Extraordinary Women TV announces guests for Rogers TV premiere
For Immediate Release
Extraordinary Women TV announces special guests for Rogers TV premiere
TORONTO, Jan. 5, 2013 – On Monday, Jan. 7, 2013 at 7:30 pm ET, Extraordinary Women TV with Shannon Skinner premieres on Rogers TV Cable 10 & 63 in Toronto/Scarborough. Shannon’s special guests for this first episode are Toronto-based singer/songwriter, Sarah Slean, and actress, Sarena Parmar.
Sarah Slean has made eight albums, including her latest, the critically-acclaimed double-album, Land & Sea. She has starred in two short films and a movie musical, published two volumes of poetry and, as a visual artist, held exhibits of her paintings. She has written two string quartets and shared the stage with five of the country’s leading orchestras. Slean has been nominated for three Junos, two Geminis, and her records have been released worldwide.
Shannon’s second guest, actress, Sarena Parmar, has starred in the Gemini-nominated series, How To Be Indie, playing the role of Indie’s older sister, Chandra Metha. Parmar has also guest starred in Degrassi: The Next Generation, Flashpoint and The Border, and the feature film, Radio Rebel. She is also an ambassador for “Because I am a Girl” program created by Plan Canada.
“These are two accomplished artists in their own right who share what inspires their hearts and how they achieved their success in my interviews with them,” says Shannon Skinner, producer and host, Extraordinary Women TV. “I encourage Torontonians to tune-in and get inspired by their stories.”
Extraordinary Women TV with Shannon Skinner is a first-of-its-kind web TV talk show that is an inspirational, relevant and informative resource for women who want to follow their hearts and dreams.
Shannon’s guests are women – many high-profile — from a range of industries, including: arts and entertainment, business, finance, charities, eco, media, experts – and more. Some notable guests include: singers/songwriters Suzie McNeil, Sarah Slean, Selina Martin and Amy Sky; media personality/relationship expert Jen Kirsch; journalist/author Jan Wong; businesswomen Rebecca MacDonald and Kelsey Ramsden; game inventor Laura Robinson; actresses Sarena Parmar, Lisa Berry; Plan Canada’s Rosemary McCarney; former Chatelaine editor Rona Maynard; among many others.
More than 170 one-on-one interviews with successful women from all walks of life, from Toronto and across Canada, have been conducted and archived since its inception in September 2010.
For full scheduling information, visit: www.rogerstv.com/ExtraordinaryWomenTV
For information, contact:
Shannon Skinner
Producer/Host, Extraordinary Women TV
416-576-8809 (cell)
shannon@skinnerpublicity.com
www.ExtraordinaryWomenTV.com
Extraordinary Women TV hits Toronto airwaves on Rogers TV
For Immediate Release
Shannon Skinner’s Extraordinary Women TV hits Toronto airwaves on Rogers TV
getting to the heart of Toronto’s extraordinary women
TORONTO, Dec. 19, 2012 — Beginning January 7, 2013 at 7:30 pm ET, Shannon Skinner’s Extraordinary Women TV — a unique web TV talk show on success, achievement and making a difference — will air on Rogers TV cable 10/63 in Toronto/Scarborough.
“The purpose of the show is to inspire women to follow their hearts and I do that by profiling women who are already doing it,” says Shannon Skinner, producer, creator and host, Extraordinary Women TV. “I am grateful to be a part of Rogers TV’s platform because it provides the opportunity to reach many Toronto women with these inspiring and often life-transforming stories to encourage them to take action on their heart desires.”
Shannon’s guests are successful women – many high-profile — from all walks of life, from Toronto and across Canada. Some notable guests include: singers/songwriters Suzie McNeil, Sarah Slean, Selina Martin and Amy Sky; media personality/relationship expert, Jen Kirsch; journalist/author Jan Wong; businesswomen Rebecca MacDonald and Kelsey Ramsden; game inventor Laura Robinson; actresses Sarena Parmar, Lisa Berry; Plan Canada’s Rosemary McCarney; former Chatelaine editor Rona Maynard; among many others.
