1981 – On April 6, 1981, Tawana is born in South Carolina and is raised on Wadmalaw Island.
1985 – Tawana’s mom drills spelling and site words into her vocabulary, making her a phenomenal reader and writer by age 4.
1988 – Tawana, being the oldest of her sisters, develops a love for reading, writing and teaching. She got in trouble so many days for stealing chalk from school to write on the doors in her room and for wearing her mom’s stiletto’s!
1989 – Tawana’s mom forces her (and her sisters) to take piano lessons because of her love for singing. Tawana absolutely HATES playing the piano! But loves her weekends with the girls from her Girl Scout troop.
1993 – Tawana purchases a starter diary ( My Very Own Diary) from the book fair at her school and begins logging her life and everyone a part of it for twenty years.
1994 – Tawana becomes apart of the drill team. Something she only did because her friends did it. She QUITS after two years!
1996 – Tawana becomes apart of the cheerleading team, but only for the basketball season. She also becomes apart of 4-H, a contributor to the newspaper staff, and a member of FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America). This is also when she begins to study William Faulkner, Emily Dickinson, Langston Hughes, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and many other eighteen and nineteenth century writers.
1997 – Tawana excels in AP English and her Creative Writing classes. That very same year she creates several short stories including A Little too Soon. As a contributor to the school newspaper, she receives raves about her poem Obsession and her article Fashion Alert; she skips out on prom to attend the R. Kelly concert with her friends.
1999 – Is recognized as Ms. Senior, Best All Around, Most Talkative, and Most Popular. Graduates from high school with Superior Honors and attends Savannah State University to major in Business Management.
2001 – Being rejected from a popular Greek organization prompts Tawana to create and become the co-founding president of Sisters Striving for Excellence; a collegiate based group for females that promote professionalism, support, and integrity. She also is a very active peer counselor to the freshman students and becomes a brother in the business organization Delta Sigma Pi. In addition, to being a busy body, she attends a concert by her favorite singer in the world: Mary J. Blige!
*2002- After writing and performing the original spoken word piece The Diary of the Girl who Committed Suicide; she becomes Miss Gold to the Alpha Phi Alpha Greek organization and wins another superlative! She is requested by the GABSU committee to perform a selection at the conference. Tawana also becomes a campus queen and represents her organization as Miss Sisters Striving for Excellence in the Homecoming Coronation.
2003 – Receives recognition from her part-time gig as a server at Red lobster for providing exceptional customer service! In the meantime, Tawana begins to write and pursue a career in music.
2004 – Is selected by SSU to provide a selection at their Emeritus Induction Ceremony. Runs a small business called The Quick Snack Shop for her Entrepreneurship class. She also coordinates her first “Networking: Fashion Show & Reception” with several members of her Management of Diversity Class. She finally graduates from college.
2005 – Tawana accepts position with Bank of America as an Operations Analyst. Participates in several Team Bank of America Initiatives: InRoads, Junior Achievement, BPG (Black Professional Group), and LEAD. She is promoted into a new department as a Fraud Analyst and enrolls in Webster University to start studying for a Master’s degree.
2007 – Becomes a Leisure travel Consultant and begins a home-based travel business called Global Journeys. Graduates with a Masters of Arts in Business and Organizational Security Management and accepts a position with SunTrust Bank as an Investigator. A strong, insatiable urge and desire to become an entrepreneur and write this book, called Corporate Chics , consumes her mind. Also marries college boo and purchases a condo in North Atlanta.
2008 – Begins to host networking receptions for entrepreneurs and small business owners. Released from role as an Investigator and begins to write novel, Corporate Chics and becomes Executive Director of Sisters Striving for Excellence, Inc. Attends another Mary J. Blige concert!
2009 – Turns Corporate Chics into a brand and consulting business all while being pregnant with her second child. Completes novel and decides to self-publish. Also co-creates Face Forward, a sub-brand that hosts workshops, receptions and networking events. Becomes a workshop host for the GASPP Student Initiative Weekend 2009 and teaches on Leadership vs. Management.
2010 – Completes a mini book tour in NYC. Corporate Chics is picking up momentum and is placed on several NYPL library shelves. Her business assists several entrepreneurs and small businesses. Also, is a speaker for the National Urban League’s Black Executive Exchange Program 2010 and is asked to be the speaker for her high school’s graduation commencement. The Diary of the Girl Who Commits Suicide is chosen to be produced as a short film.
