Share

Honorees included Vanessa Bell Calloway, Saweetie, and Traci Morlan

I was anxious to speak with leading lady Leah Pump, CEO of The LadyLike Foundation because she’s a woman of faith with a heart of gold. Earlier this month, Pump’s annual Women of Excellence Luncheon and fashion show attracted the most influential women in Hollywood – both in front of and behind the scenes. With guests like Tina Knowles-Lawson, D’Lila Star and Jessie James Combs, Holly Robinson-Pete, Vanessa Bell Calloway, and Cookie Johnson gracing the front row seats – the question on everyone’s mind is “Who’s That Lady?”

Not even the pandemic could stop her acts of kindness and outreach to the girls under her care. While businesses were shutting down and schools closing as a global pandemic claimed lives and jobs – this woman of God put her prayers into action. While speaking to attendees of her glorious annual event, Pump stated that she “never stopped” and explained that during and post COVID-19, as the world was adjusting to a new normal “We continued to support our girls in college, continued to have our Girl Talks, and Panel’s and College Application classes in person and virtually.”

Hosted by Actress Storm Reid, the star-studded ceremony took place at the Beverly Hilton, home of Hollywood’s most iconic events like the 1962 Golden Globes when Rock Hudson presented Marilyn Monroe with the award for “favorite actress” and when Steven Spielberg sat with Jordan Lucas at a Directors Guild of America awards ceremony back in 1978. Every single detail matters to Pump – she knows that her girls are more valuable than gold and her aspirations for them are higher than the stars in the sky.

The ceremony opened with two of the girls from her LadyLike Foundation leading the crowd as we all recited the organization’s mantra together. In harmony, we all said out loud “I am loved, I am valuable, I am intelligent, I am destined for greatness, I will succeed, I am ladylike.” This year, the foundation honored Vanessa Bell Calloway, Saweetie, and Traci Morlan.

With a goal of one hundred thousand to support the foundation’s workshops, classes, and various missions that are facilitated throughout the year, the fundraising efforts went into full effect. She made it very clear that the foundation also plans to grant nine scholarships ranging from $3,500 to $10,000 to college-bound young ladies here in the United States. But her global impact is just as significant, The LadyLike Foundation also supports its group homes and children in Africa in any way they need support – be it physically, emotionally, or financially.

Boasting a new generation of scholars who are of course “ladylike” in every way, Pump shared “I am so proud of all our college scholarship recipients as well as our current Ladylike Foundation class. They have successfully completed their senior year with outstanding GPAs and are going to amazing universities. Some of our girls have graduated and have received their master’s degrees, others are in medical school and some have started great careers.”

It was the fashion show that brought out the fun and excitement in the young and the old. Hundreds of supporters cheered the young ladies on as they both danced and modeled the latest and greatest fashions from their favorite designers. The atmosphere was live and full of energy as they walked the runway with poise, class, and style moving in sync with the music. Pump was so impressed with their performance that she wrote in a recent Instagram post “The LadyLike dancers showed up and showed out they were simply amazing.”

With a team of beauties and scholars ready to take on the world, I finally had the opportunity to speak with Leah Pump myself and I seized the moment. I insisted on knowing exactly what she means when she say’s “ladylike” and asked her to share her TOP 5 Rules of being Ladylike. Without hesitation, she laid down the ground rules like a general contractor building the foundation of a home that’s built to last.

“Keep God first, be a good person with strong values and character, always present yourself in the best way, be respectful, and lastly treat others like you yourself would want to be treated,” she said.

On the red carpet, Pump told SHEEN that she was “very excited” before adding “this is the first luncheon with my twins so I’m very excited to be here today with the newest additions to our family.” She later took to social media and wrote “Words can’t express how blessed I feel … my babies got to make their debut and the LadyLike Foundation awarded its very first scholarship recipient with the Natasha Lusk Scholarship Award.”

For more information on the LadyLike Foundation, visit LadyLike.com.