Becoming Your Own Superhero
Editor's note: This October 1 ceremony was the last HerStory Award ceremony in this milestone year 2022. The national HerStory Awards Ceremony will resume next year on a quarterly basis. Please, stay tuned!
On Oct 1, 2022 WFWP USA held the last National HerStory Award ceremony of the year which was virtual and attended by 35 participants and emceed by Dr. Susan Taffer, Founder & CEO of World Connections Foundation. The HerStory awardees represented various backgrounds but the common denominator among them was that despite life’s insurmountable challenges, they chose to look at the bright side of things and inspire others. Dr. Taffer welcomed all the participants and then proceeded to introduce Women’s Federation for World Peace (WFWP) USA President Mrs. Angelika Selle who shared an introductory video that highlighted the founding of WFWP and the Global Women’s Peace Network (GWPN) as well as its founders, and activities the organization has done.
Following this, President Selle welcomed everyone and thanked all the women who had laid the foundation for the WFWP and GWPN. She shared, “This is truly a work of heart, of love, of service and sacrifice of so many women and it is such an honor to be part of this movement and the divine feminine God.”
Each awardee was then introduced briefly with her bio as well as a personal sharing from the person who recommended them. President Selle virtually presented the award and each of the awardees was able to share her story with the participants.
Read below for a snippet of their stories and lessons shared upon receiving the HerStory Award.
To watch the whole HerStory Program Click Here.
The first speaker of the day was Mrs. Simone Doroski Miyazaki, Real Estate Agent, Advocate, Writer, Mrs. Hamptons, Community Service Activist and Reporter.
She shared that like many of us, she has always wanted to create a world of peace and harmony by taking care of people.
“My point one will be to keep your faith or purpose, that vertical connection to God and the universe, close to your heart and don’t forget it…
My second point will be that sometimes it is hard to see what the universe has in store for you…The course of the way things happen, you don’t always plan for it but God and the universe really give you what you need and it really does bring you in a way that you really can help others on a bigger scale.
My third point that I would like to bring up is remember your importance and be true to yourself. Your community is your family so you have to take care of your home. Mrs. Hamptons happened because it was during the time of COVID and somebody nominated me because they knew I had a background in community service and at first I told them no, five times. But then I started thinking that this is going to force me to leave my house and get back into community service, which I love, taking care of me, physically working out and getting me to dress up again...It kind of forced me out of my comfort zone and became a local leader in the area, a community activist, speaking, going to community events, volunteering with nonprofits, and making connections. I became who I was again by pushing and putting myself in a position that was out of my comfort realm. I ended up really just embracing my community.“
To read Mrs. Simone Doroski Miyazaki bio and to see the full recording of her award and speech click here.
The second speaker of the day was Honorable Judge Saundra McNair Lawyer, & administrative judge for the District of Columbia, Washington DC.
Hon. McNair shared her gratitude for receiving the award and Dr. Dottie Chicquelo read her statement.
“In May 2018, my mom was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. I went with her to every appointment. It was a labor of love. God carried and sustained us both and the family during this time. All Praises to God, she is still cancer free! I have been on a major journey… With the blessed skills that God gave the doctors, nurses and hospital staff, the prayers, concerns and assistance from my family, friends and sorors and most importantly the blessing and favor of God, I am still here. As it says in the word “And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast” 1 Peter 5:10.
My love of and for God has only grown stronger! During my journey, I never asked, Why me, God? I never asked that because the answer is always, Why NOT you? I can work a miracle through you… Thank you, God, for using me as your instrument to show others what you can and will do for those who love you...”
To read Honorable Judge Saundra McNair bio and to see the full recording of her award and speech click here.
The third speaker of the day was Ms. Kedma Ough, Vice President of Coaching, ConquerNow Funding Expert, Business Coach, Investor, Author and Small business superhero.
She shared that she truly believes that everyone is born into a movie.
“I was born into a horror film. Once you enter into a horror film, as a victim, you rarely escape. I would like to leave you with the three lessons I learned and I live by:
1. Sometimes no one is coming to save you. You have to save yourself.
2. I believe you have an obligation to be the director of your own movie no matter what the movie looks like. You still have choice, even if it doesn’t look like it. You have a choice where you choose the attitude. You can choose to smile, you can choose happiness no matter what is happening on the outside. Nobody can take that away from you.
3. If you resonate or have been in a position like me, congratulations, you are in a PhD School for spirituality. You are no longer in kindergarten, you are no longer in middle school, you are in PhD and you should be proud of it. I will never consider myself a victim, I will only say I was victimized.”
To read Ms. Kedma Ough bio and to see the full recording of her award and speech click here.
The last speaker of the day was Ms. Kim Evans, President, Your Wings LLC Optimal Performance Coach, Executive Consultant and Certified Mind/Body RSM Synergist.
She shared that when she was younger, she was raised by her grandparents in the countryside with animals like horses. That gave her feedback on how she was feeling by their responses and how to shift her emotions. Through the role models in her extended family, she volunteered in the special olympics.
“They taught me a lot. One of the biggest memories I have is that when the race was happening, one of the girls fell and we were now not applauding the people that made it across the finish line but we were applauding that girl to give her the love and encouragement to get up to make it across that finish line, and I still get emotional when I think about that because I think that is what we all are striving to do and that is what Mother Moon is wanting by empowering the women to bring love, bring community and bring unity into our communities and into our world. And it was wonderful in that story to see how the person when she made it across the finish line got the greatest applause of all. That is true because we can see how people are trying their best… I know in my life it was the grace and love of others that continued to give me hope and continued to help me overcome the challenges that I have been faced with.”
To read Ms. Kim Evans bio and to see the full recording of her award and speech click here.