The Observer Radio Show

Ten minutes of fame on The Observer Radio Show in Antigua October 11th. I had a chance to talk about the app and what inspired me to hundreds of thousands faithful listeners throughout the Caribbean Islands. My thirty minute slots was interrupted by a very important public announcement that was happening in St Kitts-Nevis at the same time I was scheduled speak!!! What better timing after flying two days before my birthday from Houston to JFK on standby with a laptop and a 17 lb ham for my friend in Barbados. Got bumped off the flight but my luggage made it! Had to spend the night two nights in NYC, on the second day got bumped again then, now I had to go into think mode. I tried to list on a flight to Fort Lauderdale but got bumped then tried to list on the last flight that would get me into Miami in enough time to catch a 7:50 pm out of Miami to Barbados, understanding that I had an appointment in Barbados October 8th "My Birthday" to appear on Good Morning Barbados. 

So this is what happened, I made the flight to West Palm beach which was close to the Miami airport but not close enough. Arriving into West Palm Beach at 3:00pm in the middle of prime time traffic! "I thought hmmmm" I can go online book a rental car and drive like a bat out of hell and make it because its only 3:00 pm and the Mia airport is an hour away which will take me two hours because of traffic..Ok so I go downstairs to pick up my car, but the rental car agent tells me that card wont take? So I took the card and went to the ATM machine and some error said it could not read my card? Now I'm standing there almost about to cry because I'm so close but yet so far. I have a 100.00 dollars on me and have money in the bank but I can't get to it! I go the transportation booth and ask the person how much does it cost to take your service to MIA? He said 110.00..tears came to my eyes in public because I'm carrying a 17 lb ham in one hand a laptop and purse in the other hand, I spent two nights in New York, got bump three times my interview and birthday is tomorrow oh and my luggage is in baggage claim storage in Barbados. The guy was so kind to me and could not stand the tears me told me to pay him later and took my info and sent me on my way!! 

I made it to the airport at 6 pm on the dot! I ran to the counter with my ham and laptop and gave the reservation agent my confirmation number. Guess what my ticket wasn't paid for but was given a confirmation number for some reason paying as an employee the website portal didn't tell me that my card didn't go through but it did give me a confirmation number..what I should have been looking for was a ticket number inside the confirmation. I was told by the agent, now remember all I had was 100.00 on me and was told that I could only pay by going to online. The flight left on time without me. Oh did I tell you that I had paid round trip ticket from Barbados to Antigua which cost 460.00!! and I was still in Miami! The ticket from Mia-BGI cost just tax for me  but I couldn't pay it because they couldn't take cash as an employee. so there I was walking in the Miami Airport with you know the story! "with the 17 lbs Ham and a laptop" by this time I called all my friends and family who lived in Mia to come get me but all I got was voice mail from all of them. I called a friend who lives in Dallas and he suggested that I just wait in the airport  but I needed to rush over to the hotel lobby where I could charge my cell and use my laptop with free WiFi. I did just that, I then called my best-friend in Atlanta and told him the situation. He told me to relax I will be on that flight in the morning to Barbados. So I counted all the people in the lobby who had the same idea I had to stay in the airport and then I went to sleep. Around 4 am I got a text message with an AA confirmation and ticket number and a note following saying " Happy Birthday Sharon!! Enjoy your trip!"

By time the flight arrived in Barbados I had missed my slot for The Good Morning Barbados Show. But was still able to be interviewed by a local journalist from the The Nation Newspaper! I indeed enjoyed my birthday in Barbados it was a short stay but off I went to Antigua and that's how this story started  by missing a direct flight from JFK to BGI. I may have had a short time on the radio show but it was all worth it after being able to meet with the Minister of National Security of Antigua while I was there. So all was not lost it was all to gain!!

(Above photo) Marlon Madden Journalist @ The Nation Newspaper Barbados

And smiling mission was accomplished! Left Antigua with a smile!!

SXSW EDU was awesome! March 2013

I attended Austin, Tx SXSW EDU March 2013...I will try to make 2014!!!

This video was so funny to me... what do you think about that guy walking pass my video taping? I was nice!!

The Brand Curators of 97°West: SXSWi Video Recap: Pitches

The Brand Curators of 97°West: SXSWi Video Recap: Pitches: While out recording the streets of guests and locals alike, we ran into a lot of creative people with clever business ideas. Thankfully, w...
Find Sharon at .050 of the video.

I love Google

Houston Technology Center is on the move to help Entrepreneurs!!

Its great being a client of Houston Technology Center @ NASA Space Center. I'm learning a lot about business and how to structure your business. Today we met with HTC's Attorney to help their clients understand whats the best option for Incorporating your business vs LLC. And the difference between C-Corp and S-Corp.  Wowser!!! Lots to learn!!

CEO/Founder of Trafalgar Solutions
Sharon Simmons

Crime Reporting Application
iGotem 2.0 launch date: 1st Quarter 2014
http://www.igotemapp.com/

Nelson Mandela RIP!

You will be missed! Thank you for courageous act to change racism. I'm blessed to have lived during your lifetime and bless to tell my grandson how heroic you were. I was 3 yrs old went he went to jail and 30 when he came out..Thank you for fighting for us!

Rest in perfect peace now!

One Love Always!

Turning Tragedy into Action

While at work in the Spring of 2011 I fell off of a ladder, injured myself and had to go on workers comp. While I was recovering one day I received a devastating phone call from a family member. Our 18-year-old nephew was shot and killed while playing basketball with friends. A young man with a mask and a gun ran him down and shot him in the back in the middle of the street as he was running. After hearing this I went online and searched the local news and saw a photo of him lying on the ground. I knew it was him. A few days went by and rumor was that the people who actually saw it would not tell the police for fear of retaliation. Keep it mind this happened on a small island of 50,000 people where everyone knows everyone.

I was born in Dallas, TX and raised in the heart of South Central Los Angeles, I’m no stranger to crime. Where I grew up, crime was rampant, protection was light, and citizens were too afraid to come forward. And this same behavior exists all over the world. Living in the Caribbean with my husband, remnant fears from my childhood brought an automatic sense of awareness and the will to fight for change. I believe that by freeing citizens from the fear of retaliation, we might be able to catch some of our most violent offenders. The death of my nephew lit the fire to get me to finally do something.

Feeling hopeless and not being able to fly because of my health, I couldn't stand not being able to at least go to the funeral. I asked myself “What can I do?” and asked Google a few questions because Google is my best friend and knows all the answers. I needed to know how to create an app. I realized that the problem that needed to be solved was: How can I get the community to talk to the police and assist them with more information? I realized that developing better communication between the two groups while remaining anonymous was the goal. So, I asked myself, how can I use technology to attain this goal?

All of my questions were answered by asking a few questions to my BFF Google, who gave me all of the answers. Next, I interviewed a few developers, story-boarded the app concept, bootstrapped the project and was able to fund two platforms. And thus, the iGotem app was born and uploaded to the iTunes store by September 2011!

How it works

http://bit.ly/15KM5Pd

iGot’em  App will empower citizens, reduce crime and allow users to combat crime within their communities by uploading a recorded incident to the nearest law enforcement office. The application will notify law enforcement of the date, time, and location of the crime in progress. The combination of this information along with images taken by users will allow accurate reporting while protecting the identity of the user.

This took me three months from start to finish. I have no degrees in technology and am not able to code. All I have is pure passion and a desire to help others. I can make a difference in the way we use technology to help our everyday lives. Maybe I am the next “female” Steve Jobs J. And if I can do it, then I know you can too.