profit organizations.
Robert joined United Way of Central Ohio in 2021 as a Relationship Manager of Leadership Giving. Previously, he served as the Assistant Director of Development at the Carnegie Science Center. Robert also comes to his role with experience from United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania, where he led a comprehensive research-based engagement program that targeted young professional philanthropists, with the goal of enhancing relationships through volunteerism, advocacy, and financial support.
Robert has a diverse array of experience spanning the for-profit and nonprofit sectors, including roles at BlackRock Inc., Wilshire Associates, and the Human Rights Campaign. He is excited for the opportunity to implement effective fundraising strategies that will support the mission and vision of United Way.
Robert has a Bachelor’s degree in Business Finance from Howard University and a Master’s degree in Public Management from Carnegie Mellon University.
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Gabrielle Solange is a Top 200 Billboard charting music artist and keynote speaker whose vulnerable storytelling allows her to connect with diverse audiences across the US and abroad. A former runaway in the foster care system, she credits her faith and the inner city youth arts programs of Columbus, Ohio for providing opportunities that awakened her to her self-worth and purpose.
She has been blazing a trail using her voice to entertain and educate while helping others to use theirs. She hosts creative workshops for schools and organizations through her company RunSong Productions, teaching the arts as a tool to process trauma, express emotion, connect with others, and overcome life's obstacles.
She is also a spokesperson for Life Is Better With You Here, a program created by the Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation to combat the increasing suicide rate in the Black community. She created the self-love and empowerment clothing brand, Confidentity and a culture podcast that shares the same name. She recently illustrated the young adult dystopian fantasy, Where The Stars Hide, for young adult author, Patricia Gulzar.
She now releases and performs her original music while advocating for causes that are dear to her heart, including mental health, anti-bullying, suicide prevention, anti-racism, and equality, with her latest music garnering the attention of Kelly Clarkson, and AfroTV's Sisaundra Lewis.
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Our panel of community thought leaders for this event includes Trina Jones (Social worker and Storyteller) Robert Fournier, (Relationship Manager, Leadership Giving at United Way of Central Ohio), and Gabrielle Solange (CEO at RunSong Productions).
Agenda
5:30pm: Arrival & Open Networking
5:55pm: Introduction of Community Impact 101 panel
6:00pm: Cocktails & Conversations panel discussion, moderated by Gabrielle Solange
6:45pm: Q&A session
6:55pm: Closing announcements
View our full calendar of Cocktails & Conversations events for 2024!