This is a story about a woman who had nothing when walking to St. Louis and become a millionaire in 1914. Sarah Breedlove Walker was born in 1867 to former slaves in northeast Louisiana. She was an orphan and she made her way to St. Louis and supported herself as a washerwoman for 18 years. A scalp condition caused her to loose some of her hair, and she experimented with a variety of homemade concoctions in an effort to regrow her hair. To her amazement new hair sprouted, it was soft and shiny. The secret formula intrigue her friends so much and they constantly ask her about it.

At the time,there were virtually no hair products available specifically for African-Americans at the time, and Sarah saw a business opportunity. She realized there was a demand for this need;therefore, she founded the Madam C. J. Walker Manufacturing Company with her husband, Charles Joseph Walker. She worked restlessly to sell her product from door to door and ask other women to join her. Not long later, in 1910, she had about 1,000 sales agents.

Her name is Vernice Amour…she is a captain…Bright and brave lady…….

As featured on Oprah Winfrey, CNN, Tavis Smiley, NPR, and others, Vernice Armour has emerged as the leadership coach and speaker for the 21^st Century. Vernice’s dynamic style and presentation methods have impacted many organizations and individuals, leaving them in an accelerated climb holding the throttle! Vernice stands on many shoulders, a strong legacy, and is highly sought after for her message of EXCELerated Leadership™!

While attending Middle Tennessee State University, Vernice enlisted in the Army Reserves in the spring of 1993, and enrolled in Army ROTC that fall. When she saw the image of a young black female in an Army flight suit during Army ROTC Advanced Camp, her first thought was, “Wow, why didn’t I think of that!”

Before graduating from college, Vernice accomplished her childhood dream of becoming a Police Officer in 1996. Still in search of the next challenge, she was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps in December 1998. Vernice earned her wings in July 2001, ranked No. 1 out her class of 12 and of the last 200 to graduate becoming the United States Marine Corps’ first African American female pilot.

During Operation Iraqi Freedom, she was recognized as America’s First African-American Female Combat Pilot by the Department of Defense, and completed 2 combat tours of duty in the Gulf before departing the Marine Corps.

Among her accomplishments, Vernice has been awarded for being a pioneering pilot and her role in technology and engineering! Vernice was also the first African American woman on the Nashville Police Department’s motorcycle squad, Camp Pendleton’s 2001 Female Athlete of the Year, two-time titleholder in Camp Pendleton’s annual Strongest Warrior Competition, and a running back for the San Diego Sunfire women’s professional football team.

Vernice departed the Marine Corps in June 2007. Today through her keynotes, seminars, workshops, and executive retreats, she conveys her message of EXCELerated Leadership through her unique insight and life strategy: Acknowledge the obstacles … Don’t give them power!

Vernice’s next book, FlightPlan, is due for release in early 2009.