Miss Black Pasadena 2019, Eryn Pollard, was the special guest reader at February’s Chocolate Storytime. Pollard is a 17-year old junior at California School of the Arts. She read “I Am Enough” by Grace Byers and “Maggie Sinclair, Willi You Please Fix Your Hair?” by Hilary Grant Dixon.

Guests began the afternoon with the singing of the Negro National Anthem, “Lift Every Voice and Sing” accompanied by Betty J. Ford.

Tamieko Foster, founder and director of Miss Black Pasadena Mentor and Scholarship Program, talked about the competition’s mission of education and mentorship.  The program was established in 2018 with a mission of inspiring sisterhood, fostering community relationships, and promoting an inclusive atmosphere.

Ms. Betty J. Ford brought students, Lanei Huston (14 years old, 8th grader at Eliot Arts Middle School) and Sonali Redus (11 years old, 6th grader at Blair Middle School), to recite her poetry. She also talked about her childhood and the impact of practice on excellence. Alicia Randall and Linda Cole led young guests in creating a mosaic collage based on the national Black History Month theme, “Black Migration” and the diversity that it has created. Snacks were provided by Barbara Lindsey from Inglewood, CA.