Note: Please claim one ticket per attendee, so that we can accurately plan for the correct headcount.
About the Event
Held over Mother’s Day weekend, Pride and Purpose is a day of community, reflection, and activation centering women, BIPOC, and LGBTQIA+ communities. Presented by Voices of Note, this special outreach event brings together advocacy organizations, family-friendly programming, food, meaningful conversation, and the Atlanta premiere of The Inquisitor—a powerful documentary exploring the life and legacy of Congresswoman Barbara Jordan.
The day features an organization fair, food trucks, panel discussions, childcare and children’s activities, art experiences, slam poetry, musical performances, the film screening, and a community reception.
More than a gathering, Pride and Purpose is an invitation to consider what it means to be an “inquisitor” in your own community. Inspired by Barbara Jordan’s moral clarity, civic courage, and deep commitment to public service, the event encourages participants to put their values into action—through volunteering, advocacy, the arts, voting, and care for one another.
Whether you come for the film, the organizations, the conversation, or simply to be in community during Mother’s Day weekend, Pride and Purpose offers a welcoming space for connection, learning, and collective movement toward justice.
Barbara Jordan’s legacy endures as a call to courage, integrity, and public responsibility. Pride and Purpose builds on that legacy by creating space for women, families, advocates, artists, and neighbors to gather around the issues shaping our lives and our shared future.
Through community partnerships, civic dialogue, and creative expression, this event connects people with tangible opportunities for engagement—inviting all who attend to imagine, and help build, a more just and inclusive world.
Schedule of Events
1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Organization Fair and food vendors
Guided art tours with
Courtney Brooks
(held at 1:30, 2:00, 2:30)
Childcare activities:
- Dekalb County Fire truck demo: (1:00 - 3:00)
- Face Painting with BZ ArtZ by Brittany: (1:00 - 3:00)
2:00 PM - 2:45 PM Poetry and panel discussion moderated by Andi Monroe, Regional Program Coordinator, Lambda Legal
- Featured Poets: Mia S. Willis and Shay Alexi
- Panelists
- Kenny (Healthline Coordinator at ARC-Southeast)
- Doris Mukangu (President and CEO, Amani Women Center)
- Ellie Williams, esq. (Legal Director, JFIS Program, GCADV)
- Michelle Wilson (COO, Women Engaged)
3:00 PM - 4:45 PM The Inquisitor film
4:45 PM -5:30 PM Second panel, moderated by Rev. Taryn Strauss
- Rep. Dr. Imani Barnes (District 86)
- Sandy Mollett (Lambda Legal’s National Board of Directors)
- Noël Heatherland (Statewide Organizing Manager, Georgia Equality)
- Elisa Corvarrubias
5:30 PM - 7:00 PM Reception Light fare and wine Musical performance by Sorrelanza
Kenny is a reproductive justice activist based in Atlanta, Georgia. Their background includes a BA in Political Science as well as studying for their Masters in Biostatistics. Growing up with healthcare needs for their own mental health, they are committed to universal healthcare in the United States. They have worked to ensure abortion access to Southerners by working on the Healthline at Access Reproductive Care - Southeast for 7 years. They value creativity, integrity, and human life.
Doris Mukangu is a social impact leader and subject matter expert in community health, resettlement, and economic empowerment. She designs culturally responsive programs that address systemic barriers affecting immigrant, refugee, and marginalized communities. As a published researcher and nonprofit management professional, she brings a researcher-practitioner approach that centers both evidence and community voice. Her work advances social enterprise, workforce development, and capacity-building initiatives that promote long-term economic stability and resilience. Through her leadership, she strengthens organizations, builds strategic partnerships, and expands equitable opportunities for underserved populations to thrive, lead, and achieve lasting, transformative community impact across diverse and underserved communities.
Moderator: Andi Monroe (they/them), Co-Founder & Financial Coach is an agender strategist, storyteller, and Regional Program Coordinator for Lambda Legal, where they lead operations for the Southeast office of the nation’s oldest and largest LGBTQ+ legal defense fund.
They have spent the past three years programming for the OUT on Film festival and previously founded Your Gay Atlanta, a production company dedicated to telling the stories of LGBTQ+ life in our own backyard.
As co-founder of an upcoming initiative focused on expanding TGNC access to financial knowledge, Andi’s work lives at the intersection of storytelling, equity, and empowerment—creating tools and spaces where people feel seen, supported, and equipped to lead.
Noël Heatherland (they/them) is the Statewide Organizing & Outreach Manager for Georgia Equality, the state’s leading advocacy organization working for LGBTQ+ human rights and those living with HIV/AIDS. They sit on the Boards of both This Doesn’t Define Me and The Dreaming Justice Project. As a domestic violence survivor, they are a fierce advocate for other survivors of DV & IPV. They collaborate in coalitions that center cross-racial solidarity, immigrants’ rights, reproductive justice, working-class unity, and protecting the environment. Noël approaches their activism and advocacy efforts through a collective liberation lens.
Noël grew up inside a cult that strategized around promoting white Christian nationalism, including strict gender roles and the patriarchy. Noël sees their activism and advocacy as a spiritual activity, and they are a part of coordinating faith-based involvement in social justice fights.
