18th L.A. Focus First Ladies High Tea A Success

(l-r) Gospel Legend Dr. Bobby Jones, Actress/Singer/Activist Sheryl Lee Ralph, LA County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, Bravo’s Blood Sweat & Heals Daisy Lewellyn, LA Focus’s First Ladies High Tea Founder Lisa Collins, OXGN’s Preachers of LA Bishop Ron Gibson.   Photos by: C-Level Media Group

The 18^th L.A. Focus’ First Ladies High Tea held recently at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills was a grand affair. Over 1,000 attendees were blessed to witness a star-studded event as the women wore their Sunday Best Hats to top it all off.

L.A. County Supervisor, Mark Ridley-Thomas received the prestigious Legacy Award.  Celebrities and tastemakers in attendance or on the program included: Sheryl Lee Ralph; Ray Donovan & Instant Mom, Oscar Nominee Shug Avery; The Color Purple and Being Mary Jane, Edwina Finley-Dickerson and Heather Hemmens; If Loving You Is Wrong, Gaius Charles; Grey Anatomy & Aquarius, Wren Brown; Founder of Ebony Repertory Theatre, Omarosa Manigault, The Apprentice, Alley Mills, The Bold and the Beautiful, and Preachers Of LA’s Myesha Chaney, Bishop Ron & LaVette Gibson, Rev Xavier L. Thompson; Pastor, Southern Baptist Church of Los Angeles & President, Baptist Ministers’ Conference of Los Angeles, Pastor Michael Fisher; Greater Zion Church Family to name a few. Great performances at the First Ladies High Tea were by Stellar Award winner & Grammy nominee Byron Cage and Dove Awards Nominee, Motown Gospel artist Courtney Wilson.

This year’s event was sponsored by, Wal-Mart. Metro, Toyota, Union Bank, and County Supervisor Office of Mark Ridley-Thomas and co-hosted by Gospel Legend Dr. Bobby Jones, BET’s Bobby Jones Gospel and Dr. Beverly “Bam” Crawford, pastor of Bible Enrichment Fellowship International Church.

The event honored women and First Ladies who have served the communities well, through their activism and charitable contributions. The First Lady Honorees include: LaVette Gibson; Life Church Of God In Christ, Norma Fisher, Greater Zion Church Family, Rinnita Thompson, Southern Missionary Baptist Church Los Angeles and Kera Tulloss, Weller Street Missionary Baptist Church.

About First Ladies High Tea

This afternoon tea is a red carpet affair for the Who’s Who of women in the church and black community, featuring celebrity guests, community leaders and honorees.  In the decade since its inception, the tea has served to inspire women, both young and old, to join forces and create a movement of service towards each other, the communities in which they live and to God.  Past honorees include former California First Lady Maria Shriver, Oscar Nominee Cicely Tyson, former LA County Supervisor Yvonne Burke, renown vocalist Nancy Wilson, gospel recording duo Mary Mary, TV One founder Cathy Hughes, actor/activist Hill Harper and The Honorable Kamala Harris, Attorney General of California, to name a few.