Leading Midlands charity celebrates 40th anniversary in style
Founders, well-wishers, civic guests and service users past and present attended the 40th anniversary celebration of the Walsall Black Sisters Collective (WBSC), held at The Jimmy Walker Suite at the Bescot Stadium, Walsall.
Launched by six women in 1986, to campaign and advocate for Black communities following the aftermath of the Midland riots, the WBSC continues its mission, alongside running community projects. The 40th anniversary celebrations reminded the packed audience of this.
Nikki Tapper MBE served as a bubbly and humorous host. Outgoing WBSC chair, Wendy Angus-Bovell, opened the celebration with a well-received speech, setting the tone for what was an uplifting event.
Throughout the evening, the audience learned about WBSC’s work, its early history, its future plans and current projects via video presentations and speeches. They also experienced enjoyable entertainment, which included youth dance outfit, Eloquent Dance; gospel singer Tracey Riggan, who brought the house down; contemporary vocalist Bianca Passelle-Reid; and spoken word artist Derrion Wilson, whose poems touched on the strength of Windrush women.
Nikki had a fireside chat with special guest, Olympian Dame Denise Lewis, who shared how she has been heavily influenced by the strong women in her family. The audience also heard from WBSC founder members who were present.
They were featured in a video presentation, where they reflected on WSBC’s early years, their experiences, achievements and hopes for its future. The audience also learned about the charity’s heritage project, which celebrates Black British history created by the Windrush Generation.
The evening was brought to a humorous close by comedian Angie Le Mar, who got the audience laughing with her stories about Jamaica, parenting young people, and the Church.
Maureen Lewis, WBSC CEO said: “WSBC’s journey over the past 40 years has been a remarkable one, and it was great that we were able to celebrate this landmark in style, with the founders present. We look forward to what the future holds.”
Marcia Dixon MBE, Publisher of Keep The Faith, said: “It was an honour to be a media sponsor of WBSC’s 40th anniversary celebrations. KTF loves to support organisations that provide valuable services in their local communities. WBSC does this and more. We pray that as WBSC moves forward, they will continue to have community impact.”
Visit www.walsallbsc.com
