Chronicle News Community Spotlight-Suited 4 Success: More Than an Event, A Standard
- Yanice Y. Carter
- 10 hours ago
- 3 min read
Last weekend at the Lansing Mall, something shifted in the atmosphere.
It wasn’t just a workshop. It wasn’t just photo ops in front of a branded backdrop. It was a room full of men choosing to rewrite narratives.
Young men showed up for the 2026 Suited 4 Success Etiquette Workshop, led by Aondray A. Worthy of Walk Worthy Menswear and James Jackson Sr. of IMOGUL Mentoring Group.
And they didn’t just show up.They leaned in. Ties were tied with patience. Jackets were buttoned with intention. Posture was corrected. Hands were shaken firmly. Eye contact was practiced. Standards were elevated.
But here’s what the cameras don’t always capture. This didn’t happen by accident.
It happened because men made intentional sacrifices. Time. Money. Energy. Pride. Ego. Past mistakes. All laid down so the next generation doesn’t have to stumble the same way they did.
Aondray Worthy has built more than a menswear brand with Walk Worthy. He has built a platform. A proving ground. A place where young men learn that how you present yourself is not vanity, it is vision.
“Dress how you want to be addressed.”
James Jackson Sr. and IMOGUL Mentoring Group bring the backbone, the accountability, the spiritual and emotional scaffolding. They are not just mentoring, they are modeling. Showing young men what leadership looks like when it is rooted in discipline and love.
This is the same spirit behind “100 Men in Suits” before back-to-school season. This is the same commitment that keeps showing up year after year. No shortcuts. No performative charity. Just consistent presence. The men in that room exemplified consistent, compassionate, and ambitious Black manhood.
My son Liam was also present at the event. He didn’t just attend; he actively engaged, studying and absorbing the information. Aondray Worthy and his Walk Worthy Brotherhood have become a consistent presence in Liam’s life.
In a world where some fathers choose to be absent due to unresolved anger, these men choose to be present. They choose to show up regardless of their biological relationship with the boys they support. This choice matters.
You cannot measure that impact in likes, reposts, or news cycles that rush to publish first.
You measure it years from now when one of those young men walks into a boardroom, a courtroom, a classroom, or his own home with confidence and restraint. You measure it when a cycle is broken.
Suited 4 Success is not about suits!
It is about standards.
It is about identity.
It is about accountability.
It is about reminding young Black men that excellence is not optional, it is expected.
Community impact requires collaboration.
It requires trust.
It requires people willing to do real work without always needing recognition.
And Lansing has that.
To every volunteer, mentor, parent, photographer, partner, and supporter who made this possible, thank you. The early mornings, the late evenings, the coordination, the unseen details, it all mattered.
This was not just an event.
It was a movement.
And from where I stood, present, watching my son light up in the presence of strong, intentional Black men…
Together, we rise.
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