experience for an electrifying world class show like Music Fest. 

approval for her awe-inspiring sound. Until then, she is building her brand and guarding her voice. Her talent is endless. Her work ethic is impeccable.

Melvina 'Mel' Chapman was born on the beautiful island of St. Kitts and Nevis, and raised in Leeds, England. She now calls Houston, Texas home. She's been a supplier of hospitality and marketing services for well over 25 years.

Melvina’s experiences include an internship at the famed Dorchester Hotel in London, a Food and Beverage manager at the Four Seasons Hotel, Houston, a Sales and Marketing Manager, corporate event coordinator at the GRB Convention Center in Houston, a Manager of global meetings, events with the Coca-Cola Company and a Regional Marketing Manager for the Microsoft Corporation.

Melvina served as the Director of Special Events and liaison of the Sales and Marketing Council at the Greater Houston Builders Association, the 3rd largest home builders association in the US, where she was responsible for the organizations’ most prestigious events.

Over the years, Melvina has guided her event teams to successfully coordinate hundreds of meetings, trade shows, special events, executive retreats, product launches and numerous sporting events such as the Summer/Winter Olympics, World Cup and Super Bowl.

Melvina served as President of the St. Kitts and Nevis Association of Houston (SKNAH) and along with her board, led the association with pride and distinction for 6 years. Melvina now serves as the Founder and Executive Director of The Caribbean Cultural Coalition, a non-profit organization dedicated to assisting members of the Caribbean community at home and in the US.A graduate of Park Lane College, Melvina holds a degree in Business Administration.

Mel lives her life through the lens of – Work Hard, Play Harder. She is an avid traveler and has traversed the globe for both business and pleasure. When asked what gives her the most joy, she smiles and mentions her husband Calvin, her two handsome sons, Zack and Anthony and her lovely grand children.

Melvina is truly a phenomenal woman.

Mrs. Sharon Huggins believes she was inherently born to be a giver and take care of others. She's a nurturer by nature and she truly loves to see people happy. A born again christian, Sharon regards the mishaps of others as her business. She has a caring and generous spirit and believes she has a special love and calling for the work she currently does.

After relocating from New York to Port Charlotte Florida, Sharon's path in life shifted. She became a business owner and Director of Kidz of the Future Daycare and has sat in the Director's chair for over 13 years. Sharon worked for almost 20 years in corporate America at many different levels. She also has series 66 and series 7 certificates registered with the SEC and the New York Stock Exchange.

She shifted career paths after pursuing business degrees in finance and investments. She was bold, visionary, and empowered. Sharon saw a need and she filled it. She has become a pillar for her family and her community.

Instead of returning to corporate America, she used her business savvy and founded the Lighthouse Restoration Home, Inc., a not-for-profit organization that offers support for women, children, and families in her community. She has great plans to extend her work to other cities but is taking small footsteps as she watches her handiwork blossom ever so beautifully. Sharon is a change maker in every right!

Sharon is a mother to her queen Alisha, and her king Giovanni, and has been married for many years to her dear husband Ali. She loves her family to her core and describes them as "her breath". She counts her gifts as blessings from God.

Phoenetia Browne is an all around athlete at heart. Born in the US, she was raised by St. Kitts and Nevis parents who stopped at nothing to ensure she and her siblings were immersed in sports just as they were in academics.

Phoenetia had the best of both worlds, having migrated to New Jersey at the age of 7, while ingrained with the solid guidance of her St. Kitts and Nevis village. Her success in sports includes many state and county championship wins with her soccer and basketball teams. Although she also competed in softball, lacrosse, track and field, and other sporting activities, it was football that became her forever sport.

Phoenetia earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering with a minor in Architecture and completed her Master’s of Science in Civil Engineering. She continued to play soccer throughout her matriculation and even worked as an Assistant women’s soccer coach at the University of St. Elizabeth before switching careers and applying her degrees as an Assistant Engineer at Turner Construction in NYC.

Phoenetia chose to play professional football for UMF Sindri in Iceland where she earned a player of the year nomination, and was second in the league in goals scored. Safe to say, she never looked back. Phoenetia has a storied history as a European female soccer player and she currently plays with AS Saint-Etienne.

Phoenetia founded Play More Live Better (PMLB) Recruiting Services in 2019, with the mission of guiding student-athletes in the Caribbean through the process of becoming student-athletes at colleges/universities abroad. She also founded the MPWR Girls Football Camp alongside her St. Kitts and Nevis teammate, Brittney Lawrence. MPWR introduces young girls in St. Kitts and Nevis to football in a fun and challenging environment.

Phoenetia continues to honor the memory of her late mother, Ms. Andrea Charles-Browne, who was a highly acclaimed St. Kitts and Nevis diplomat of the United Nations, and a national athlete who competed  in cricket, netball, and track and field. Her mother was an Ambassador in diplomacy, education and sports and Phoenetia is eager to follow the path her mother paved for her.

Leah T. Williams is an educator and author of the novel, Neither out far nor in Deep. She hails from the independent Caribbean twin island nation of St. Kitts and Nevis. Here, she tells the story of a single mother who is so conflicted raising her 17-year-old son in the fast pace of city life that one day, she takes him to the land of her birth where life takes on a whole new meaning, for her son and her family. In this chit chat with Leah, the author, she expresses her love for writing and for the island upbringing that has shaped the woman she is and will continue to be.

In this episode of Platform and Possibilities, we highlight how the Covid-19 pandemic has affected the future of many New York City Catholic schools. These schools have served their communities in multiple ways but require sustainable funding to keep their doors open. After decades of service to the Harlem Community, my child’s first formal institution of learning closes its doors this summer. The Ascension story is a reminder of the beauty of our communities as immigrants who play an integral role wherever we go. The beauty of the diversity that echoed in the classrooms at Ascension everyday will always make my heart smile and I know without talking about it to my child, she too will always remember how her heart smiled on those very steps she walked each day to learn, play and grow.

In this edition of Platform and Possibilities we celebrate Caribbean American heritage month and the splendor that surrounds the month of June, that special time of year for Caribbean Americans. However, we must take pause during the scorching summer months to examine a piece of our collective Caribbean truth that we seem to be challenged by; the current scourge of crime that is wreaking havoc across many of our tourism vested Caribbean countries.

YES, June is Caribbean American Heritage Month, but what about the ugly face of Crime? How will our islands cope with the challenges crime brings?

We have tough questions to ask on crime but even tougher challenges to find practical solutions to help keep our people safe. Let's not allow crime to spiral out of control.

In this edition of  Platform and Possibilities, we feature the tragic demise of Jordan Neely, a 30 year old black American man

whose life violently ended while riding on a New York City subway, subdued by a former US Marine, who deemed Jordan’s erratic behavior a threat to his safety and the public. A chokehold would end the life of Jordan Neely and not long after would come protests that sparked a deeper investigation into the case resulting in Daniel Penny being charged with Jordan’s murder. Penny faces up to 16 years in prison if found guilty of Jordan’s death.

About two years ago, a dear friend who wanted to remind me of the power of aging shared with me 20 SPECIAL NOTES TO live by as you age! Of course, these tidbits are no where new to most of us but we must be ever so mindful of how intimately we align with these and other words of wisdom to live by! These tidbits were shared on 20 business days in May and are now conveniently shared here so that whether you’re young or not so young, something meaningful may resonate with you in this month of “May” and beyond.