Our Power of Voice Celebration is here, and we’re kicking things off with an online silent auction that’s open to everyone — you don’t have to attend the event to bid. The auction is packed with one-of-a-kind experiences and hard-to-find gear, including:
🏀 A’ja Wilson collectibles – including her Nike A’One “dyNASTY” signed basketball shoes and a signed Las Vegas Aces Nike Heroine Edition jersey
🏆 LA28 exclusive apparel set – featuring an LA28 crew neck pocket tee and Ralph Lauren hoodie
🌵 RESET Hotel desert escape – a two-night stay in a Mountain View King with outdoor tub at RESET Hotel, the design-forward retreat next to Joshua Tree National Park, praised by the LA Times as “an otherworldly outpost that makes you feel like you’re sleeping on Mars.”
Girls Leadership’s annual Power of Voice Celebration shines a spotlight on the progress we’ve made in bringing lasting power and leadership skills to girls and gender-expansive youth from kindergarten to twelfth grade.
This year, we’ll celebrate the power of sports to build inclusion, confidence, and leadership. Together we’ll honor trailblazers who are inspiring and helping girls discover the power of play—and rally our community to expand our impact.
Tuesday, November 18, 2025
6:30–9:30 PM
Tribeca 360°
10 Desbrosses St., New York City
Dress Code: Cocktail attire with your own flair
Interested in becoming an event sponsor? Find more details here or email frances@girlsleadership.org
HONOREES
A’ja Wilson
Las Vegas Aces, 3x WNBA Champion, 4x WNBA MVP, Jr. WNBA Global Ambassador, Author of Dear Black Girls: How to Be True to You, and Founder of the A’ja Wilson Foundation
Carolyn Tisch Blodgett
CEO and Founder, Next 3; Governor, Gotham FC; Advisor to the Tisch Ownership Group at the NY Giants
Kimberly Davis
Senior Executive Vice President, Social Impact, Growth Initiatives & Legislative Affairs at the National Hockey League; President of the NHL Foundation
MC
Pepper Persley
14 year-old journalist, broadcaster, and author
ENTERTAINMENT
40+ Double Dutch Club
EVENT SPONSORS
Power
Voice
Advocacy
Empowerment
Belonging
Sanrio
Sarah Wendt
Wellbeing
ESPN
Five Together Foundation
Jennifer & Michael Glassman
TIAA
Champion
BENEFIT COMMITTEE
Kenya Bryant
Michael Glassman
Julia Loonin
Catherine Stahl
Sarah Wendt
MEET OUR HONOREES
A’ja Wilson
A’ja Wilson is a professional basketball player and one of the most dynamic and impactful women in sports. Wilson is a 4x WNBA MVP, 3x WNBA Champion, 2x Finals MVP, 3x DPOY, 5x All-WNBA First Team, 7x WNBA All-Star, 2x Olympic Gold Medalist, 2018 WNBA 1st Overall Draft pick, and 2018 WNBA Rookie of the Year. A’ja is the face of the WNBA and the Las Vegas Aces, a team she has led to three championship titles in the last four seasons, including their first-ever title in franchise history. In a historic achievement, she became the first WNBA player to win a championship, Finals MVP, league MVP, and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season.
In her collegiate career, A’ja attended her hometown school, the University of South Carolina, and led the program to its first NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship in 2017. There, she was also the recipient of many individual accolades, including the NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player award, three straight SEC Player of the Year awards, and first-team All-American honors for three consecutive seasons. During her senior season, A’ja swept all National Player of the Year awards (Wade, AP, Honda, USBWA, Wooden, and Naismith) as the best Women’s College basketball player for 2018 and became the all-time leading scorer in South Carolina women’s basketball history. Upon graduation, the school erected a monument in her honor, and more recently retired her No. 22 jersey at Colonial Life Arena and inducted her into the University of South Carolina Athletics Hall of Fame.
Off the court, A’ja is an entrepreneur and author. She started Burnt Wax, a candle business inspired by how aromatherapy brought a sense of tranquility and calm during some of the most challenging times in her family’s life, and by the energy boost it provided to help them deal with everyday life. She published a book, “Dear Black Girls: How To Be True To You”, which quickly rose on the New York Times Best Sellers List.
A’ja is also a big advocate for giving back, mentoring kids, and social justice. She also founded the A’ja Wilson Foundation with her parents, Roscoe and Eva Wilson. The AWF serves as a resource for children and families who struggle with Dyslexia, along with working to shift the culture of students to prevent bullying.
All these accolades landed A’ja among the 2025 TIME Women of the Year, 2024 Sports Illustrated 50 Most Influential Figures In Sports, 2024 Time100 Most Influential People, 2024 ESPYS Best Female Athletes, and Forbes 2021 30 Under 30 lists. A’ja loves spending time with her three dogs, Ace, Deuce and Tre, and staying active regarding her health and fitness. The generational talent who continues making history is an elite-level UNO and Board Game player who loves music, modeling, fashion, photography, watching movies, escape rooms, traveling, books, podcasts, and “The Office.”
Carolyn Tisch Blodgett
Carolyn Tisch Blodgett is the CEO and Founder of Next 3, where she oversees the investment and management of a portfolio of assets in the sports, media, and entertainment space. She invests across teams, leagues, and technologies including: Gotham FC, TGL and Los Angeles Golf Club, LOVB; technologies: Transmit.Live, Jackpot.com, and more.
Carolyn serves as the Governor of Gotham FC, the New York NWSL team, where she is the lead owner across the business. Under her leadership, the team has seen tremendous growth across fan attendance, revenue, and on-field performance, including the first-ever NWSL championship win and league-record sponsorship deals. Carolyn serves on the NWSL Board of Directors, where she was selected to serve as the first ever Chair of the Executive Committee.
