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The 2016 & 2017 Top 20 under 40 Haitian American Young Professionals at the Presidential Gala with the President & First Lady of the Republic of Haiti.   
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Meet Daphne Valcin of Daphne Valcin Coaching  Child of Haitian immigrants, devoted mother, loving wife, and entrepreneur, Daphne Valcin is the Chief Executive Officer of Daphne Valcin Coaching. Daphne Valcin Coaching is a leadership and business coaching practice, based in Miami, Florida, that’s laser-focused on equipping clients with the strategies and tools that get them major results. She is a seasoned mentor, professional speaker, certified group facilitator, and leadership and business coach who has facilitated growth opportunities for thousands of people throughout the East Coast for more than a decade. Daphne holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Relations from the College of Journalism at the University of Florida as well as a Master of Science degree in Secondary Education from the University of Pennsylvania. She also holds Certified Professional Coach & Energy Leadership Index-Master Practitioner certifications from The Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching. Daphne is also the Executive Director of Project Inspire, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides college preparation; career preparation; self and community empowerment; scholarships; and professional development for youth and young adults. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself? I am a CEO, Leadership & Business Coach, and Professional Speaker with a mission to be a social change agent. I have focused much of my life on being a blessing to individuals and communities from as early as I can remember, and for over a decade, I’ve served thousands of individuals across the East Coast through speaking, mentorship, project management, and coaching. I am also a wife to an amazing husband, Bobby Valcin, and a proud mother of a 15-month-old girl, Jasmine Valcin. What do you do, and how did you get to where you are? What do you enjoy the most about your work? What’s a typical day like for you? As a leadership and business coach, I support my clients in meeting their personal and professional goals and in achieving the results they desire, whether it’s moving them from having a vision to transitioning that into a business, or having them go from having a business to making that business be more profitable, or providing them with a practical roadmap to success in the areas of their lives that they label as priority. I serve my clients virtually or in-person, and my client base has included individual and organizational clients all over the country in states including Florida, Georgia, Texas, New York, Philadelphia, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. I am also a professional speaker, having done keynote speeches and other speeches to audiences around the country, and especially throughout the East coast. I believe that I am successful because, from a very young age, people saw something in me and gave me a platform for that success. I was my preschool’s valedictorian (and I’m not even sure how I got that distinction but am happy to have it) and spoke at my preschool graduation; I was honored with the Women of Tomorrow title at Oak Grove Elementary in 6th grade and had the opportunity to do a speech about my dreams for my future in front of hundreds of students at my elementary school as a result of this honor; and in high school, my band director and other mentors gave me the space and support to provide guidance to my peers and speak to large audiences through formal leadership roles. There were times growing up when peers of various socioeconomic statuses would come to me for guidance and direction forming the foundation for me being a mentor to many. I ended up speaking at my college graduation from the University of Florida after being involved in almost 40 organizations there. I went on to work in Public Relations, interning, growing businesses, and supporting education-related organizations with my background in PR. I later fell in love with being in the classroom and serving youth directly, and because of the guidance of more than one stranger, ended up having the opportunity to attend an Ivy League University where I delved deeply into how to strategically educate and empower youth. I was told by more than one teen who I served that I had a gift for changing lives and empowering people. My current vocation combines my knack for empowerment with my love for growing organizations and with my passion for tapping into the potential of people and ideas. Even the challenges in my life had a huge impact on my journey. When I was 17 years old, I was in a severe car accident. I was the driver of a car where me and 5 of my peers almost lost our lives. With gang activity happening in my neighborhood, the first person who told me I was beautiful was murdered while I was in college. A peer who I tutored in high school was also murdered while I was in college. As a result of experiences like this, I highly value the fact that God has spared my life and I see the potential and possibility in the lives of everyone I encounter. This allows me to maximize every moment and help others to do the same. A young girl once came up to me crying after I spoke to her group. She said she was crying, because I had impacted her so much with my words. What I love about my work is that word, impact. I have the ability to change lives and even people’s legacies through the words I say, the strategies I share, and the empowerment I provide through coaching or speaking. A typical day in my career consists of working with 3-5 coaching clients as well as the sales, marketing, and operations functions of my business that contribute to its growth.  