Hosted by actress, comedienne, author and game show host Kim Coles, the fashion show featured the work of local clothing designers CLEONS Clothing, GOCA Designs, Shavonne Dorsey, StudioAlade, Khojo Dresses and Borris Powell. The accessory designers included Moto Handbags and D’Haute Jewelry.
Bloggers and Red Pump Project founders Luvvie Ajayi and Karyn Watkins established the nonprofit organization that was originally a blog in 2009, with the aspirations to promote education and raise awareness about HIV/AIDS and the impact of the disease in the African-American community, specifically with girls and women. Luvvie says she and Karyn wanted to fuse fashion with this cause because women love fashion and since red is a power color, the red pump is the organization’s power logo.
“If it affects some of us, it affects all of us,” Luvvie says, who brings experience with working with nonprofit organizations.
Sister Yaa Simpson, an epidemiologist with the Chicago Department of Public Health, was honored with the Ultimate Red Pump Rocker Award for her work in the education of HIV/AIDS awareness and gave a compelling speech with statistics about how the disease affects African-American women.
“I’m in awe of people who open their hearts and give back to the community, which is why I wanted to be a part of this event,” Kim comments.
For more information on the Red Pump Project, visit www.theredpumpproject.org.
