Discover How Banker April Jackson Bakes In Order To Make Life A Bit Sweeter In Queens, NY

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Banker April Jackson Bakes Up Sugar Boss Creations To Make Life A Little Sweeter In Far Rockaway And Queens, NY

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Far Rockaway, Queens -- April Jackson is the creator of Sugar Boss Creations. Sugar Boss Creations, is a company that specializes in wowing their customers with their eyes first then their taste buds with cakes, cupcakes, chocolate covered sweets, candy dessert tables, edible images and many more delicious treats.  For the past two weeks, Jackson has also sold items from a selective menu advertising via social media and doing deliveries only during the COVID-19 crisis.  

April has been a proud resident of Far Rockaway since the 1970’s and attended and graduated from Far Rockaway High School in 1992. Over the years April has attended Queens College and has returned to study Forensics Accounting. She has been in the banking industry for over twenty years and has held almost every position teller, manager, internal audit, and Vice President of Banking Operations. April is currently a Compliance Testing Analyst in Consumer Regulations.

April continues to participate in numerous community outreach events such as feeding the community during Thanksgiving, giving out school supplies and have participated in various Career Day Events. In June 2014, April went on a life changing missionary trip to Cap Haitian, Haiti with her church.

Ms. Jackson is a woman vested in her profession, budding entrepreneurial endeavors baking up delicious desserts, and helping our community.  Recently, she has donated cupcakes to St. John's Hospital and Clinic, in Far Rockaway.

For the past six years she has served as treasurer for the Women’s Industrial Service League Inc. In May 2018, April was honored and received the “Dedication for Community Service Award” for all of her community service throughout the years. April’s son Shaheem, age twenty-five is also following in her footsteps.

See Why Mobile Bar Service Triniflavor Creations Causes A Buzz In Southeast Queens

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TriniFlavor Creations Brings The Bar To Your Events In Southeast Queens And NY!

Julia Ottley is the owner of Triniflavor Creations. Her company offers an array of portable bar and related services and products.

Their main focus is her mobile bar and event staffing business. Her company's uniqueness comes from the customizable drink menu that is influenced by tropical-inspired blends.


Her company endeavors to offer every customer their own unique drink menu that reflects their individual personality. These inspirations offer her clients a drink menu tailored to their event theme or favorite liquor or flavor.

Julia claims "Event services and hospitality is our inspiration, but our advantage is our palatable blend and attention to detail services which leaves an impressionable experience on our customers."  Julia took time from her busy schedule to share with us about her innovative business.  Her interview follows below...

Kamau Austin's Exclusive Interview with Triniflavor's Owner Julia Ottley

Kamau Austin

Kamau:  Can you tell us a little about your background and life growing up in Southeast Queens.

Julia's Answer: I am originally from the beautiful twin islands of Trinidad and Tobago. My family is of Caribbean descent. I have lived in the Southeast Queens area for the past 8 years after purchasing my first home.

Julia Ottley Owner
Triniflavors Creations

 I am an only child, however; I grew up in a large extended family surrounded by aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents. I have always loved creating things and being unique.

I loved attending “fancy” parties and events and the art of transforming the old into a new spectacular. I have always been one to put my all into everything I do; and have explored various crafts over my many years.

Growing up I always knew I would own my own business, however; this longing has taken me through a variety of career paths that shaped my current business venture.

Kamau:  What inspired you to go into your present business?

Julia's Answer: There are a host of companies providing these services on the higher end of the market, thus leaving the average individual unable to afford these high-end businesses price lines. After working for several of these notable establishments, realizing they were not catering to the community within which I resided.

I wanted to change this setting and offer quality services and products to meet the needs of my community. In addition, I worked at a lounge during my college years which I truly enjoyed.

Notwithstanding the fact, I would continually assist many friends and relatives with their events, it has been mentioned that I take it on full-time. Therefore, after assisting with several events I was being asked why I do not charge for my services.

See The Exclusive Interview With Award Winning Financial Consultant Kara Stevens On Economically Surviving The COVID-19 Crisis

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Award Winning Southeast Queens Financial Consultant Kara Stevens Shares Valuable Insights To Economically Survive The COVID-19 Crisis

Exclusive Interview With Kara Stevens And Kamau Austin

Kara Stevens is a speaker, author, and Founder of the award-winning website, The Frugal Feminista.  She is the author of three financial self-care books, and creator of the 60 Days to Slay Sallie Mae course.

Kara is also a Money And Career columnist for ESSENCE magazine.  Ms. Stevens has been featured in some of the leading magazines and media outlets in the country including Essence, Black Enterprise, USA Today, The Huffington Post, and many more.

Ms. Stevens has an upcoming online seminar May 7th.  She was nice enough to make time to share timely insights with us about essential financial issues within these economically challenging times related to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Kamau: Can you tell us a little about your background and life growing up in Southeast Queens.

Kara's Answer: I grew up with my mom and brother in Queens. My mom immigrated to the US from Antigua. She was a registered nurse, but she sometimes worked two or three extra side hustles to ensure that we had a comfortable upbringing and access to the best education. Even though she tried to keep a strong facade, I knew that things weren’t always easy for her or for us, by default. 

But her sacrifices made it possible for me to dream big and have the skills to actually go after them. I’m truly grateful to her because of this.

Kamau: What inspired you to go into your present business?  When did you decide that helping women become financially successful was of utmost importance?