Sandy Mollett (she/her) is a retired executive turned full-time advocate and changemaker and has dedicated her “second act” to building inclusive spaces where all people can thrive. She serves on Lambda Legal's Atlanta Leadership Council and Lambda Legal's National Board of Directors. She is the founder of EqualFooting LLC, a consulting firm focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion, and is a Certified Diversity Professional (CDP®). Previously, she served in senior leadership roles at Inclusivv, True Diversity, and First Data (now Fiserv), where she championed transformative workplace inclusion initiatives. Coming out professionally after 25 years in the corporate world, Sandy has since become a powerful advocate for LGBTQ+ equality, workplace equity, and community belonging. Her tireless advocacy has touched countless lives through leadership on multiple boards and organizations…including Georgia Equality, the City of Atlanta LGBTQ Advisory Board, Out Front Theatre, United Way of Greater Atlanta, the OUT Georgia Business Alliance, and the Mayor’s Women of Atlanta Advisory Board.
Ellie Williams is the Legal Director of the Justice for Incarcerated Survivors Program at the Georgia Coalition Against Domestic Violence. She practices post-conviction criminal defense and represents survivors of domestic violence whose convictions are connected to their abuse. She also conducts trainings for professionals across Georgia and around the country, and she works on policy efforts related to criminalized survival. Ellie is a contributor to the State of Georgia Domestic Violence Benchbook, and in 2023, she published an article focused on criminalized survival and international human rights law in the Georgia Journal of International and Comparative Law.
Michelle N. Wilson is a movement leader and strategist dedicated to building sustainable, people-centered organizations that expand civic power. With experience in grassroots organizing, leadership development, and organizational strategy, she works at the intersection of civic engagement, racial equity, and human rights. Michelle is committed to strengthening infrastructure, developing leaders, and centering Black women, youth, queer people, disabled folks, and communities most impacted by injustice. She leads with clarity, care, and accountability, believing that durable movements require both strong systems and supported people. Outside of work, she is a gaming enthusiast, cosplayer, and storyteller.
Elisa Covarrubias is the Deputy Director for GALEO. GALEO's mission is to increase civic participation by educating and empowering the Latino community and to develop Latino leaders through strategic leadership programs throughout the state of Georgia. Prior to this role, she worked in non-profit social services for over 20 years, with a focus on gender-based violence intervention and prevention, serving as Chief Operating Officer at LiveSafe Resources and then CEO at Men Stopping Violence. Born to a mother of Puerto Rican descent and a Mexican father, she spent her formative years in Miami, Florida, but has called Atlanta home since 2008. Elisa is passionate about human rights and empowering the Latino community. She is the current Board Chair for the Georgia Coalition Against Domestic Violence and also serves as a member of the Emory CHART Partner Steering Committee and the Latinx Alliance.
Moderator: Taryn Strauss is the senior minister of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta. She received her M.DIV from Union Theological Seminary in New York City, where she studied liberation theology and depth psychology. After spending some time as a theatre director and health educator, she came to Atlanta to serve a call to build and grow a multi-racial, multicultural UU congregation in an urban setting. Rev. Taryn advocates for public schools, immigration justice, earth justice, antiracism, voting and reproductive rights. When she's not serving her congregation, you'll find her at the local library with her twin sons, Townes and Langston, or playing music with her musician spouse, James Richards.
MIA S. WILLIS is a Black queer poet, popular educator, and cultural historian from Charlotte, North Carolina. Their poetry has been featured by the Academy of American Poets, The Slowdown, Muzzle Magazine, The Offing, the minnesota review, and others. Mia holds a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from Randolph College. They are the author of monster house (Jai-Alai Books), the 2018 winner of Cave Canem’s Toi Derricotte & Cornelius Eady Chapbook Prize. Their debut collection, the space between men (Penguin), was a winner of the 2023 National Poetry Series Competition. Connect with Mia on Facebook, X, and Instagram (@poetinthehat).
SHAY ALEXI is a multi-disciplinary writer and artist based in Atlanta, GA. Their full-length poetry collection, Unbridled (Game Over Books), was nominated for a Georgia Author of the Year Award. Alexi’s work has been featured by The Rumpus, WUSSY Magazine, and Ninth Letter, amongst others. Videos of their poems have garnered over 5 million online views. Shay holds a Master's in Strategic Communications from Agnes Scott College and is a creative communications specialist for a human rights NGO. Learn more and connect with them at shayalexi.com or @shayalexi on Instagram.
Courtney Brooks is an Atlanta-based multidisciplinary artist independent curator, founder of Journey of Black Girl and CBrooks Gallery whose work is deeply rooted in community, identity, and the celebration of Black womanhood. Originally from Denver, Colorado, Brooks has rooted her art life in Atlanta over 20 years ago, where she has become a central figure in the city's grassroots and public art scenes. Her creative practice spans painting, photography, and large-scale murals. Brooks often utilizes vibrant colors, abstract art and soulful portraiture to explore themes of sisterhood, self-love, and healing. She describes her work as a "visual expression" of the journey toward accepting flaws and embracing the beauty of freedom.
Atlanta Women's Chorus
Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta
Amani Women Center
ARC-Southeast
League of Women Voters of Georgia
Georgia Coalition Against Domestic Violence/Justice for Incarcerated Survivors
Women Engaged
Georgia Equality
Lambda Legal
T. Clark Realty
Balance ABA
Emory Ponce Clinical Research Site
GALEO
Tezzy Pooh's Ice Cream
Serves Jeni's Ice Cream cups, Sunshine Sammies, King of Pops, iced coffee, and more!
Rae on Wheels
American, Southern, and Mexican fare
Chef Baker's Place
serves Soul Food and Caribbean BBQ
J Bros
Aerves burgers and fries, chicken tenders and wings, and rice bowls.
BZ ArtZ
Face painting by BZ ArtZ with Brittany
Parking & Childcare
Note: Childcare available throughout. Free parking available. For all questions of accessibility, please call Lynnette at 404-634-5134, extension 204
