JPS partners with Kiki Thombs to empower the next generation of female leaders

Speaking at a recent book signing that was hosted by JPS Foundation with girls from across Spanish Town and  Kingston, KiKi spoke about her eventful journey, which lead her to writing her book, “Discovering You: The Search is Over.”

Kiki shared her experience with verbal abuse in her family and how it impacted her. She used her experience as an example of the effects of this type of abuse on children and highlighted how it shapes the kind of adults they become. With her story as a guide, Kiki walked the girls through the dangers of verbal abuse and encouraged them to be brave enough to break the cycle.

Kiki’s story is not about the negative things that happened to her, but instead focusses on her achievements.  Her ability to overcome emotional trauma and situations as difficult as incarceration, is what she uses to encourage her readers, and her chat with the girls was no different.  She left the audience with the charge of pushing past setbacks, because each “mistake” or wrong turn builds character and helps to equip a person for life ahead. Her story is one of triumph and one that can be emulated by the upcoming generation.

These positive elements resonated with JPS and led the company to accept Kiki’s request to purchase some of her books.  When speaking about the partnership, Corporate Communications Manager at JPS, Ruthlyn Johnson, said the company was happy to support Kiki as the book’s aim was aligned with the company’s mission of powering what matters– people.

“This is exactly the kind of thing that we focus on; empowering these girls and letting them know that their future is bright, regardless of their situations. When Kiki approached us, we accepted the offer because a detailed read of the book reveals that the book is a life manual.  It is much bigger than Kiki’s story. The book is a powerful asset in the hands of these teenage girls.”

The event was also aligned with JPS’ aim of empowering females across all generations and so each teenaged girl received a signed copy of the book “Discovering You: The Search is Over.”   They also had the opportunity to have one–on-one discussions with Kiki.