Editor’s note: All throughout March, 9OYS is showcasing women in the Eastern North Carolina area. It’s part of Nexstar’s Remarkable Women contest. Four finalists have been chosen by WNCT. The finalists will be showcased all month with the winner announced at the end of the month. That winner will advance to the national competition where a winner will be announced later in the year.
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TRENTON, N.C. (WNCT) — Felecia Brinkley has been on a mission to help others.
WNCT’s Remarkable Women candidates
“We worked hard on the farm. But you know, my dad, it was he, pushed me, my mama pushed. And I say, it’s in my DNA to keep pushing,” Brinkley said.
Brinkley has spent over 20 years giving back to her community in any possible way by rolling out the red carpet for events.
“My first event was here. And I had the first-ever women’s expo … and my director said, ‘Felicia, won’t anybody be there?’ And I kept on, I was very persistent. And so on that day, that Saturday before Christmas, that small auditorium was full of women,” Brinkley said.
Much of her teaching is showing others how to get back on their feet.
“At Coastal Women’s Shelter, they coordinated a program that would help displaced homemakers to go back to get some skills,” Brinkley said. “That was one of the most things that I enjoyed.”
That includes something as simple as couponing.
“I gave away 30 laundry baskets full of merchandise, and it was all from couponing,” Brinkley said. “And I’m just like, I have been asked several times, do you have a building with your merchandise in it? No, I don’t, I don’t have a building because I give it away.”
She has always highlighted the success of others, too.
“This young lady, she was 102, 101, 101 and 100 years,” Brinkley said. “These are the awards that they received. All of these ladies right here were honored, unsung heroes.”
When asked how she would describe herself in just one word, she said, “Hard-working, That’s mine, hard-working. One of my coworkers say you don’t have to do all of that. And I said, ‘I know. But I want to, I really want to’.”