Extraordinary Women TV with Shannon Skinner is a first-of-its-kind talk show that is an inspirational, relevant and informative resource for women who want to follow their hearts and dreams. More than 170 one-on-one interviews have been conducted and archived since its inception in September 2010.
For full scheduling information, visit: www.rogerstv.com/ExtraordinaryWomenTV
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For information, contact:
Shannon Skinner
Producer/Host, Extraordinary Women TV
416-576-8809 (cell)
shannon@skinnerpublicity.com
www.ExtraordinaryWomenTV.com
Internships with Shannon
INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
We’re looking for PR/marketing interns!
If you just graduated from a communications/marketing or media programme, are still a student, or are interested in breaking into the PR/media/marketing fields and developing your skills to do so, we have some great opportunities for you!
Tasks include:
Media relations, publicity, research, writing, social media, marketing materials, special events coordination and more. Strong emphasis on creativity.
The ideal candidate has:
- Good verbal communications and writing skills.
- General computer skills; particularly with Internet.
- Knowledge of graphic design, photo editing (i.e. Photoshop), Illustrator.
- Creativity.
- Is well organized.
- Any other marketing skills would also be a bonus.
Details:
Toronto-based
Positions start immediately
Deadline: Ongoing
Contact: Shannon at shannon (@) skinnerpublicity.com or 416-576-8809
Verity raises funds for computers for Regent Park’s Nelson Mandela Park School
Last night, I attended the Verity Club‘s Veritylink fundraising event “Wine, Women & Song.” The terrific event was the first fundraising event to support the Veritylink $100,000 technology drive for the Nelson Mandela Park School in Toronto’s Regent Park.
Located just down the street from Verity, Toronto’s premiere private women’s club founded by Mary Aitken, the school is filled with kids curious to learn, but does not have the technology that so many other schools and children have access to for learning. Toronto’s Regent Park is Canada’s oldest and largest social housing project, and home to a number of low-income families and many children living in poverty.
The goal is to bring computers and smart boards to the school this year. The technology will also help produce a school newspaper and assist with learning for students with learning disabilities.
The evening program included lovely opening remarks from Verity founder, Mary Aitken, a markeplace, silent auction and raffles, and remarks from Nicole Pearson, the principal at Nelson Mandela Park School; plus entertainment by Hammerband and singer Jessica Chaikowsky.
Oh, and the tea sandwiches, supplied by George, were out of this world!
Photo: Mary Aitken gives her opening remarks.
Shannon joins 85 Broads as Officer for Toronto Chapter
I’m delighted to say that I have accepted the position as Officer with the Toronto Chapter of 85 Broads, a global network of over 30,000 women who are inspired, empowered and connected. The network originated with a group of trailblazing women who worked for Goldman Sachs at 85 Broads Street in New York and now includes members in over 90 countries, including Canada.
Through its regional network events and online at 85Broads.com — listed by Forbes as one of the top 100 websites for women — members invest their time, their intellect, and their financial capital in each other’s ideas and businesses.
The Toronto Chapter of 85 Broads was recently launched in 2010 – so it’s new and growing. I’m excited to be a part of this great organization.
For the Facebook page and info about upcoming events, click here: 85 Broads – Toronto Chapter
For more information, click here.
Extraordinary Women TV announces media sponsorship of Toronto Women’s Expo
For Immediate Release
Shannon Skinner’s Extraordinary Women TV announces media sponsorship of Toronto Women’s Expo
TORONTO, October 16, 2012 – Shannon Skinner’s Extraordinary Women TV is pleased to be a media sponsor of the Toronto Women’s Expo. This exciting expo brings together local women who are interested in fulfilling their dreams and aspirations, which is taking place on Dec. 1 and 2, 2012, in Toronto.
“The event is terrific for Toronto-area women who want to come together to learn what it takes to be successful and make their dreams come true,” says Shannon Skinner, creator and host, Extraordinary Women TV with Shannon Skinner. “I am thrilled to be a part of making that happen.”
