Her Excellency Monica Chakwera, the First Lady of Malawi, was the Featured Speaker at the First Ladies
Summit for Orphans & Vulnerable Children hosted in Nashville, TN, by The Stars Foundation. The city of
Nashville welcomed the First Lady on Thursday, September 26, 2024 as a motorcade of Secret Service,
Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, the Nashville Police and other officials arrived to meet the First Lady and her delegation. The Ambassador of Malawi to the United States, Madame Esme Chombo, had arrived earlier to greet the First Lady with The Stars Foundation’s founder, Cheryl Robeson Piggott.

Former US Ambassador to the United Nations, Mark D. Siljander, was the Moderator of the Summit, held at the Sonesta Hotel Nashville Airport. Representatives from Uganda, Liberia, Malawi, Canada and US were gathered for discussion of the concerns and issues of the vulnerable children in their countries. The Summit was filmed for highlight episodes on NRB TV and other networks, affiliated with The Stars Foundation.

Madame First Lady Chakwera shared her vision for helping young girls with empowerment and educational programs through her Shaping Our Future Foundation (SOFF). The Summit attendees were impressed to learn that in 2023, SOFF provided 1,108 full secondary school bursaries to vulnerable girls and boys across 150 schools in Malawi. Her Excellency is focused on the goal to increase the enrollment and retention of village girls and boys to 5,000 students by 2026. Her long-term goal is to build the Monica Chakwera Multipurpose Center that will provide all encompassing educational and mental health curriculum to build a healthy generation of world changers in Malawi. This vision is for both girls and boys and provides cutting edge curriculum for holistic health and education.

The Stars Foundation was founded by Cheryl Robeson-Piggott in the early 2000’s and founded World Orphans Day in 2006. World Orphans Day is the Second Monday in November each year. The Stars Foundation is a United States Based 501c3 non-profit organization. It serves as an advocacy organization for the underprivileged children and youth of the world. In its humanitarian efforts, over $115,000,000 dollars of goods in kind have been sent around the world.

The event was followed on Saturday night by a media event, the Rhinestone Gala, for the orphan and vulnerable children’s programs, and to welcome and honor Madame First Lady Chakwera. Her Excellency spoke eloquently her goals for the children of Malawi, and her appreciation of the hosting organization. Little did the attendees know of the plight of the victims of the Hurricane Helene a few hours away at the North Carolina/ Tennessee border that very night.

First Lady Monica Chakwera of Republic of Malawi

The First Lady enjoyed the night’s entertainment provided by the local artists of Nashville, Clayton Q, former The Voice Finalist-Presley Tennant, Rebecca Holden, Adria Hyde, Men in Black – Johnny Cash Tribute Band, and Hollywood’s Terrell Edwards. Roger Piggott and Morelia Cuevas co-hosted the evening, along with Rebecca Holden, of Knight Rider. Other VIP guests attending were former NFL players Siran Stacy and Coach Lance Zeno. Lucy Rael gave the invocation, and brought a delegation of pastors from around the country.

Manuel Cuevas, the distinguished fashion designer, known for the glitter and sparkle of Nashville fashion wear by the Stars, was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the event. He donated a Manuel scarf for support to the charity cause as well.

For 8 years, The Stars Foundation has had great support from Troy Miller, CEO, of NRB TV and National Religious Broadcasters Association based in Washington, DC. Miller, who has 4 adopted children, serves as the Honorary Chairman of World Orphans Day for Tennessee. Mr. Miller was a main speaker at the Rhinestone Gala.

Cheryl Robeson Piggott Founder, World Orphans Day & Her Excellency Monica Chakwera

One of the top featured items of the Silent Auction at the Rhinestone Gala was the beautiful quilt that The Stars,Foundation received from Her Excellency Jewel Howard-Taylor of Liberia, that was hand made at the Schoolof the Jewel Starfish Foundation. A gift from Senator Marsha Blackburn were Tennessee Cufflinks, signed guitars from Dolly Parton and Vince Gill were sold to bring resources to the attendee’s charitable causes.

The Stars Foundation expressed appreciation for Jay Paul Deratany, a human rights activist, lawyer and movie producer who graciously donated the World Changer sponsorship level of this exclusive event. Jay Paul Deratany produced Foster Boy, which was released during 2020, and Shaquille O’Neal was one of the co- executive producers.

Media sponsors include NRB TV, which has over 50,000,000 households and is broadcast in 5 countries,
IeyeNews of the Caribbean, Telemundo, and Univision.