West Potomac Teacher Promotes Teamesteem

The following story was submitted by reader Oduro Agyei-Boateng. Patch has not independently verified this information.

Alexandria’s Carlyle Club hosted the April 7 book launch for West Potomac High School teacher Daryl Mackey. Mackey is the founder of the Teamesteem Network and Teamesteem books. The event brought together writers, sponsors and student ambassadors to celebrate the Teamesteem brand, which seeks to promote financial literacy among teenagers and young adults.

The three-hour event began just before noon. Guests took the opportunity to make new contacts with business owners, bank representatives and other prominent members of the community. Evan Jenkins, a senior at West Potomac, performed piano and vocals on stage at the Carlyle Club. Also addressing the crowd were Alexandria Mayor William Euille; Lisa Ramirez, an author and speaker at Olive 13 Paloma Consulting in Washington and director of the Office of Migrant Education at the U.S. Department of Education; and orthodontist Herbert Hughes. Euille acknowledged Teamesteem’s service to the community in providing teens with the keys to success.

Ramirez spoke of a nostalgic analogy the story of the “Three Little Pigs.” Ramirez pointed to one pig’s ability to learn from mistakes and build a more stable and better home that was able to keep out the wolf. She spoke on the value of effort using the story “The Giving Tree” to illustrate the greater rewards that come out of giving one’s best.

The final speaker of the afternoon, Hughes brought the “wow factor” with his presentation “Mental Magic.” Hughes promoted the value of presenting one’s self in a positive light, “saying yes” and always carrying a positive outlook. Being passionate about what you do can make the difference in the results of your work and how people perceive your work, he said.

The event included awards of recognition, handed out by the ambassadors of Teamesteem, a group of young adults ranging in age from 8 to 18, to the event sponsors.

Awards and thanks also went out to the organizers of the event and all those who had a hand in making Teamesteem possible.

The student representation and level of involvement in this event was a perfect complement to the message of increasing teens’ exposure to the inner workings of business and finance, and to opportunities, such as this event presented, to witness the gathering of the various components – the sponsors, the planners, the architects, and the target consumers – that come together to bring an idea to life. It was all truly spectacular, and made for an amazing afternoon at the Carlyle Club.