Cayman Islands – [25 April 2019] – The Cayman Islands location of 100 Women in Finance (“100WF”), a global organization of finance industry professionals, hosted its sixth annual Barefoot Beach Gala on Saturday, 23 March 2019 at Royal Palms, raising $55,000 USD for GirlForce 100. GirlForce 100 is a mentorship programme run by 100WF in partnership with the Cayman Islands Ministry of Education that supports young women in public high schools with mentoring and development of career potential.
Gala attendees celebrated “Glow” style and enjoyed a complimentary welcome cocktail, food tasting stations and live music against the sunset backdrop of Seven Mile Beach. Lucky raffle prize winners walked away with prize packages valued at more than $10,000 including a Havana, Cuba getaway, a staycation at the Marriott and various other luxury packages.
Gala attendees included the Governor of the Cayman Islands, Martyn Roper, the Honorable Tara Rivers, Minister of Financial Services and Home Affairs and the Honorable Roy McTaggart, Minister of Public Finance, Economic Development.
Anne-Marie Leadbetter and Laurie Mernett, 100WF Philanthropy Committee Co-Chairs noted “With a record number of 250 attendees this year, we were also extremely honored to have members from our 100WF management team, Amanda Pullinger, 100WF CEO, Ann Henry, 100WF COO and Lauren Malafronte, 100WF Global Association Board Chair shared in the festivities this year.”
Since its launch in 2013, 100WF’s Cayman location has raised more than $290,000 USD for local charities, including the Cayman Islands Crisis Centre, Literacy Is For Everyone, Big Brothers Big Sisters, the Breast Cancer Foundation, and the Special Needs Foundation Cayman.
100WF’s 2019 Cayman philanthropic beneficiary, GirlForce 100, is the organisation’s flagship mentoring programme which pairs professional women from within the 100WF membership with female Caymanian public high school students who have been selected by educators as having potential for successful careers in the finance industry, but lack the resources and support to achieve their full potential.
“Through the success of this popular annual fundraising event, 100WF in the Cayman Islands is pleased to support our organisation’s 2019 global philanthropic theme, Investing in the Next Generation, which establishes purposeful pathways into the finance industry for young women, and supports them in the early years of their careers,” said Ms. Mernett and Ms. Leadbetter.
Now in its third successful year of operations, the plan is to expand GirlForce 100 in 2019 to allow more young women to be able to join the programme, implement mentor training, and develop mentee programming – all with the ultimate goal of preparing the GirlForce 100 mentees for tertiary education, and ultimately, for careers in finance. Thanks to the additional philanthropic support this year, 100WF will also award one successful applicant from GirlForce 100 with a scholarship for an approved course of study at a local college.
The Barefoot Beach Gala would not be possible without the efforts of its volunteer event committee and the generous support of the public and its event sponsors including Maples (Gold Sponsor), KPMG (Silver Sponsor), and Bronze Sponsors BDO, Butterfield, Campbells, Conyers, Deloitte, Highwater, Knighthead, RBC and Walkers. The generous support of Royal Palms, Fosters Food Fair, Pinnacle Media, Nicole Ramroop, Kiss 106.1 FM and X107.1 were also greatly appreciated.
100WF’s Cayman location is already preparing for its next fundraising event – the 4th annual Corporate Mixology Competition which will be held in September 2019. Ticket and sponsorship information will be available soon via the 100WF website. Parties interested in more information about this event are invited to contact the 100WF Cayman Philanthropy Committee.
About 100 Women in Finance
100WF is a global network of professionals in the finance and alternative investment industries working together to empower women at every stage of their careers. Through peer engagement, philanthropic, and educational initiatives, 100WF’s more than 15,000 members are making connections and creating opportunities that help to advance careers and strengthen their field.
Media Inquiries