KENNETH “KAYO” ANDERSON

Kenneth Anderson was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. After studying Music Education at Jackson State University with a concentration in Voice, Kenneth founded the Mosaic Singers of the Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit.  Ken grew his group from 8 voices to an astounding 100 voices, and they transformed into one of the most acclaimed and sought after youth choirs in the world, and took to world stages to prove it. Under his direction, the student choir performed in 30 states, seven countries, and at such prestigious venues as the White House, The Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, La Salle Sia in Singapore, Le Maison De Sclaves in Senegal and the Millennium Dome in England, among others.  They were invited to give command performances for US Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama and for acclaimed author Maya Angelou, who remarked that the Mosaic Singers were “the most amazing youth troupe I’ve ever seen.”

Kenneth’s work has been featured in “The Wall Street Journal”, “The New York Times”, on Public Radio’s and PBS “All Things Considered” and on NBC ‘s “The Today Show”, and he was also one of the featured subjects of “And They Flew,” an Emmy award winning documentary. 

In 2009, Kenneth left Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit, after serving his final five years as their Artistic Director and Vice President. During his tenure, he and co-founder Rick Sperling nurtured Mosaic into an Internationally acclaimed arts organization. As he moved forward to pursue new passions, he proudly turned the group over to one of his former students, who has since taken the Mosaic Singers to higher heights. His philosophy of legacy is rooted in his belief in sowing seeds and allowing them the sunshine to blossom. Since moving to Los Angeles to work in the Television/Film and music industry, Kenneth has continued his legacy of ushering deep community involvement. He formed the Leimert Park Choir under the umbrella of the Harmony Project, anarts organization that provides free arts training to over 2000 at risk youth in Los Angeles. Since Ken’s founding it, the Leimert Park Choir has grown from 2 members to over 50 young voices from across South L.A., most of whom are African American. Recent performances include The Grammy Museum, the Vision Theatre, and a star studded concert celebrating Jazz Legend Barbara Morrison. The group was featured as the Opening Act for Tavis Smiley at Temple Israel’s King Day Celebration, all developed and organized by Michael Skloff, television composer most noted for composing the theme song to the show “Friends.” Kenneth’s impressive a capella youth choir was featured in “Exagogue”, produced by Jewish Theatre Dybbuk at Temple Israel of  Hollywood, UCLA and as part of Grand Performances in downtown LA.

Kenneth is known also for his voice and performance coaching with adults; having worked with many artists at various levels, including artists for Universal Recording Group and LIVE the Music Group, and an elite Hollywood clientele that include stars from “Glee” and “Grey’s Anatomy”, just to name a few. Kenneth has directed and produced shows in Los Angeles,  as well as in Detroit, Washington, D.C., New York City, Atlanta, Georgia, London, UK, Copenhagen, Denmark, and Dakar, Senegal, and has collaborated with some of the greatest artists in the world on a variety of projects, including Aretha Franklin, John Legend, Amber Riley, B Slade, Sweet Honey in the Rock, and Al Green, just to name a few.

 A multi-talented artist of many mediums, Kenneth’s award-winning photographic work has appeared in several fashion/contemporary magazines, newspapers and global publications, CD/album and LP covers. His striking photography was recently featured in an article in Time magazine. His unique artistic eye and his keen belief in social justice give his images an international appeal. In his occasional spare time, he enjoys singing and performing gospel and Opera. He has appeared in Opera favorites including Verdi’s “Nabucco” and Gazzaniga’s “Don Giovanni” at the Detroit Opera House and also appeared alongside living opera legend Denyce Graves in librettist Toni Morrison’s  “Margaret Garner” at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago.

 His current photo exhibit “blaque boi bleu”, which features his coveted images of diverse African American men in America, is actively touring to galleries across the nation. He plans to publish his first book of photography, humor and poetry in 2021.

Kenneth “Kayo” Anderson is currently embarking on his MOST exciting endeavor as the “Minister of Culture” at Los Angeles Community Action Network. This is a dream job! He has already formed the “Freedom Singers”, a multi-dsciplinary performance troupe, based out of LA CAN in downtown’s Skid Row neighborhood. After a personal bout with homelessness, Kayo realizied the immense need for targeted supportive services for the MANY artists who reside in Skid Row. The LA CAN arts and cultured initiative takes a holistic approach to the redevelopment and reintroduction of artists into viability.  

 Ken has received numerous honors, awards and recognition, including Crains Business Top Twenty in Their Twenties in 2007, the Spirit of Detroit, Alpha Kappa Alpha Distinguished Community Leader Award, and he was named as one of the 100 Distinguished Gentlemen of Detroit, by the Detroit Conversation. Most recently Ken was given an award from the National Arts Education Forum for his Creativity and Innovation in arts education.

 Ken has been a continuous advocate for human rights, with a particularly spirited focus on young people, LGBT and women’s rights. He’s written several scholarly articles, including a feature in “Swerv Magazine”, garnering crucial national attention to the Ruth Ellis Center in Detroit, which provides much needed support for homeless and exploited LGBT youth.

WANDA WEBSTER and CHRISTOPHER MACK

Christopher Mack has been facilitating recovery groups in Los Angeles for the past 16 years. He has been interviewed many times (NPR, LA Times, USA Today, LA Weekly, and Nightline) because he has a unique perspective about the condition of homelessness and our human nature. He is a beloved fixture on Skid Row in downtown Los Angeles, having worked for JWCH as an outreach worker for many years. He is known to many as The Urban Sage. Because Christopher used music and singing to uplift himself from the daily tribulations, he co-founded The Urban Voices Project five years ago, a choir for the urban community and underserved population. 

Wanda Webster graduated from Drake University with a bachelor’s degree in Special Education and Psychology. When she moved to Los Angeles, she accepted opportunities in the entertainment industry working as a development executive and a literary agent. She discovered she had a natural gift at helping writers develop and fine-tune their scripts. Many of her writers won awards in their field. More recently, Wanda obtained a master’s degree in Education and Psychology from Pepperdine University. She created curricula for large non-profits in the areas of spirituality, social-emotional development, and addiction/recovery. Wanda has always been fascinated by human behavior and believes that supporting people to become the best versions of themselves to be her ultimate joy and purpose.

Luvafoodie is a brand that connects people who share a passion for food and beverage. In 2014, Michelle Mazzara, CEO of Luvafoodie, decided to follow her dream.  She had worked for large consumer brands companies in sales for the previous twenty-five years. 

She began by adding candy and started selling caramel with the Luvafoodie brand at select grocery stores. Consumers categories beyond confections.  In 2016 she introduced a line of gourmet spices under the Luvafoodie brand.  Following the success, she experienced with spices, she added Belgian chocolates and drink mixes to the portfolio. 

Unexpectedly, in August 2016, Michelle was diagnosed with heart disease having an 80 % blockage in her left anterior descending artery, LAD.  She had been misdiagnosed with costochondritis for 10 months even though she had complained of chest pain, shortness of breath, had a family history of heart disease and a cholesterol reading of 330.    Unfortunately, during recovery, after placement of the stent, Michelle suffered a heart attack.  “This changed my life and my perspective of what I really wanted to do with the brand and my vision of the company, “Michelle stated.  Because of living with heart disease, in January 2017, Luvafoodie launched a salt free spice line and a new Happy Heart Dark Chocolate Belgian Bar.

Michelle is a Brand Ambassador for the Twin Cities American Heart Association Go Red Women Ad Campaign in Minnesota.  She shares her story in order to build awareness about heart disease among women.  She states, “My mission is to help increase awareness of the prevalence of heart disease and stroke among women in order to inspire other women to take charge of their own health.  Heart disease is the #1 killer of women causing 1 in 3 deaths. My mission is to make a difference in peoples’ lives and help prevent heart disease.”

At the end of June, Michelle launched a new line of spice blends created for dogs and cats. The new spice blends for dogs and cats was inspired by Michelle’s aging dog Lucy. Michelle wanted to boost Lucy’s nutrition and help her feel better. The specific herbs used in the Dog and Cat Lovers spice blends are to help boost a cat or dog’s nutrition as a supplement to their dog and cat food.

Luvafoodie products can be found in local Twin Cities grocery stores and on Luvafoodie.com and Amazon.com. Luvafoodie Salt Free Recipe Cookbook is available in Kindle and hard copy on Amazon.com.

Michelle goal is to continue to expand Luvafoodie spice distribution across the country. Our goal at Luvafoodie is to create clean eating good for your products. Our mission statement is Eat Clean, Be Well & Stay Well.

Frank St. James is well known for his work with many local police and investigative authorities. He appeared on The Psychic Detectives, as well as the Bio Show on A&E Cable, and is also a top radio personality. He was once a detective, has worked with the FBI, and the answers he gives are usually spot on! Frank is very popular at the New Jersey Psychic Fairs and books out quickly. Contact: (862) 684-1904

Angela Peabody is the Executive Director and Founder of Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation, a 501c3 organization founded on the principles of eliminating violence and injustices against women and girls. After a celebrated career as a Television Broadcast Journalist in Liberia, and Special Press Secretary to the country’s first woman Minister of Agriculture, Angela immigrated to the United States, following the bloody and brutal coup d’etat in her native Liberia. She developed the passion as an advocate for women and girls against injustices and violence after her sister was beaten to death by her husband. The first Liberian woman to ever pen and publish a full-length novel, Angela is now an accomplished and award-winning author. Her literary work includes the novels, Exiled – within the Bowels of American Society (published 2001) and When the Games Froze (published 2014). She also co-authored the biography of Sarian Bouma; Welfare to Millionaire (published 2004). The proceeds from her second novel were donated to help build a school in Liberia, The Hope Academy, where both girls and boys would learn about the risks of violence against children. 

Since then, Angela has authored two children’s books and a training manual about Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). She recently served on a special committee with the Council of the Great City Schools to research, compile and write an educational toolkit on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) to be used by teachers, nurses and school counselors in school districts throughout the U.S.  In 2014, Angela and Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation made history when they held the first Walk To End FGM in the U.S, which has become a popular annual event in Washington, D.C. 

WALK TO END Female Genital Mutilation

 SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2019

Pre-Walk Program: 12:00 Noon 

National Sylvan Theater

Washington Memorial Drive, SW

Washington, D.C. 20024

5K Walk-A-thon Starts: 1:30 pm 

Walk Route: Begin at the Sylvan Theater and we will walk to the Lincoln Memorial and back to the Sylvan Theater.

PLEASE JOIN US!

GLOBAL WOMAN P.E.A.C.E. FOUNDATION 



Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation (GWPF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Established in January 2010, GWPF was founded on the principles of ending injustices and violence against women and girls. 

Funds raised from the Walk To End FGM and the Global Woman Awards will fund the “Lisa C. Bruch Scholarship Fund” to help educate girls in West Africa who have experienced female genital mutilation (FGM), or are at risk of it. Funds will also support our “Survivor Resettlement Program,” “Wholesome Organic Relief Program” and the “Kids Reach Shield Program.” 

The Lisa C. Bruch Scholarship Fund is named in memory of the late Lisa Bruch, who passed away in December 2018. Lisa was a GWPF Board Advisor and a devout supporter and donor of GWPF’s programs. She donated an annual percentage of her income until her demise. 

The Survivor Resettlement Program assists FGM survivors with asylum application, legal representation, résumé compilation, cover letter, personal reference, relocation and job-hunting. 

The Wholesome Organic Relief Program helps to rehabilitate FGM survivors through psychological counseling, vaginal restorative surgery and physical therapy. 

The Kids Reach Shield Program is our preventive program, which trains US law enforcement, school nurses associations, teachers associations, students and the community in FGM.