Founder and owner of multicultural greeting card company ColorBlind Cards and publicist Jessica Huie has been awarded an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) after being named in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list.
In a statement Jessica said:
“The news that I had received an MBE is undoubtedly one of the most wonderful and surreal moments of my life to date. I have put one foot in front of the other in pursuit of an improved reality, without looking back, ever since I became a mother aged 17. The honour of receiving this recognition forced me to recollect at not how far I have come, but the distance that I have travelled.
I am humbled, and proud of having created a life in which every day I wake up able to live my passion. More importantly I am able to share my journey of defining my own life despite the obstacles, with the next generation. Every human needs a purpose and I’ve discovered that mine is to share the message that regardless of where you start and the challenges you may face, at any moment you can take action to redefine your own existence.
The opportunity for social mobility is something I feel very strongly about. As a country we are some way behind in comparison to the rest of Europe and the US. Too many young people lack a sense of purpose because of their environment or a set of circumstances which they were simply born into. A life without purpose is not a life at all, I know this because I am a product of it.
As a society my wish is that we harness a sense of self-belief in our young people and shake off dangerous stereotypes and low expectations, which often become self-fulfilling prophecies. It is dangerous to allow other’s limiting beliefs or low expectations to define us, as while we cannot always choose the environment we are born into, we do have the power to choose whether we let it consume us or let it power us.
Anything is possible with self-belief, hard work, resilience and vision, and my wish is that as a society we empower our young people, particularly those most vulnerable, and support them to realise their capacity.
Congratulations Jessica.
Categories: UK News
MAD NEWS UK 
My sister told me about this today. Congrats to her but she needs to pay the models she uses on her cards which she makes money from.
Oh I always assumed they were paid.
Nope. My sister is on two of her cards on her website. Never gave her a penny yet makes money off of her image. The superwoman and beautiful girl cards. (she has the afro).
Oh dear. Wasn’t payment discussed beforehand? Did they sign some sort of a legal document?
Hmm. Did buy a few cards and mugs.
Hi LondonDiva,
I’ve only just seen your comment so apologies for the little delay in replying.
You’re right that your sister didn’t receive a payment for her appearance on two of our designs, and we did let her know about this to be transparent from the beginning of our work together. We explained that we were able to provide her with a set of professional shots for her own use and copies of the cards too in exchange for her participation, and we were delighted that she was happy to join us on this premise.
Color blind Cards is a labour of love for myself and the team, built on a passion for its social purpose and a very modest business model supported by myself personally as we grow it to a more commercial future. Part of that future includes, of course, reaching a place where model payment is feasible, and in the meantime we do our best to make a social contribution. Some of the ways we currently do this include selling through schools in South Africa with 50% funds being returned to the establishment, and remaining focussed on ensuring our children have access to representative images on greeting cards.
Your sister’s time was so appreciated and her contribution to representing our diversity so that our kids see themselves on special occasion cards is invaluable. I Hope that gives the background, and reassures you that your sister was aware of the non-monetary nature of our offer on which she was happy to work with us. It was a great shoot, and we all really enjoyed it.
Best regards,
Jessica Huie