JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Mentoring young girls and building a community is important for this Northside Jacksonville non-profit.
Jewels of the Future mentors girls aged 7-18 to build community and shows them how to make a difference in it. The non-profit is operated by Diamond Wallace and her mother, Renita Turner, but it was started in 2016 in memory of Wallace’s grandmother, who passed away from breast cancer.
“She was an angel in the community, she loved her family and so she would always do these events with kids, so now we do a bunch of events and programming around children just to make sure that they’re still on the right track,” Wallace said. “We give them a safe space to say whatever they feel is important to them.”
She said that everyone needs a village, and bonds can be created if people support one another.
“[We’re] teaching our girls that doing good just to do good is important because they’re going to take that and they’re going to pass that along to strangers,” she said.
Wallace said they measure success by the positive reputation that they’ve built in the community and the progress and reaction from the girls in the program.
“They come to every single event that we do, so it’s all about making our kids happy,” Wallace said. “If our girls are saying that this program is helping them in any way, shape or form, whether that’s physically or mentally, we count that as success.”
Some of the girls in the program said that it has had a positive impact on them. Two of the mentees talked about their back-to-school giveaway event.
“We gave out so many supplies and uniforms and one of the parents [said] their kids really needed uniforms and how the size didn’t matter,” Chanel said. “That made me realize how helping our community is very important and is a thing we should keep doing.”
Another said she had a chance to see the impact they have on the community.
“Being able to help so many families get prepared and set up for the school year, I was so excited and honored to be there,” Mariah said. “I love helping people and being part of that. It showed me I was in the most definitely in the right place.”
The back-to-school event is only one of the events that Jewels of the Future hosts for the community. Wallace said their yearly Christmas parties are the most memorable events that they host.
“Those are our biggest parties of the year,” she said. “We get the most donations, the most activity, you see so many different families and you realize that you’re not just impacting one specific group of people.”
On Oct. 18, they’re hosting their third annual Monster Mash, where they’re collecting plushies and toys to give away. There will be nonprofits and organizations for a trunk or treat and a community carnival that will include financial education and youth education.
Toy and prize donations will be collected at 6050 Suite 10, Moncrief, Jacksonville, FL 32209. Their Cash App is $Jewelsofthefuture.
In 2026, the non-profit will also be celebrating its 10-year anniversary. Wallace said to stay tuned for what they have in store.
“We plan to do some really big events and just do parties bigger than we ever have,” Wallace said.
Click here for more information about Jewels of the Future and their work in the community.