The Toronto Women’s Expo’s main goal is to provide women with the opportunity to celebrate and empower themselves. Designed to provide inspiration, education, empowerment and a community feel among women, The Toronto Women’s Expo is more than a shopping event. Various presentations and featured speakers will touch on topics that affect women, such as financial security, celebrating the various roles and stages of being a woman, motherhood and maintaining your femininity, and how to work smarter – not harder – to achieve life goals.
This event features high-profile speakers including Sophie Boyko, founder of Entrepreneur’s House of Business, an online business school providing students with the strategies they need to grow a profitable business; and Shannon Skinner, who will be speaking on the topic “Follow Your Heart.”
Toronto Women’s Expo supports six charities including: Canadian Blood Services, North York Harvest Food Bank, A Celebration of Women Foundation, WomenAide, Canadian Breast Cancer Association and Prostate Cancer.
The expo will be held at Downsview Park (40 Carl Hall Road), Studio 3, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Toronto.
For more information, visit Toronto Women’s Expo.
Extraordinary Women TV with Shannon Skinner is a first-of-its-kind web TV talk show that is a unique, inspirational, informative and relevant online resource for women everywhere who want to follow their hearts and dreams. More than 160 one-on-one interviews with successful women from all walks of life — Canadian and international — have been conducted and archived since its inception in Sept. 2010.
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For information, contact:
Shannon Skinner
Creator/Host, Extraordinary Women TV with Shannon Skinner
416-576-8809 (cell)
info@skinnerpublicity.com
www.ExtraordinaryWomenTV.com
www.ShannonSkinner.com
Honouring Aleksandra Knezevic, founder, HA Solutions, who passed away (VIDEO)
Yesterday morning, I received sad news about the sudden death of Aleksandra Knezevic, founder, HA Solutions. I had the honour of interviewing Aleksandra earlier this year on Extraordinary Women TV.
Coincidentally, only minutes before getting this news, I happened to be reviewing some of Aleksandra’s tips about how to meditate — her key to a successful life — that she had provided in the interview, when my first business call of the day brought this unexpected news. My heart sank.
While the timing of Aleksandra’s death corresponds with the second anniversary of my talk show, Extraordinary Women TV, it felt right to put my own milestone celebrations on hold and, instead, celebrate Aleksandra’s extraordinary life.
Aleksandra’s personal journey is inspiring and is truly the immigrant success story. After leaving her war-torn homeland of Serbia, she came to Canada along with her family. She spoke little English and soon began to feel dissatisfied. Aleksandra longed to find the connection between business and spirituality, which led her to Joe Vitale, of ‘The Secret’ movie fame, whose book about a Hawaiian healer made an impression. This changed her life. From this point on, she dedicated her life to learning about the Universal Laws and making meditation a daily ritual. As a result, HA Solutions, an organization dedicated to helping others get over the mental blocks so they can have fulfilling lives, was born.
My interview with Aleksandra is a fond one for me. Her energy is beautiful and magnetic, and youthful. Her laughter was infectious. I truly enjoyed my time with her — it is a blessing.
Bon voyage, Aleksandra, may you have your best journey yet. Thank you for your special gifts.
Toronto-New York by overnight bus: a test of resilience
SHANNON’S TRAVEL BAG: travel tips for women
Shannon Skinner travels by overnight bus from Toronto-New York City: a test of resilience.
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This past weekend, I went to New York City. It was a last-minute decision to attend a reunion with Oxford University alumni and also visit a dear friend. Since it was so last minute, I had decided to take the overnight bus. Besides, I was up for an adventure.
I had recently heard about the overnight bus from Toronto to New York City and how popular it is with students and people working in the entertainment industry. I have not taken a bus, particularly an overnight one, since, well, I can’t remember. In my twenties and early thirties, I traveled extensively, much of it by bus. I had wondered if, now in my forties, I could handle 9-10 hours pulling an all-nighter in a sardines-can-on-wheels.
So, I put it to the test.
On Thursday, I arrive at Toronto’s downtown bus station in the early evening, fully prepared for my 10 hour trip (except for a bottle of water that I neglected to bring) and my first impression about the clientele is, how do I say, slightly different than what you might see in an airport. On the bus, I notice that most of the passengers are women.
