Thank You, Moms in Security!

The pictures say it all.

The hard work of the four amazing moms pictured above – (from left to right) Min Kyriannis, CEO, Amyna Systems; Antoinette King, PSP, Founder, Credo Cyber Consulting, LLC; Elisa Mula, Founder, EM Designs (EMD), LLC; and Janet Fenner, President, Defined Marketing - culminated in a successful day for the security industry, all for a wonderful cause.

We at Security Systems News were proud to sponsor and be on hand for the inaugural Moms in Security Charity Golf Outing at the Meadow Golf Club in Lincoln Park, N.J., on Monday, June 21. Proceeds for the event supported non-profit organizations that are dedicated to rescuing women and children from human trafficking, including Operation Underground Railroad (O.U.R.) and Veterans for Child Rescue (V4CR).

In addition to the cause that this golf outing was all about, we had the opportunity to meet other professionals in the security industry face to face for the first time in over 15 months!

Representatives from the Security Industry Association (SIA) and ISC Events, as well as industry professionals from companies like Securitas, Allegion, Altronix, Sage Integration, Northland Controls, Identiv, and Axis Communications were among the 100-plus strong who came far and wide to support the Moms in Security.

It was great to see folks like Mission 500’s Ken Gould, SIA’s Kevin Murphy and Marc Benson, and ISC Events’ Mary Beth Shaughnessy and Sharon Kelley, just to name a few, who showed their support and enjoy a fun afternoon of golf.

It didn’t matter that temperatures on the golf course approached 100 degrees. It was all about the opportunity to support a cause that tends to get overlooked, especially here in the United States, but is certainly a serious problem that needs to be addressed. The passion that these four Moms in Security have to eradicate human trafficking just speaks volumes about the type of human beings that Elisa, Min, Antoinette and Janet truly are.

How successful was the golf outing? Although numbers were not available as we went to press, Elisa told Security Systems News exclusively that “We exceeded our project goal and we were able to make a sizable donation to the main beneficiary, O.U.R.  The next beneficiary, Prevent Child Abuse N.J., received the second-highest donation. There were two smaller donations made to both Thorn and Vets 4 Child Rescue. Originally, we had only planned for two beneficiaries, however because of the outpouring of support from the larger security community, we were able to exceed our original goal by adding two additional charities to support.  This was a huge victory for us and will benefit the global effort.”

Attendees were able to enjoy food, drink, music from a live band, and of course, hit the links for 18 holes of hot fun in the summertime (sorry, couldn’t resist channeling Sly and the Family Stone)! But most importantly, the security industry came together to mingle, talk shop and be able to be in the presence of one another, some of whom hadn’t seen each other in over a year due to the pandemic!

The photo above of the post-golf meal is just one example of what we were happy to see at the golf outing - security professionals gathering in a room to network and share ideas. Now that a few in-person events have taken place, including this week’s golf outing, and with ISC West right around the corner, we’re starting to see the security industry getting together more and more, which is definitely not a bad thing!

Now that I’ve shared my thoughts on what a great day the golf outing was, we asked the four Moms in Security to give us their thoughts on seeing such a great turnout to support their cause:

“Having the opportunity to work with these amazing women in the planning of this event to raise money and awareness for the recovery and rehabilitation of human trafficking victims has been incredible. But, to watch the vision come to life was overwhelming,” King said. “The security industry rallied behind us and helped us to create something very special. It was one of the proudest moments in my life and I am so grateful I was able to be a part of it.”

Elisa noted, “Several weeks ago, I made the decision to stop sitting on the sidelines listening to friends in law enforcement share sad stories on the issue of human trafficking. I was inspired by Tim Ballard of O.U.R. who gave up his government career to rescue children, but I didn’t know where to start. Thank God for Antoinette, Janet and Min, whose brilliance brought this idea to life almost overnight. 

“It’s amazing what these ladies have done in six weeks, and what we are going to continue to do collectively to ensure a future where every woman and child is safe and cared for. I’m pretty sure this is every mom’s dream; I just get to go after it with three of the most incredible security moms on the planet.  I’ve never felt more inspired and humbled, and I am so grateful.”

Min added, “Working with these amazing ladies have been a phenomenal experience. You see how much love their have and that energy propelled them to pull this together in such a short amount of time.  Action always speak louder than words, and these ladies are the epitome of that energy – getting things done for such a needed cause!”

Janet concluded by saying, “It’s one thing to be connected to such amazing individuals professionally, but when given the chance to do something to help the greater good with them – that is when you know you’ve created an eternal bond that will forever leave a mark in your life. Only word to summarize is ‘grateful’ to have been asked to be one of the four SUPERMOMS.”

Super moms indeed. We thank you, Elisa, Antoinette, Min and Janet for inviting us to your golf outing. It was really special to see the security industry joining forces to support your cause.

Four great ladies. A great cause. All in all, a great day for the security industry!