Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
Over 10,000 members of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the oldest predominantly African-American sorority in the country, are in St. Louis for their annual convention.
Among this year’s highlights was a special honoring ceremony for Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who is a member of the organization founded 102 years ago.
“I just hope all of us who were here who were honored and recognized, that we will serve as a motivation for many of the young women all over the world who aspire to be good professionals, who aspire to be great leaders, who aspire to be competitive in whatever they do and to reach their lifelong dream of being whatever they want to do,” Sirleaf told KDSK.com in St. Louis.
The AKAs made a surprise donation of $500,0000 to Sirleaf to help build a market – and business option — for women who lost their husbands during the country’s brutal civil war that claimed the lives of more than half a million Liberians.
Sirleaf, who is Africa’s first elected female President and a Harvard-trained economist, has begun her campaign for re-election in the country’s national elections scheduled for next year.
Other award recipients at the convention included Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter, U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin, Canada’s Governor General Michaëlle Jean and lawmakers Sheila Jackson Lee (D. – Texas), Diane E. Watson (D-Calif.) and Bernice Eddie Johnson (D-Texas)
Source: Bet.com