SLYO LA | International Women's Day Conference 2022
On March 5th, 2022, the Sri Lankan Youth Organization (SLYO) celebrated International Women’s Day with a women’s empowerment conference in Los Angeles, California. We partnered with the Lighthouse Organization to feature a fashion show empowering survivors of domestic abuse. The conference also featured several empowering talks by prominent women in the community. Sherine Zaza performed an original song and spoke movingly about the importance of fighting to improve your circumstances. Vanessa Delgado shared an intimate anecdote from her life and encouraged the audience to seek out and accomplish their true passions. Lelly Noble and Loria Frometa from Kinecta Federal Credit Union shared financial advice and drove home the importance of financial literacy for women, particularly for those from more marginalized groups. Manuri Ranasinghe, the founder of Soul Fitness LA (SFLA), walked everyone through a chair yoga exercise, emphasizing that mind/body wellness are key ingredients for living a happy and well-rounded life.
The conference was a tremendous success, in large part thanks to our longtime sponsor, Kinecta Federal Credit Union. A big thank you as well to our speakers — Sherine Zaza, Vanessa Delgado, Lelly Noble, Loria Frometa, and Manuri Ranasinghe. We were so thrilled to use our conference as a platform to uplift the voices of several female entrepreneurs and small business owners, who sold their handcrafted creations at the event as vendors. A big thank you to these incredible women — Katherine Cruz (BakedWithKat), Dahyna Mayeva (ShopAvaLit), Sarindee Wickramasuriya (Good Day Sri Lanka), Mihiri Weerasinghe (A is for Amma), Colleen Potts & Betsy Marsolan (Miles to Row), Alejandra Garcia (Alejandra Garcia Collection), Kara Prophete (ProkreateByKara), and Crystal Privett (Mrs. Mindset).
We feel incredibly gratified to have had the opportunity to use our platform to elevate the voices of women in the community and take part in the International Women’s Day Challenge to #BreakTheBias. We join in asking everyone to do their part to imagine and build a world free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination.
We feel incredibly gratified to have had the opportunity to use our platform to elevate the voices of women in the community and take part in the International Women’s Day Challenge to #BreakTheBias. We join in asking everyone to do their part to imagine and build a world free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination.