L'union Suite
Type of site
Media
Available inEnglish[1]
No. of locationsSunrise, Florida
Founder(s)Whenda “Wanda” Tima[2]
URLwww.lunionsuite.com
LaunchedOctober 19, 2011 (2011-10-19) (First post)
Current statusActive

L'union Suite is a Haitian-American lifestyle, tourism, culture, society, and entertainment media company based in South Florida.[3][4] L'union Suite has quickly become the number one platform for Haitian-Americans with over 450,000 subscriptions and a reach of around 5–10 million weekly.[3][4][5][6]

History

Started as a small blog, L'union Suite was created by Whenda "Wanda" Tima-Gilles in order to provide a platform to connect with other Haitian-Americans who felt disconnected from Haitian culture as she did.[7][8] Wanda who was born in Cap-Haïtien, grew up in the Turks and Caicos and emigrated to South Florida as a teen, knew of the customs but not what they meant and was late in learning about Haitian history and culture.[2][4] In an attempt to learn more about Haiti online, her findings were underwhelming as there was an over-emphasis concerning the country's impoverishment rather than the rich culture she knew it had and aimed to change that.[4][9] Instead, Wanda dedicated herself in highlighting positive and uplifting stories about Haiti and its diaspora from the experiences to the achievements which began as a personal project.[3][10]

Founder

Wanda has been featured in Forbes, BET, Black Enterprise[11][12][8] and was honored as a receipt for Miami's 40 Under 40 Black Leaders for Today and Tomorrow in 2016 by Legacy magazine.[13] She graduated from Dillard High School at age 16 and became the first person in her family to graduate from college when she obtained a bachelor's degree in mass communication with a concentration in journalism and public relations from Bethune–Cookman University. Wanda had previously worked in audiovisual media for various radio stations, interned for BET Network and two other TV stations in Daytona and Orlando, Florida.[9] She currently resides in South Florida.[2][12]

Charitable works

Each year L’union Suite adopts a new project to fundraise by hosting annual events, most notably the ”Strike for Education” bowling tournament where celebrities, influencers and South Florida residents have turned out for.[14][15]

On 30 April 2018, L’union Suite opened a computer lab, which also included school supplies and new blackboards in Collège Bell Angelot in Cap-Haïtien, Haiti for students between 7th and 12th grades in order for them to take full advantage of S.T.E.M., which is a term aimed to further academic disciplines in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics through focused lab. Contributions were raised from an annual fundraiser hosted by L’union Suite which included support from the likes of Pierre Garçon and Spirit Airlines to name a few.[16]

References

  1. ↑ Herring, Chloe, ed. (12 July 2017). "The founder of popular Haitian Facebook account wants you to bowl for education". Miami.com. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 Alexis, Gaelle C., ed. (15 December 2016). "The Union Suite, a one woman show!". Le Nouvelliste (Haiti). Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 Wanda Tima Digital Influencer Media Maven Founder, L'union Suite (NAAHP)
  4. 1 2 3 4 Press, ed. (24 January 2019). "Meet Whenda "Wanda" Tima". VoyageMIA. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  5. ↑ Staff, ed. (28 September 2017). "Miami And New York Come Together To "Rebrand Cap-Haitien"". South Florida Times. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  6. ↑ Daniel, Nyam, ed. (25 November 2020). "Wanda presents Haiti to the world in an authentic way". Caribbean America Web. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
  7. ↑ Chopra, Sonia, ed. (18 December 2020). "Why It's So Important to Get Recipes Right: On taking pride in food and community". Bon Appétit. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  8. 1 2 Atkins, Attiya, ed. (9 April 2020). "These Caribbean Businesswomen Are Changing The Game". Island Origins Magazine. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  9. 1 2 Moreau, John Fritz, ed. (3 December 2020). "Whenda Tima mise sur les plateformes de médias sociaux pour changer l'image d'Haïti". Juno 7. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  10. ↑ Frederick, David, ed. (2017). Lakay - A Journey of Struggle, Perseverance, and Hope. FriesenPress. p. 135. ISBN 9781525512704. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  11. ↑ Ellsmoor, James, ed. (1 December 2018), "Rewriting Haiti's Narrative: Ten Haitian Entrepreneurs Helping To Reinvent Their Nation", Forbes, retrieved 9 April 2021
  12. 1 2 Brutus, Wilkine, ed. (18 May 2020). "The Lived Experiences That Shaped Haitian Flag Day". WLRN-FM. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  13. ↑ Press, ed. (1 August 2016). "Legacy Miami's 40 Under 40 Black Leaders for Today and Today for 2016". Legacy (via ISSUU). Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  14. ↑ Staff, ed. (27 July 2017). "'Fun-Raising' For Haiti Draws Widespread Support". South Florida Times. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
  15. ↑ Joseph, Marcine, ed. (15 July 2019). "One of the largest Haitian-American social media platforms throws fundraising event for education". Local 10. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
  16. ↑ Lopez, Mia, ed. (1 May 2018). "L'union Suite Opens Computer Lab in Cap-Haitien, Haiti". Medium. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
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