Kara's Answer: I think necessity inspired me! I had graduated from college and had no clue about how I could repay my student loans or the credit card bills I had racked up along the way. 

I remember getting a credit card bill in the mail and getting upset with the credit card companies for sending it to me. I had honestly thought that if I had ignored them, they would get the hint and buzz off. So when I opened the bill to see that my balance had gone up because of late fees, I was confused. 

My mother was there in the background and giving me major sideeye. When I shared with her that I didn’t think I had to repay the credit card bill (or my student loans—because I was also ignoring the statements), she set me straight really quick. 

The one thing that I was confident about was my ability to learn. So I ended up taking a “dollar cab” on Jamaica Ave to the Central Library and asking the librarian to show if there were books about money. 

I found the book "Girl, Get Your Money Straight," and it changed my life. Before then, I never knew that there was a section on money or understood the impact debt (education or consumer) had on my future. I eventually devoured any and all personal finance books that I could find and shared my feelings and thoughts about the process of “adulting” when it came to money on a blogspot, which eventually evolved into The Frugal Feminista.

Initially, I didn’t think anybody would listen to me or my thoughts about money, but they did. I would get emails first from my friends when I missed sending out a blog post asking for when it would be coming out. Then, I started to get feedback from perfect strangers about how they loved the content on the site because it was real and relatable. Next, the companies and brands reached out to get in front of my audience or to get my input on their developments.

I’ve always been a fierce advocate of women’s equality and knew the role that education, and education about money, played in mine so I knew that anything I’d do around money would have to support women that loved like me to shine and thrive.

Checkout How NY Based Black Momma Vodka Owner Is Now Producing Hand Sanitizer During The Coronavirus Pandemic

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BLACK MOMMA VODKA OWNER VANESSA BRAXTON PIVOTS FROM VODKA TO HAND SANITIZER

Buy Black Momma Hand Sanitizer

* Black Momma Vodka (BMV) Founder and President Vanessa Braxton is the first Black woman to be an owner-operator and manufacturer of a nationally distributed vodka in the U.S.

* In response to the national shortage of hand sanitizer, Vanessa Braxton has shifted gears to actively produce thousands of bottles out of the alcohol she has on hand.

* Braxton is known for becoming the first Black woman to raise $2.1 million for her latest venture Black Momma Tea & Cafe (BMTC) through an equity crowdfunding platform.

New York, NY -- Black Momma Vodka, CEO/ President Vanessa Braxton is lending her manufacturing and distilling expertise to quickly produce urgently needed hand sanitizer for healthcare workers, first responders, patients, and community members fighting the coronavirus. Hand sanitizer has been selling out nationwide due to the pandemic, and continues to be much needed in the fight to flatten the curve.

The pandemic has caught many businesses and their owners by surprise, causing them to react quickly and efficiently to meet consumer needs. Braxton serves as an example of a business woman who knows how to adapt during such a critical time in the world, utilizing this opportunity to help the community-at-large and do her part to combat COVID-19.

"We are changing with the times and we have to be ready to shift how we are serving our community and consumers in the midst of this crisis," said Braxton. "If I didn’t own a distillery and manufacturing facility I would not have been able to pivot so quickly from producing vodka to making hand sanitizer.  You can get the hand sanitizer click here

We are ready to evolve and reinvent our business to work with government agencies and hospitals, to protect those on the frontlines of fighting this pandemic."  Braxton is the first black female distiller and master blender in the U.S. She created Black Momma Tea & Cafe (BMTC) as an extension of Black Momma Vodka after a strong demand from her customers wanting to invest in her business.

The National Business League Launches $1.8 Million Black Biz Platform

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NBL TO LAUNCH $1.8 MILLION DIGITAL SOLUTIONS PLATFORM IN RESPONSE TO COVID-19 FOR BLACK-OWNED BUSINESSES

Nationwide -- Several national technology firms have invested more than $1.8 million into developing the National Business League's (NBL) digital solutions platform, which is designed to close the digital divide for Black-owned small businesses in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The NBL has launched its new technology platform with several major initiatives, digitizing the 120 year-old organization's entire operations online, including the creation of a new website and mobile app, the use of live streaming, social media platforms, on-demand virtual education and training center, and a host of other services provided to close the technology gap among Black-owned businesses.

New Urban Novella From Virginia Author

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AUTHOR JAREE FRANCIS RELEASES NEW NOVELLA OF URBAN INTRIGUE "DRAMA, MY FAVORITE NEPHEW"

Nationwide -- In the streets of Hampton Roads, Drama may be living up to the meaning of his street name as the young man finds himself caught up in affairs he should have stayed out of. Can his favorite uncle, and some luck, help him turn things around in Drama, My Favorite Nephew?

The streets can be as unforgiving as a bitter ex. Norfolk, Virginia urban author Jaree Francis has set his latest intrigue-filled novella Drama, My Favorite Nephew in Norfolk. Told from the eyes and voice of Drama's wise and funny Uncle Raymond, the pressure rises immediately as a tense tale is laid out centering around Drama's complications with the local underworld. 

A hood guy himself, with some intelligence to match his muscle, Drama has the deck stacked against him, but he isn't Uncle Raymond's favorite nephew for nothing. He may have to overcome half of the 48-Laws in the process, but Drama isn't going down without a fight. He has the chance to get out of this situation in fair shape if he makes the right calls and keeps his focus against the odds. Drama, My Favorite Nephew.