What are some of the things you want to accomplish in your career and in your life over the next 5 years? In the next five years, I would like to grow my business to include dance, movement, and more forms of creative expression when it comes to the experience of coaching clients. I would also like to host live events for personal and professional empowerment. I hope to integrate my daughter into my business somehow and personally, will continue to grow as a wife and mother to be the best I can be in those areas. Professional development is also huge for me. I’d love to continue to invest a large deal of time into developing even more expertise in coaching, business, and personal development and would also love to attain additional certifications including a professional resume-writing certification as well as membership in the National Speakers Association--a membership which can only be gained by doing a certain number of paid speaking engagements. What does being Haitian mean to you? To me, being Haitian represents strength and the ability to overcome. How can you put your gifts and talents of more use in the Haitian community? I have a heart for service and would love to continue to share messages of inspiration and empowerment to audiences within the community where I’m from in North Miami Beach, Florida--a community which has a large Haitian population. I have a passion for youth and can definitely do more to mentor our next generation as they try to navigate their way to success. What are you passionate about? I am passionate about youth, empowerment, dance, God, family, and being a blessing. Youth are at the core of social change. We must pass the torch of impact in our communities to them, so it’s critical that we equip them with everything they need to be successful. Empowerment is at the foundation of personal and professional change. It can totally redirect someone going down the wrong path, and it can heighten the success of those who are already doing well but can do so much better. Dance is my love. I believe self-expression is such a powerful tool, and if more people expressed themselves, we would live in a much more peaceful society. God is my first priority among everything else, and every action I take must have him at the center. My family is my next priority after God. My goals and my legacy must be based on how my family fits into that. And when it comes to being a blessing, that goes back to God. I am so passionate about the purpose I believe that he has placed on my life to be a blessing to others daily with the time that he’s given me here on earth. How can we support you in that? I would love to have additional platforms to share my message of empowerment with individuals, organizations, businesses, or universities so that I can walk even more in my purpose of being a social change agent. If you know of an opportunity for me to share resources associated with the following topics through speaking, I would love to chat with you about how I might be of service: - resilience in life and business; - how to lay a firm foundation when it comes to your dream business; - defeating obstacles to pursue dreams; or - perseverance, motivation, and preparation for success. What’s your superpower? I facilitate life-changing impact to those I support by helping them see life from a totally different lens. Through working with me, people often feel like they see way more possibilities or opportunities than they saw before. What’s your favorite quote? “We are each of us angels with only one wing, and we can only fly by embracing one another.” - Luciano De Crescenzo Finish this quote, being a Haitian-American Millennial means... Being a Haitian-American Millennial means being cognizant of sacrifices that those who came before me have made for me. For more information about Daphne Valcin Coaching: http://www.daphnevalcin.com/ Let's change the narrative of the Haitian community to a more positive one. Avanse Ansanm chooses to highlight the positive contributions of Haitian-American Millennials to South Florida and Haiti. Let's Avanse Ansanm.  Meet Lucy Dorlus of Bonjou from Lulu Child of proud Haitian immigrants, mother, devoted School Counselor and owner of Bonjou from Lulu, a Creole focused greeting card business. Bonjou from Lulu creates a way for people to express their feelings through greetings cards written in their native language. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself? My name is Lucy Edlene Dorlus. By day I am a devoted School Counselor for the Broward County Schools and by night I own and operate Bonjou from Lulu a Creole focused greeting card business. However, my most important job is being a mother to my 9 year old son, Judah Amiri. He is my reason WHY. I am the proud daughter of Haitian immigrants, who raised me in a religious home where the principles of care, compassion for others and pride in my culture were instilled at an early age. What do you do and how did you get to where you are? What do you enjoy the most about your work? What’s a typical day like for you? I am currently an elementary school counselor with Broward County Public Schools. I hold a Bachelor of Arts degree in History (a minor in Sociology and a certificate in Ethnic Studies), a Master of Arts degree in Teaching and Learning (Technology Integration) and a Specialist degree in School Counseling from FAU. In 2006, I became a history teacher at New River Middle School. However, after seeing a great need to assist students in improving their academic and social well-being, I transitioned to the role of school counselor in 2015. As an advocate for the rights of abused women and children, I have worked tirelessly to bring awareness to domestic violence. In 2012, I joined forces with Maggie Blaise, a survivor of domestic abuse, to found Free Yourself Women Foundation (FYWF), an organization dedicated to helping abused women and their children escape domestic violence through intervention, education, and financial assistance. I served as the organization’s Vice President for five years. What I enjoy most about my job as a school counselor is that I am able to offer students a place where they feel safe and will be heard. I also love that I get help students solve their problems and see them come up with their own solutions. Being a school counselor means that every day is different and brings new challenges. A typical day as a school counselor is so unpredictable and may be