Describing her victory as a call to “do even more across rural communities”, Tishauna Mullings, chief social innovator at NexxStepp Lifelong Educational Services, has been crowned the 2025 Supreme Ventures Foundation Supreme Hero, earning recognition for her work empowering rural youth through literacy and leadership initiatives.

Mullings, who hails from St Thomas, was named the overall winner during the Supreme Ventures Foundation Community Hero Finals held on Thursday at ROK Hotel in downtown Kingston.

The competition celebrates “ordinary” Jamaicans making “extraordinary contributions” to their communities through innovation, social enterprise, and service.

Speaking moments after her name was announced, an emotional Mullings said the honour has reignited her drive to expand her outreach across the island.

“I feel a spirit this morning because what Supreme [Ventures] has done is fired me up to do even more across rural communities across Jamaica,” she told the audience.

Mullings, a proud daughter of a market vendor, expressed how her upbringing shaped her mission to uplift young people from under-resourced areas.

“My mother is a higgler who sells in the Morant Bay Market and that’s how she paid my fees to go to Northern Caribbean University… and watching her going from Kingston to St Thomas back and forth — that’s where I learned inventiveness, that’s where I learned resourcefulness, and that’s where the passion for my rural people came from,” she said.

Mullings was recognised for her work with her Little Genius Initiative, a programme she started to help children to develop public speaking, debating, and leadership skills. But what began as a small event has evolved into a national movement promoting literacy and confidence among Jamaican youth.

Mullings recounted that she sacrificed much to keep the initiative alive in its early stages.

“The first year I did Little Genius, I was getting $50,000 for my salary per month from my job… and the total prize monies were $30,000, $20,000 and $10,000 and I used all of my salary to pay first and second place and begged somebody the 10 grand — a policeman from the Morant Bay Police Station — to go and pay the other child from Bath Primary School,” she said.

Her story of perseverance struck a chord with the audience as she shared the success of one of her earliest participants, Damor McQueen, who overcame personal hardship and is now studying in Canada.

“He lost his mother, and his father is a one-handed man trying his best with Damor… now Damor is studying in Canada, he is almost done, Damor published a book — turned author before me. That’s the power of the Little Genius initiative,” she said proudly.

Mullings told the audience that her mission goes beyond winning a title — it’s about inspiring long-term change, and made a bold commitment to the other four finalists.

“Giving back and supporting others is self-preservation… I want to promise you that as a social enterprise enthusiast and a social impact mover, I am going to do a project and find some money — some 100,000 US [dollars] from somewhere — to do a project with all of you. This is my promise and I’m making that promise publicly,” she said.

The Supreme Ventures Foundation Supreme Hero Programme highlights Jamaicans who use their skills and creativity to transform lives within their communities and Mullings’s organisation, NexxStepp Lifelong Educational Services, focuses on social innovation, youth empowerment, and personal development across the island.

This year’s other finalists were equally inspiring in their contributions to national development. Abiathar Neita leads the Roof & Roost project in Stephney District, St Ann, which combines urgent roof repairs with small-scale agricultural support such as chicken coops, feed, and farming tools to strengthen families’ economic stability.

Nicholas McKenzie hosts the Drive to Thrive workshop at the Police Band Division in Allman Town, offering practical lessons in road safety, vehicle maintenance, and post-crash care in collaboration with the Jamaica Constabulary Force.

Tanisha Richards-Whyte, through her company Tan Tan Wholesale Enterprises, spearheaded the Central Village Walkway Paving Programme, improving drainage, lighting, and pedestrian safety in a community often affected by flooding.

Rounding out the finalists, Matthew Prendergast, founder of Jamaica Bike Life, used cycling and motorbiking as tools for mentorship, teaching young people mechanical skills, safe riding, and entrepreneurship, while also designing a customised motorised cart to assist a vendor who sells on Ardenne Road.

2025 Supreme Ventures Foundation Supreme Hero Tishauna Mullings (left) hugs finalist Tanisha Richards-Whyte on Thursday at the awards ceremony.

Chief social innovator at NexxStepp Lifelong Educational Services Tishauna Mullings (left) is in shock as her name is announced as the 2025 Supreme Ventures Foundation Supreme Hero, as finalist Nicholas McKenzie (right) applauds during the finals held on Thursday at ROK Hotel in downtown Kingston.