12 women drop ‘Pearls of Wisdom’ at Butterfly Effect Project event

The Butterfly Effect Project revived its Pearls of Wisdom tea party fundraiser Saturday, Sept. 20 in Mastic Beach, where 12 remarkable women shared their inspiring stories and imparted knowledge on the next generation of leaders in the room.

Everyone dressed in all-black attire, browsed some items from Sylvia’s Handbags and tried their luck in winning one of the 100 raffle baskets donated by Nancy Reyer of the Michael’s Smile Collection.

The event’s highlight was the chosen speakers who each shared three minutes of wisdom that empowered, motivated and uplifted the young girls and women in the audience. One of the speakers, Shanneikqua Tolliver, shared her story of breaking generational curses and encouraged the youth to embrace failure.

“Making a mistake is a guarantee: We all have made them, you will continue to make them,” Ms. Tolliver said. “Learning from those mistakes is an option. Some people choose to ignore that lesson, but if you embrace it, I guarantee you will grow.”

All the proceeds from the raffle ticket sales and sponsorship opportunities go towards The Butterfly Effect Project‘s College Access and Retention Program, which primarily assists BEP’s high school students in covering the cost of college applications and SAT prep. The program also provides support to current college students.

Here are some photos from the second annual Pearls of Wisdom event, shared by The Butterfly Effect Project founder Tijuana Fulford: