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TOP EXECUTIVES DEBRA L. LEE AND RHONDA MIMS TO BE RECOGNIZED
FOR THEIR ACHIEVEMENTS AND CONTRIBUTIONS TO
THE GREATER
NEW YORK COMMUNITY
NEW YORK – Greater New York
Chapter, The Links, Incorporated, will
present its 2011 Women of Distinction
Spirit Award Luncheon,
on Saturday, April 23, 2011 at the scenic
Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers
in New York City. Honoring Debra L. Lee,
chairman and CEO of BET Networks and Rhonda Mims,
president, ING Foundation and senior vice president, ING’s
Office of Corporate Responsibility and Multicultural
Affairs, the event will take place from
Noon to 4 PM, preceded
by a vendor showcase at 11:00 AM. Among the highlights of
the event will be a fashion show featuring the lively and
colorful work of legendary designer Stephen Burrows.
The fashion show will be presented by beauty and fashion
industry doyenne, Mikki Garth-Taylor, former beauty
and cover editor of Essence magazine. A reception
will be held immediately following the event, featuring the
Warren Daniels Band.
Lynn K.
Law
is the luncheon chair and co-chairs are Mignon
Espy-Edwards, Donna Jones and Rhonda McLean.
Sponsorship levels for the event range from $5,000 to
$25,000, and individual tickets are $200 each. Tickets are
available at: http://www.greaternewyorklinksinc.org
Wine and champagne are generously donated by Ruder Finn
Multicultural & Image Marketing Group’s Executive Vice
President, Helen C. Shelton.
“We are delighted to present the 2011 Women of Distinction
Luncheon honoring Debra Lee and Rhonda Mims – two
outstanding women who exemplify what it means to pursue
excellence, attain goals and positively impact those around
you,” says Gerri Warren-Merrick, president, Greater New York
Chapter, The Links, Incorporated. “This year’s luncheon
will honor these women and provide an exciting and uplifting
forum for all those who attend with an afternoon of
fellowship and fundraising to help advance the mission of
the Greater New York Chapter of The Links, Incorporated.”
About the Greater New York Chapter
Established in 1946, The Links, Incorporated, is one of the
nation’s oldest and largest volunteer service organizations
of women who, linked in friendship, are committed to
enriching, sustaining and ensuring the culture and economic
survival of African-Americans and persons of African
descent. The Links, Incorporated is a not-for-profit
organization, which consists of nearly 12,000 professional
women of color in 272 chapters located in 42 states, the
District of Columbia and the Bahamas.
Greater New York Chapter, founded in 1949, was the first
chapter in New York and comprises members from all five
boroughs in New York City and from Long Island.
Under the leadership of
President, Gerri Warren Merrick, Greater New
York Chapter is committed to fostering community outreach in
the New York metropolitan area through quality programs with
a long-term impact on the well-being and enrichment of
African-Americans. For more information log on to Greater
New York Chapter’s Web site at www.greaternylinks.org
About Debra L. Lee
Debra Lee is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of BET
Networks, a unit of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B) and the
nation's leading provider of quality entertainment for the
African-American audience and consumers of Black culture.
Ms. Lee oversees one of the most influential multiplatform
media companies in the world, including several cable
television networks, digital offerings, and a home
entertainment business. BET Networks is committed to
providing its audience with quality entertainment that
speaks to where they are in their lives and where they want
to go. Ms. Lee has led BET’s successful original programming
strategy that has created hits such as The Mo’Nique Show,
Monica: Still Standing, Sunday Best and many
more. In addition, Ms. Lee has helped guide BET’s
reinvigorated approach, which is built on supporting
families, embracing and encouraging their dreams, focusing
on the issues that are important to them and presenting the
freshest talent and entertainment. In September 2009, Ms.
Lee managed the launch of CENTRIC, the 24-hour entertainment
network featuring the artists, music, series, movies and
reality programming that reflects the lifestyle and
sophistication of today’s African-American and
multi-cultural adult. She also oversees the company’s
current growth initiatives, including international
distribution of the brand in the United Kingdom and Africa.
Prior to her being named CEO, Ms. Lee was President and
Chief Operating Officer of BET Networks for almost 10 years,
during which she guided the company to consistent increases
in viewership, revenue and earnings. She first joined BET
as Vice President and General Counsel in 1986 after serving
more than five years as an attorney with Washington,
D.C.-based Steptoe & Johnson, a corporate law firm. Prior
to that, she served as a law clerk to the late Honorable
Barrington Parker of the United States District Court for
the District of Columbia.
Her achievements in a 20-plus year career at BET Networks
have earned her numerous accolades from across the cable
industry, as well as recognition as one of this country’s
most respected business executives. She serves on the
corporate board of directors of Revlon, Marriott, Eastman
Kodak, and Washington Gas & Light. Her business acumen and
strategic approach to management make Ms. Lee a popular
speaker and lecturer on a range of business topics.
Affiliated with a number of professional, civic, and
cultural organizations,
Ms. Lee is also a member of the national board of directors
for the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, the National Symphony
Orchestra, the Economic Club of Washington, the Center for
Communication and the Kennedy Center’s Community & Friends
Board. She is also a member of the Board of Trustees for
Brown University and also serves on the boards of the Paley
Center for Media, the Ad Council, the Grammy Foundation, and
was recently appointed to the Federal Communications
Commission’s Advisory Committee on Diversity for
Communications in the Digital Age.
Ms. Lee earned her juris doctorate at Harvard Law School,
while simultaneously earning a master’s degree in public
policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government. She
graduated from Brown University with a bachelor’s degree in
political science with an emphasis in Asian politics. Ms.
Lee resides in Washington, D.C., with her two children.
About Rhonda Mims
Rhonda Mims is responsible for creating a corporate
responsibility strategy focusing on children’s education,
financial literacy, outreach to diverse communities, and
environmental sustainability. In this role, she is also
responsible for workforce diversity and diversity marketing.
Prior to her current role, Mims was a member of ING’s
external affairs team. She served as ING U.S. PAC treasurer,
ethics officer, and conducted government affairs for some of
the mid-western states and the City of Atlanta. Prior to
that role, she was counsel with the ING U.S. litigation
team, overseeing the management of outside counsel on
litigation matters, and a territorial sales manager for ING
based in Fairfax, Va.
Prior to joining ING, she served as an environmental civil
litigation attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice and
as a senior attorney with the National District Attorney
Association's American Prosecutor's Research Institute.
Mims currently serves
as an Alliance Trustee for America’s Promise, and she sits
on the Board of Directors of The Thurgood Marshall College
Fund, Woodruff Arts Center, Boston College Center for
Corporate Citizenship, UNICEF and the U.S. Chamber of
Commerce’s Business Civic Leadership Center. She is also an
active member of the Executive Leadership Council.
Mims is a 2007 Leadership Atlanta Graduate, and PR News
honored her as one of their 2008 Corporate Social
Responsibility Executives of the Year.
Mims received her bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from
the University of South Carolina and her Juris Doctorate
from the University of South Carolina School of Law. She
currently holds NASD series 7 and 66 designations.
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