Rockland County Legislature Celebrates International Women’s Day

Press release from the Rockland County Legislature:

March 13, 2023

Rockland County Legislators celebrated International Women’s Day by recognizing the outstanding accomplishments and contributions of three residents - Hope Wade, Heena Mehta and Sabrina Charles-Pierre.

During a ceremony led by Rockland County Legislature Vice Chairwoman Aney Paul, each honoree was presented with the Distinguished Service Award, the Legislature’s highest honor. She was joined by County Legislator Toney L. Earl.

“Each of these honorees worked to achieve a goal, including their education, their careers and their families, then they somehow found the drive to give back in significant ways to the larger community,” Legislator Paul said. “They have and continue to make our county and the world a better place.”

Hope Wade is a native of Kingston, Jamaica, who maintains her cultural ties through her work with JAMCCAR, the Jamaica Civic and Cultural Association of Rockland, where she currently serves as president. The nonprofit is just one of many she has been actively involved in, helping to establish scholarships for youth and stepping up outreach to the community, most recently during the COVID crisis.

But many know Ms. Wade as the owner and executive producer of Rockland Fashion Week, a popular annual event that allows designers to showcase their creations. She herself has been singled out for her designs and in February, her designs were worn at the Grammy Awards’ famed red carpet walkway. She has also showcased her designs on the international runway at Caribbean Fashion Week, London Fashion Week and New York Fashion Week – all to rave reviews.

Ms. Wade is a graduate of the Convent of Mercy Academy “Alpha” High School in Jamaica, the New York City Technical College and the prestigious Cooper Union College in New York. She was ordained as an evangelist by Community Christian Church in West Nyack in June 2019. Ms. Wade and her husband, Paul Wade, live in Pomona and have a daughter, Jasper, a senior at Syracuse University.

Heena Mehta is a native of India who has also continued to nurture her cultural roots as a member of the India Cultural Society, where she served as president in 2022, and held other leadership positions over the years. She organized the “Colors of India” event for her employer, the New York Power Authority, where she is a senior manager, and served on the NYPA’s diversity committee from 2012 through 2015.

Through her work with many nonprofits, Ms. Mehta has organized food and coat drives, taught math to struggling children, and since 2018, offered the choreographing and teaching of Indian dances to both children and adults.

Ms. Mehta and her husband have lived in Rockland for 25 years. They have two children.

Sabrina Charles-Pierre was born locally and raised in Spring Valley, where she has spent years in the service of others, including, since 2015, as a member of the East Ramapo Central School District Board of Education; she has served as its Vice-President since 2019.

Ms. Charles-Pierre helped create a project called Next Gen. to address the lack of extracurricular and accessible hobby activity issues for the students in the Town of Ramapo. She also serves on the Rockland Community College Paralegal Studies Advisory Board, and she is the Secretary of the National Haitian American Elected Official Network (NHAEON), and has frequently organized relief efforts, Haitian Day parades, protests/rallies, turkey drives, toy/coat drives, and other events.

The mother of a college graduate and a 6th grader, Ms. Charles-Pierre earned an Associate’s degree in Paralegal Studies from Rockland Community College and a Bachelor’s degree in Child Protection and Juvenile Justice from Bellevue University.

This press release was produced by the Rockland County Legislature. The views expressed here are the author's own.