In celebration of Caribbean-American Heritage month and due to popular demand, the Caribbean Heritage Organization is pleased to produce CaribbeanLens™, the Los Angeles/Hollywood Caribbean International Entertainment Conference & Film Festival.
The purpose of the festival is to celebrate the regional and expatriated cultures and talent to create unique and outstanding work and to raise global awareness of the new renaissance of film-making and music production that the Caribbean region is currently experiencing.
Please Save The Date
CaribbeanLens Film Festival ….
Where Hollywood Celebrates the Caribbean
Wednesday, June 24, 2026 – Friday, June 26, 2026
Los Angeles, California
2024 Salute to Hollywood & Excellence Awards Gala
Time: 5:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Dress: Semi-formal / Cocktail
Venue:
Historic Smashbox Studios,
8549 Higuera St.
Culver City, CA 90232
Parking:
Complimentary
8511 Warner Dr.
Culver City, CA
The Evening:
5:00-6:15: Blue Carpet Arrivals/Cocktail Reception
6:15-9:15: Dinner & Awards Program
9:15-10:00: Dancing
Must be on the guest list or show ticket purchased to park AND enter the event.
2026 Confirmed Honorees
Our Past Honorees
- Aisha Bowe
- Aerospace Engineer, Entrepreneur, STEM Advocate, Blue Origin Citizen Astronaut
- Shirley Chisholm Legacy Award
Aisha Bowe
Engineer | Entrepreneur | STEM Advocate | Citizen AstronautAisha Bowe is a former NASA rocket scientist, award-winning founder, and citizen astronaut who is redefining what it means to lead in science, education, and innovation.
In 2025, she flew aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket as part of a historic all-female crew, conducting NASA-backed research and flight-qualified experiments in microgravity while carrying the Apollo 12 mission flag flown by astronaut Pete Conrad, a tribute to the legacy she now extends. Born in America to a Bahamian family, Aisha carries her Caribbean roots as a source of deep pride — becoming the first person of Bahamian heritage to travel to space, a milestone she honored mid-flight by holding up a Bahamian flag patch in tribute to her heritage and her 92-year-old grandfather who watched from the ground below.
A serial founder who has built multiple successful companies at the intersection of technology and impact, Aisha is the founder of STEMBoard, an Inc. 5000-ranked tech company and LINGO, an edtech platform on a mission to equip one million students with hands-on STEM skills. LINGO delivers lessons based on the real-world that are accessible, inclusive, and future-ready. Aisha is also among the fewer than 2% of women founders to raise over $2 million in venture capital.
From discovering her love of math in community college to conducting NASA-backed research in microgravity, Aisha’s story has inspired millions. She’s been featured in ABC News, Entrepreneur, Essence, Elle, People, The Kelly Clarkson Show, and CBS Mornings. Additionally, Aisha is the subject of the documentary In Her Element, streaming on Amazon Prime, Google Play, and Apple TV and The Human Component by BBC Storyworks.
As a U.S. State Department Global Speaker, Aisha has represented the United States in more than a dozen countries, championing access to STEM, entrepreneurship, and space exploration. She holds degrees in Aerospace Engineering and Space Systems Engineering from the University of Michigan, and has earned honors including NASA’s Engineering Honor Award, Black Enterprise’s Luminary Award, and STEM for Her Woman of the Year.
Aisha is living proof that the word impossible is merely a suggestion. She inspires the next generation of innovators and explorers, thinkers and creators, while serving as a testament to dreaming big, no matter what.
- Felisha Noel
- Fashion Designer & Stylist Fe Noel, Inc.
- Excellence in Fashion Designer Award
Felisha Noel
Fashion Designer & Stylist, Excellence in Fashion Designer AwardFelisha “Fe” Noel is a Grenadian-American fashion designer and the founder of Fe Noel, an internationally recognized womenswear and lifestyle brand rooted in culture, storytelling, and intentional design. Guided by the philosophy “Eat well, travel often, and dress to inspire,” Fe Noel is an invitation to make life beautiful through style, experience, and self-expression.
Deeply influenced by her Grenadian heritage, close-knit upbringing, and love of travel, Felisha has built a brand that captures a distinctive balance of glamour, sensuality, and ease. Her work extends beyond clothing, reflecting a way of living—one that celebrates beauty in how we dress, gather, explore, and connect.
Felisha began her career at just 19 years old, opening a boutique in Brooklyn that would become the foundation for her namesake brand. Since then, she has grown Fe Noel into a recognized presence in American fashion, earning distinction as a 2022 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalist and award recipient, and cultivating a loyal global audience drawn to the brand’s rich visual language and point of view.
At the heart of Fe Noel is a deep commitment to family, community, and cultural memory. This spirit lives within the brand’s brick-and-mortar boutique in Brooklyn’s Little Caribbean, a vibrant and burgeoning neighborhood, where fashion, lifestyle, and storytelling come together in a space that reflects the essence of the brand: warmth, beauty, belonging, and discovery.
Whether through fashion, travel, storytelling, or community, Felisha Noel has built a brand that reminds women to embrace beauty fully and live with intention.
