26 THE QUEENS COURIER • BUZZ • SEPTEMBER 24, 2020 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Queens lawyer
crowned Mrs. New
York America 2020
in virtual pageant
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Yasmeen Gumbs-Breakenridge, a legal
consultant and public speaker from
Long Island City, is this year’s Mrs. New
York America.
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic,
Gumbs-Breakenridge became the
newly crowned Mrs. New York America
2020 in a virtual ceremony hosted in
Rochester in July. She is now preparing
to compete in the Mrs. America pageant
this fall in Las Vegas at the Westgate
Resort.
This is Gumbs-Breakenridge’s second
time participating in the pageant after
winning first runner-up in 2018.
“When I competed this time I won,
and I was very excited about that
because of the larger platform that it
would give me as the reigning Mrs. New
York of America,” Gumbs-Breakenridge
said.
Gumbs-Breakenridge was born on the
island of St. Thomas, United States
Virgin Island. At a young age, she relocated
from St. Thomas to New York City
with her family.
She attended the University of New
Orleans on a track-and-field scholarship
and then attended the Appalachian
School of Law in Virginia.
Gumbs-Breakenridge is a commercial
litigator and has defended cases against
corporations. She is a member of the
New York State Bar.
As the newly crowned Mrs. New
York, Gumbs-Breakenridge is also an
advocate for academic and professional
programs for children and young
adults who are experiencing economic
hardship and homelessness
through her platform,
#ConfidenceComesFromWithin.
When her father, a respected U.S.
Coast Guard and Marine, passed away
three years ago, Gumbs-Breakenridge
said it led her to create the platform.
“My father was always the type of
person who gave back to society and
it was at that point that I had to take a
step back and ask myself, ‘What kind
of legacy did I want to leave?’” Gumbs-
Breakenridge said.
For the past several years, Gumbs-
Breakenridge has served as a council
member at the Madison Square Boys
and Girls Club in Manhattan, which
provides after-school and summer
youth programs for children between
the ages of 6 to 18 in underserved communities
in New York City.
Gumbs-Breakenridge works one-onone
with junior high and high school
kids helping them create a plan to
achieve their goals and dreams, she said.
Recently, she has also partnered with
the Salvation Army of Greater NY during
the Camp-in-a-Box summer program
and the Back to School Campaign
and by serving as a direct mentor.
“With the older children, I help with
resumes and college prep. I’ve helped
girls get into schools that were far reach
— schools that they would not be able
to get into without proper mentorship,”
Gumbs-Breakenridge said. “I hope that
children understand that their current
economic status doesn’t determine
where they will end up in life, as long
as they have good mentorship, believe
in themselves and work hard.”
For Gumbs-Breakenridge, being
involved in pageantry has not only
allowed her to gain a stronger selfawareness
of herself, but also making a
meaningful impact in her community.
“I’ve seen some of my kids go off to
college or get into good high schools,
and that’s something I think pageantry
has allowed me to do and also
helped strengthen my public speaking,”
Gumbs-Breakenridge said. “I think
pageantry polished that a lot and the
amount of friends and sisterhood you
gained and the professional relationship
is so extraordinary compared to nonpageantry
life in corporate America.”
The Mrs. New York pageant is headed
by Executive Director Diane Hardgrove.
The three winners received all-expenses
paid trips to the national competition
this fall.
The Mrs. America pageant is now in
its 43rd year and the organization has
evolved to become a year-round
lifestyle brand.
The contestants are attorneys,
business executives, educators
and other professionals,
and many contestants are
moms.
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