Carolyn also acts as a strategic advisor to the Tisch Ownership Group at the New York Football Giants, where she supports ownerships’ interest across the business.
Prior to founding Next 3, Carolyn served as Peloton’s Head of Global Marketing where she built and led the company’s first-ever brand and marketing teams, including Peloton’s successful launch of record-breaking fitness products (Peloton Bike+, Tread and App), international expansion, and the transition into a global public company. She has received numerous awards including the Cynopsis Sports Navigator Luminary Award, Business Insider’s 25 Most Innovative CMOs in the World, Crain’s 40 under 40, AdWeek Brand Genius Award, and AdAge 40 under 40.
Kimberly Davis
Kimberly Davis is a trailblazer and change agent, positively disrupting the financial industry and wide world of sports over her illustrious 40+ year career. Well-regarded as a resilient and visionary leader, Davis brings change to life through sound strategic planning and strong organizational development. She is an inspirational storyteller, an architect of coalitions and a culture builder, with a style that empowers others and a belief that successful business contributes to healthy, vibrant communities. Driven by both data and a passion for progress, she has consistently provided structure and glide paths for organizations to realize their potential for sustainable business growth.
Kim currently serves as Senior Executive Vice President, Social Impact, Growth Initiatives & Legislative Affairs at the National Hockey League, and President of the NHL Foundation. In her capacity as a senior executive, Kim reports directly to NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and focuses on attracting, developing and retaining fans – with a specific focus on growth audiences – through culture, youth participation, and social impact initiatives. As President of the NHL Foundation, she leads strategic funding and philanthropic investments aimed at community development, health and wellness, and inclusion within the sport across North America.
Previously a Senior Managing Director, Teneo Consulting Worldwide, Davis led the firm’s leadership development and corporate responsibility practice, where she advised Fortune 500 companies, CEOs, and cultural icons, including Billie Jean King. She advised the tennis legend on the creation of the Billie Jean King Leadership Initiative – a partnership with CEOs to advance gender diversity and pay equity. Prior to Teneo, Ms Davis enjoyed more than two decades at JPMorgan Chase where she most recently served as Managing Director of Global Corporate Social Responsibility, President of the JPMorgan Chase Foundation, and a member of the firm’s Executive Committee.
Ms. Davis has been recognized as #1 on Sportsnet’s list of the 25 Most Powerful Women in Sports, as well as honored by Sports Illustrated in “The Unrelenting” Most Powerful Women in Sports and “100 Influential Black Women in Sports.” Ms. Davis was also honored as a 2024 EBONY Power 100 honoree in the “Leaders in Sport” category. In addition, Ms. Davis was profiled on the front cover of the 2023 Hockey News’ Power & Influence edition and recognized as #31 on the publication’s “Top 100” Most Influential Leaders in the Sport list, Essence Magazine’s “Woke” 2019 Change Agents, Adweek’s “30 Most Powerful Women in Sports,” and Sports Business Journal’s “GameChangers.” She has also been featured in Savoy Magazine’s “Top 100 Most Influential Blacks in Corporate America” and Fast Company’s “100 Most Creative People in Business.” In 2012, Ms. Davis was profiled with First Lady Michelle Obama in Essence Magazine’s “28 Most Influential Black Women in America.”
Kim currently serves on the boards of the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, Communities in Schools (National) and Sports & Fitness Industry Association. She is a former Trustee of Spelman College and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill’s Kenan Institute. She is a member of the Links Inc. Metro Manhattan NY Chapter.
Kim earned a B.A. in Economics from Spelman College and has completed the Aspen Institute’s Executive Leadership Program and the Stanford University Executive E-learning Program..
MEET OUR MC
Pepper Persley
Pepper Persley is a 14 year old journalist, broadcaster, and author from New York City who began her career at age six. Named one of Adweek’s 2022 Most Powerful Women in Sports, she has her own podcast, Dish With Pepper, that shares inspiring stories through her interviews. Pepper has interviewed a wide range of accomplished people including A’ja Wilson, Caitlin Clark, Sabrina Carpenter, Aaron Judge, Chloe Kim, Sue Bird, Sky Brown, and even former President George W. Bush. In June 2021, Pepper was a part of the Los Angeles Clippers KidsCast, calling Game 5 of the Clippers/Dallas Mavericks First Round NBA playoff series, becoming the youngest person to call an NBA game. In July 2022, Pepper was the sideline reporter for two Las Vegas Aces broadcasts. She has followed that by working as a reporter for ESPN for their Little League World Series coverage and MLB KidsCast broadcast since 2022. She also was a part of the animated ESPN and Pixar’s NFL Funday Football game.
Pepper has worked on projects with Nike, DOVE, Rebel Girls, the Brooklyn Nets, the New York Liberty, and the Washington Wizards. Pepper has also appeared on Good Morning America several times to ask questions of Chadwick Boseman, Chris Evans, and Zoe Saldana during broadcasts. She was featured in a video on Michelle Obama’s Instagram page, presented the Wilma Rudolph Courage Award to the WNBA for the Women’s Sports Foundation, been profiled for CBS Mornings, Sports Illustrated, The Jennifer Hudson Show, NBC Sports, the New York Post, the LA Times, Inside Edition, SportsNet and several New York City area networks such as CBS NY and YES Network. She was a part of an anti-bullying video for The Today Show and has authored an anti-bullying children’s book, Not Too Anything.
Pepper played both high school varsity basketball and softball as an 8th grader. She is a second degree black belt in Taekwondo, and also plays the guitar.