completely different than what one planned. No two days are the same and there is never a dull moment. I love the unpredictability of my day though. I wear many hats at work, not only am I the school counselor, I am also the testing coordinator, RtI coordinator, Child Abuse designee, Homeless designee, Foster Care designee, Bully designee, the translator and also help out where ever I am needed. What are some of the things you want to accomplish in your career and in your life over the next 5 years? In the next five years I would like to work as a coach/mentor to new school counselors and work as an adjunct professor at a local college or university and teach undergrad courses to students pursuing a degree in education and/or school counseling. Additionally, I hope to expand my greeting card business by partnering with American Greeting cards and Hallmark by creating greeting cards in Creole for their line of Haitian greeting cards. I also want to travel to Ghana and South Africa with my family. What does being Haitian mean to you? How connected are you with Haitian Culture? Being Haitian to me represents strength, courage, freedom, pride, faith, unity and resiliency. I love aspects of Haitian culture our Haitian people, Haitian food, Haitian music and dance, Haitian art…I LOVE all things Haitian. So much so, shortly after graduating from Florida Atlantic University, I began interning at the Haitian Heritage Museum in Miami, Florida. HHM is committed to highlighting and preserving Haiti’s rich culture and heritage globally. During my internship at the museum, I was a part of the launching of Ayiti Expose, an educational program that presents a look into Haitian culture to K-12 students in Dade County Public Schools. It was during this time that I decided to pursue a career in education. In 2015, I traveled to Haiti with "The Ultimate Haiti Experience," an organization committed to sharing the Haitian culture and lifestyle with a global audience. I fell in love with Haiti and its people during my trip. I experienced Haitian culture and history firsthand. Being in Haiti made me feel so proud to be Haitian. How can you put your gifts and talents of more use in the Haitian community? In 2017, I founded Bonjou from Lulu, a greeting card company that creates a way for people to express their feelings through greeting cards in Creole. The idea for BFL came as result of the absence of greeting cards written in my native language. I felt that an entire culture was unable to express themselves during holidays, birthdays, and special life events like the birth of a baby, communion, anniversaries, and graduations.  What are you passionate about? I am passionate about helping others find success and working with children. I find so much joy in helping others. How can we support you in that? Through encouraging all adults to devote time be a mentor to a child. Mentoring increases academic success and confidence while reducing behavioral problems in school. What’s your superpower? Like my late father, I consider my superpower my service to others. Muhammad Ali once said, “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.” I believe in giving back. The causes that are near and dear to me include children, education, domestic violence awareness and poverty. What’s your favorite quote? "It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men."-Frederick Douglass Finish this quote, being a Haitian-American Millennial means... Being a Haitian-American Millennial means continuing the proud and inspirational legacy of my ancestry. For more information about Bonjou from Lulu: https://www.bonjoufromlulu.com/  Avanse Ansanm chooses to highlight the positive contributions of Haitian-American Millennials to South Florida and Haiti. Let's Avanse Ansanm. Meet Jimmy Normil& Monroe Charles of Voix Inc Two Haitian-American Millennials born and raised in Miami-Dade County, children of Haitian Immigrants. By day, Mr. Normil (left) works in the Hospitality/Hotel Industry and Mr. Charles (right) is a healthcare professional. They are also the co-owners of Voix Inc where the mission is to bridge the gap between culture and fashion, with emphasis on quality and style. Why Voix Inc? We saw need to mix culture and urban fashion and so Voix Inc was created to help people represent their culture in a fashionable way.  What does being Haitian mean to you? It means having a sense of pride. It means knowing that you come from a people that have been tried and true and no matter the odds that have been stacked against us we are able to stand strong. We’re too rich to be poor. How can you put your gifts and talents of more use in the Haitian community? We are still a small business. We hope to be able to grow the business so that we have the resources to give back to in an impactful way. In the mean time we are working for a more positive image of Haitian people and Haitian culture. What are some of the things you want to accomplish over the next 5 years? We want to really grow the business with more style, more items, look books, and branch into other markets. How can we be supportive? First, purchase the hats. Represent our culture in a positive way. Encourage people to learn about and embrace our culture as well. What advice would you give to young black boys growing up today? You too can be an entrepreneur, be creative, and make an impact in your community. We don’t always have to be the buyers, we can be the sellers. Let's change the narrative of the Haitian community to a more positive one. Avanse Ansanm chooses to highlight the positive contributions of Haitian-American Millennials to South Florida and Haiti. Let's Avanse Ansanm. For more information about Voix Inc:  About Avanse Ansanm Avanse Ansanm is a movement to engage South Florida Haitian American Millennials in creating a shared agenda for the advancement of the Haitian community & increasing Haitian American Millennial volunteerism, commitment, connectivity, and investment in the Haitian Community in South Florida & in Haiti. |
AuthorSantra D. is a Haitian American Millennial from Fort Lauderdale, FL. ArchivesCategories |
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