Joseph’s Elementary school in Canada to raise money for Canadian Food for Children (Formerly Dr. Simone’s Warehouse) in their bid to send food to Africa. Her vision imagined a schoolyard filled with carnival rides, her best friend’s mom dressed up as a fortuneteller and the school principal as the lone victim in the dunk tank. Shelancia’s vision became a reality and with the help of some friends,
they raised enough money to purchase a shipping container of food to send to hungry children in Africa. By the time she was 15, she organized a costume party in an effort to raise money for a young boy in Jamaica to be transported to Canada to undergo a bone marrow transplant. She personally designed and made all the costumes her family members would wear to the party and she also made the recipe for her famous “spaghetti and meatballs” that partygoers would feast on. The passion to design and create costumes remained with Shelancia and by the time she was 19 years old, she graduated from The International Academy of Art and Design in Toronto with a technical diploma in Costume Design. After graduation, she worked in the wardrobe department as a costume designer, wardrobe assistant, milliner, fabric dyer and pattern drafter for theatrical and film productions such as The Lion King, The Golden Ass, Swan Lake (The National Ballet of Canada), On Hostile Ground, Thomas and the Magic Railroad, The Piano Man’s Daughter and more. While finding difficulty searching for a good fitting bra, Shelancia decided to put her creativity skills to the test by owning and operating her own custom made bra company. Shelancia custom made specialty bras and corsets for over 15+ years creating garments for women who could not find bras in regular retail stores, bras for special medical conditions, high end fashion bras and corsets; as well as bust molding for pre and post mastectomy patients. Her background as a costume designer was especially helpful in the custom bra industry because she often found herself using theatrical creativity techniques to make clients live and feel comfortable in their everyday lives. In 2010, Shelancia moved to Lagos, Nigeria on an expatriate assignment with her husband and two children. When the school that her children were attending moved to a newly built building, Shelancia saw the blank concrete wall of the school as an opportunity to turn in into a wonderful piece of art and help underprivileged children at the same time. Shelancia organized a school fundraising campaign called “On the Wall” and sold custom painted bricks to raise money to create a scholarship for an underprivileged child to attend the prestigious Children’s International School. The “On the Wall” campaign was an absolute success and will be an on-going project for Children’s International School and the children who will benefit from the scholarship program. During her time in Lagos, Shelancia also volunteered her heart and creativity to design flyers and other fundraising materials to the non-profit company Run for a Cure Africa in their bid to help African women pay for the costs of educating, screening and treating breast cancer. At this time, Shelancia has returned to the United States with her husband and three children. After being influenced by her own children; Shelancia realizes there is nothing more important in this world than our kids. Shelancia is currently attending Texas A&M University where she is completing her Master’s Degree in Educational Psychology/Creativity, Cognition, Innovation and Design. Shelancia plans to use her vast creativity experience in sewing and textiles to teach educational/creative design programs that will educate and inspire our kids.
