We created Mocha Dates to provide singles of color an opportunity to meet and form connections with like-minded individuals at an event that caters to and promotes the single person of color’s cultural experiences. This idea was born when the Mocha Dates founders were trying to find speed dating opportunities for their single friends. The single professional of color often finds themselves wanting a little more variety when it comes to meeting new people besides clubs or bars and Mocha Dates is the answer.
Mrs. Brown-Renfro, event executive for Simply Panache, the parent organization for Mocha Dates co-founded the idea for Mocha Dates which premiered November 2007. Happily married herself, Mrs. Brown-Renfro has watched her single friends struggle with finding fun dating events that catered to their culture and lifestyle. She saw that her friends represented a cornucopia of different professions, interests, passions and styles as well as embodied the full spectrum of the “single person of color”. And she saw that these were individuals that enjoyed a variety of social endeavors. Therefore, after doing her research and discussing the idea with her partner, Tanecia Willis, she realized that the creation of Mocha Dates represents the embodiment of a entire new dating event that, rather than treat the single person of color as an afterthought, actually features and embraces the single person of color and his/her cultural experience.
Mrs. Brown-Renfro holds a Bachelors degree in Communications and resides in the Austin, Texas area with her husband and child.
Ms. Willis, event executive for Simply Panache and co-founder of Mocha Dates is actually a single of color herself and experienced first hand the paucity of speed dating events that cater to her culture. Ms. Willis, who is a member of Mrs. Brown-Renfro’s single friend circle has attended many events that were for professional persons of color where the purpose was business networking. Accordingly, she saw an easy way to combine both the aspects of professional business networking and speed dating into one dynamic event where a person could walk away from an event with several business contacts and several new friends all from one experience.
Ms. Willis holds a Bachelors degree in Nursing, a Masters degree in Business Administration and resides in the Houston, Texas area
Ms. Teule-Hekima, event executive for Simply Panache and a recent addition to the Simply Panache family is also a single of color herself and feels a passion for Mocha Dates for all of the same reasons as her partners. She has noticed that a lot singles of color want a deeper connection than a bar or club scene might offer and she feels that Mocha Dates is a social outlet that creates a foundation of communication, shared values and interests as well as a common cultural outlook. She noticed that a event like Mocha Dates, while appreciating the importance of physical attraction and physical attributes, also places emphasis on the substance behind the beautiful exterior.
Ms. Teule-Hekima is a board-certified physician who resides in Hampton Roads, Virginia area.