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- Marsha Cooke
- Vice President & Executive Producer
- ESPN Films & 30 for 30
Marsha Cooke
Vice President & Executive Producer, ESPN Films & 30 for 30, Corporate AwardMarsha Cooke currently serves as vice president & executive producer for ESPN Originals and 30 for 30, responsible for overseeing development, production, distribution, branding and strategy.
Cooke joined ESPN from VICE Media Group, where she served as senior vice president of global news and special projects. In her role at VICE, Cooke developed and produced special news and entertainment projects across VMG digital and broadcast platforms, leading the youth media company in pushing the limits of broadcast news formats and playing a key role in integrating VICE’s forward-thinking values with its award-winning content.
Cooke was instrumental in leading VICE News’ first-ever live coverage of the 2020 Iowa Brown and Black Forum, the nation’s oldest and only non-partisan presidential forum dedicated exclusively to addressing issues facing communities of color. With unprecedented candidate attendance and a groundbreaking, engaging format, the program won a national news Emmy. Cooke also previously led IMPACT at VICE, where she directed social good and community engagement in order to build and strengthen VICE’s culture, partnerships, and social responsibility initiatives, with a focus on ensuring the company’s work would affect long standing change in local and global communities.
Prior to VICE, Cooke spent 24 years at CBS. She was the first Black Asia Bureau Chief, responsible for coverage across the continent, producing stories for various CBS News shows and she served as VP of news services, in charge of the Newspath newsgathering group serving 200 CBS affiliates nationwide and broadcasters around the world. Before that, Cooke was executive editor of content at CBSN, the 24-hour digital streaming news network, where she led the unit’s push into original documentaries and helped guide breaking news coverage, and also was a senior broadcast producer for “CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley.”
During her time at CBS, Cooke was the recipient of a News & Documentary Emmy Award and a Gracie Award. She is a graduate of Temple University, where she is also a recipient of the Lew Klein Media Award, an inductee of the Alumni Hall of Fame and the university’s Gallery of Success. She was featured in O Magazine in 2019. She is on the board of Solutions Journalism, Capital B, The City, an online, nonprofit newsroom, the Alliance of Women in Media and is a founding member of The Meteor.
Cooke lives in New York City where she is a voracious reader, ridiculous foodie, long-suffering NY sports fan and a proud first generation Jamaican-American.
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- Adrian Holmes
- Actor
Adrian Holmes
Actor, Luminary Award for Iconic Character Portrayal as Uncle Phil on “Bel-Air.”Adrian Holmes is an award-winning actor, storyteller, and producer whose work is rooted in legacy, identity, and purpose. With over 100 film and television credits, he has built a reputation as a commanding presence on screen, known for portraying characters who embody strength, leadership, and emotional depth.
He is widely recognized for his portrayal of Philip “Uncle Phil” Banks in Peacock’s critically acclaimed series Bel-Air, a bold reimagining of the iconic Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Holmes brings nuance, authority, and vulnerability to the role, helping redefine modern Black fatherhood for a new generation. His performance earned him the 2024 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor, underscoring both his artistry and cultural impact.
Holmes’ work spans globally recognized productions. He portrays Admiral Robert April in Paramount+’s Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, contributing to one of television’s most enduring franchises. Earlier, he earned the Canadian Screen Award for Best Lead Actor for his performance as Nick Barron in the acclaimed drama 19-2. His additional television credits include V Wars, Arrow, and feature films such as Skyscraper and Elysium, reflecting both range and longevity in a competitive industry.
A proud Barbadian, Holmes is deeply committed to storytelling that honors heritage and amplifies underrepresented narratives. He co-produced Barrow: Freedom Fighter, a docudrama filmed in Barbados that chronicles the life and legacy of The Right Excellent Errol Barrow, the Father of Independence. The project stands as both a creative milestone and a personal tribute—one rooted in cultural pride, sovereignty, and the importance of knowing one’s origins. For Holmes, Barbados remains a constant source of identity, inspiration, and responsibility.
Born in Wrexham, North Wales, and raised in Vancouver, Canada, Holmes brings a global perspective shaped by diverse cultural influences and grounded in strong family values. He often credits his upbringing—and the lessons instilled by his mother and community—as the foundation of his discipline, resilience, and sense of purpose.
Beyond his work on screen, Holmes is an avid golfer, drawn to the game’s demand for focus, patience, and continuous growth—principles that mirror both his life and career. A man of faith, he credits his relationship with God as a guiding force in his journey, shaping his perspective, grounding his decisions, and reinforcing his commitment to purpose-driven storytelling. He is also passionate about using the game as a vehicle for impact, with a long-term vision of launching a golf tournament in support of the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
Holmes shares his life with his wife, actress Caroline Chikezie, whose partnership and shared passion for storytelling continue to inspire and ground him. Whether on screen, on stage, or in conversation, he remains committed to honoring legacy, owning his narrative, and helping shape a future defined by purpose for the next generation.
Our 2024 Honorees
In 2024, the Caribbean Heritage Organization honored five illustrious and progressive women
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