Forsyth Woman celebrates women of all ages, including rising stars in elementary, middle and high school. Kendall “Riley” Anderson has been an integral part of her community as one of LEAD Girls of NC’s most promising members. At just 13 years old, Riley has managed to stay on top of her grades as a honor roll student, participate in track and basketball, and aspires to surpass her stellar 3.40 GPA in order to achieve a 4.0 GPA in the near future.
At a young age, Riley has demonstrated her entrepreneurial spirit by establishing Riley & RiRi, LLC, a cosmetics business that sells lip gloss, lip balm and lotion. Riley started the business in 2020 with her younger sister, Ariane (“RiRi”), when she was just seven years old. In fact, Riley and Ariane’s business was recently named the 2023 Kid Biz of the Year by the Triad Minority and Women’s Business Expo. Interested in checking out Riley & RiRi’s products? Visit the website at therileyandririshow.co.
Outside of running her business, academia and athletics, Riley engages her creativity by singing and producing her own music using computer software in her spare time. After middle school and high school, she has dreams of attending Howard University and possibly even enrolling in cosmetology school. As far as her favorite local restaurant is concerned, nothing beats a tasty hibachi steak dinner at Umi Japanese Steakhouse.
LEAD Girls of NC (Learning Everyday Accomplishing Dreams) is an organization sponsored by numerous organizations designed to prepare low-income and/or at-risk preteen girls in the community. Its mission is to successfully inspire young women to become strong, stable and successful members of society and create role models like Riley. As a two-year LEAD veteran, one of Riley’s fondest memories of the organization includes getting to know her fellow LEAD members. She enjoys team building games and exercises that allow her to grow closer to her peers and form long-lasting bonds. According to Riley, LEAD instructors excel at fostering an environment that encourages members to open up to each other easily. In addition to instructors, high school peer ambassadors at LEAD empathize with their younger members’ pre-teen years and help them feel comfortable. By having ambassadors to look up to, Riley and other young women her age are inspired to grow to give back in the future as ambassadors themselves.
In 2022 alone, LEAD served 346 girls in the community with more than 15,000 hours of service. The organization succeeded in boosting the self-confidence and self-worth in young women, promoting them to the next grade level in school, and increasing gratitude within individuals’ lives. In 2023, members and sponsors raised more than $16,000 for the annual LEAD-A-Thon to support the implementation of LEAD programs in Forsyth County schools. Additionally, LEAD’s 2023 Annual Soiree raised more than $24,000 to continue lifting up young women in the future.
Interested in becoming involved with LEAD Girls of NC? Apply online and read more about
LEAD’s programs and values at leadgirls.org.