We get off to a good start at roughly 9:30 p.m., and I am happily on my way to the Big Apple, but roughly about an hour into the trip, the bus stops at a set of lights on the highway — and stalls. I know this is not a good sign. The driver, who I think was a comic-wannabe, can’t get it started again and is clearly sweating it. Eventually, after about 10 minutes or so, he fires it up and tells us in his comical way he “hopes” we would arrive at our destination.
Hopes?! Okay, so I think:”Let’s find a little more certainty here!”
And off we go…again…
Thankfully, the bus is an express, with short stops in Buffalo, Syracuse, Rochester, picking up and dropping off other passengers and, of course, a pit stop at Canada-U.S. customs. In Buffalo, we get a new driver, whose physique makes me slightly uneasy because he looks like a prime candidate for a heart-attack.
By now, the bus is freezing. I politely ask our driver with no name if he could “turn up the heat,” as did another young woman. But, he is not interested in co-operating. “I like it cold,” he says. “I’m a cold-weathered person. Sorry.”
I guess it is his bus, he calls the shots. This means I freeze.
Then the bus driver informs us that he was told by another bus driver that Greyhound is fully aware that this bus has a problem with the heating and yet still puts it out on the road – and the bus drivers are not recommending people take this particular coach (Greyhound coach #1329).
Okay. So, we’re still freezing. I manage to catch a few winks, until the bus finds its way on the shoulder of the highway. The distinct sound of the pavement underneath, and the vibration, jolts people awake, me included, with some people gasping. So I think to myself: “Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all.”
Smooth sailing again and before I know it I arrive at the chaotic Port Authority in Manhattan with a stiff neck and cramped hips, but happy to be back in the city that does not sleep.
Sunday night comes too quickly, though, and my weekend is over (I didn’t get to the full reunion as life got in the way, but did get to one important reception). On the route back, I manage to get on an earlier bus than I had booked — the 7:30 p.m. Thankfully, there was no change fee and I just had to stand in line, as it is first-come, first-served. The ride is much smoother than the outbound one, the bus is more updated — and warm. However, a newborn sitting in front of me cries for what seems like an eternity. No way to escape the screaming, and my patience tested, I feel trapped. And grouchy. Although I’m not sure what is more annoying: the screaming baby or the mother who was constantly “sshhh’ing” it. Somehow, because I am feeling almost desperate to sleep at this stage, the sounds seemed amplified.
There is one redeeming factor on this bus trip for me — though it certainly is not the wild-hair, bespectacled woman who snaps at me for mistakenly sitting in her seat. It is the young man I sit next to on the way home. He is student at a college in Rochester, and a New York native. I’ll call him Jay. Jay dons a big, shiny, faux diamond earring stud and a baseball cap. He looks like a rapper. I learn that he is a DJ and studies communication, and has big dreams. I also learn he is putting himself through school and has a deep desire to succeed and inspire others – to give back. We talk about personal development, education, money, dreams — and Les Brown and other motivational speakers. Maybe one day, he says, he’ll be a motivational speaker, too.
Even though we are years apart in age, I connect with this young man and adore his spirit. Listening to his dreams inspires me to keep following mine.
Thank you, Jay.
Finally, we arrive in Toronto at 5:40 a.m. at a deserted and quiet Union Station, and I hop on the first subway train of the day – at 6:05 a.m. I am home by 6:30 a.m., just in time to start my work day, albeit with a foggy brain (and not before a much-needed nap).
As for my test of resilience: I passed. I think taking the overnight bus is a terrific option for students and travelers on a shoestring budget. But, next time I travel to New York, I think I will fly.
Ticket Cost: $118, round-trip (fares may vary, so check in advance)
Reservations: click here
Tips:
1. If you are traveling the Toronto-New York route in the colder months, do NOT take Greyhound coach #1329. Wait for the next bus.
2. Be sure to pack a bottle of water.
3. Wear comfy clothes – yoga pants are ideal.
4. Book on-line in advance for best fares. Seats are on a first-come, first-served basis.
© Shannon Skinner 2012
