MEET THE FOUNDER

Sheila Collins has a paralegal certification in immigration and construction law from the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) and a bachelor's degree in criminal justice administration from the University of Phoenix (UOP). She was also studying at UOP to earn a master's degree in public administration and has earned several professional and academic credentials.

Sheila embarked upon a challenging journey 25 years ago, following a time in her life that left her living in a low-income public housing community after a difficult divorce. During this time, she witnessed firsthand the biases women experienced being economically challenged and deeply moved by them. 

However, this experience also unveiled her purpose in life, which led her to build Girlfriends Who Inspire Change (GWIC) LLC from scratch(ground up) and become a voice for women and others. GWIC is a cause-driven social enterprise network that sells e-commerce products and services online, operating on a for-profit commercial model with a non-profit social impact.

Ms. Collins often states, "People who saw a problem and transformed it into an opportunity create the most extraordinary success stories." She has indeed accomplished this with GWIC, which she founded in 2014. GWIC has been recognized as a Civil Society Organization (CSO)since 2017 by the World Bank Group (WBG) and the International Monetary Fund(IMF). With 189 member countries, the World Bank Group is a unique global partnership fighting poverty worldwide through sustainable solutions. The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low and middle-income countries for economic development.

In 2023, WBG and U.S. Commercial Services selected GWIC for the Minority Business Outreach initiative. In 2019, GWIC was accepted into the UN Women's Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) as a member, friend, and global network partner. This UN organ coordinates economic and social issues, including gender equality and women's empowerment—fighting for gender equality and crimes against women.

Sheila is also a passionate advocate for social change and has moderated phenomenal events, including the first-ever Democratic Presidential Town Hall with Andrew Yang during the Humanity Tour in Las Vegas, Nevada, in 2019. She was crucial in the International Women's March's "Power to the Polls" event in Las Vegas, Nevada 2018. This event impacted the "Women's Wave" 2018 midterm elections, leading to the first-ever election of 100 women to the U.S. House of Representatives.

In 2018, Ms. Collins served as a judge for the Miss Black Universe Pageant in Las Vegas, Nevada. Under former U.S. President Obama, she co-signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (Obamacare). She was designated as the United States Ambassador for World Peace by the Universal Peace Federation in 2015. 

Ms. Collins has served on many community boards and organizations, including the Children's Advocacy Alliance, the Nevadans United for Early Childhood Equity(NU-ECE), the City of Las Vegas Historic Preservation Commission, the National Action Network (NAN) Las Vegas Chapter, the Clark County Nevada Early Voting, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (Bolden Area Command) Citizen Advisory, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the Doolittle Community Baseball League, Inc, the City of Las Vegas Housing Authority(Resident Chairwoman), and the Coalition of Clark County Nevada. She is also an AmeriCorps alumnus.

Ms. Collins has received many honors and awards for her work, including the "Community Service Award" from the NAACP Las Vegas Chapter, the Shea Moisture Company "Power Players" of Las Vegas award in 2018, and the Humanitarian Award at the International Business Forum of Las Vegas (IBFLV). Other awards include The Voice of Power, Citigroup, Las Vegas Black Image Honors, The Greater New Jerusalem (GNJ) Achievement, Sunrise Children Foundation, and The Urban Chamber of Commerce's "Women in Business and Politics." 

Sheila Collins has also received U.S. Senate and Congressional Recognitions in Nevada from Jackie Rosen (D), Harry Reid (D), John Ensign (R), Jim Gibbons (R), John C. Porter (R), Susie Lee (D), and Steven Horsford (D).