About Armor Down Girls
Pam Ave Maria
Pam Ave Maria, a graduate of Ithaca College and Northwestern University, is a retired (40 years) music teacher and singer, who taught for 29 years at Washington School, and served as the District 65 Music Department Chair .
In retirement, Pam works as a docent at the Shrine of All Saints in Morton Grove, where she also serves as a cantor and choir member. She loves to read, travel, and spend time with her young grandchildren. As a proud member of Delta Kappa Gamma, a professional organization of Key Women Educators, Pam is president of Eta Chapter and has served on numerous state committees. In her “spare” time, she works with an Estate Sale company and spends time with her 3 adorable grandchildren.
Michelle Castor
I'm the mother of 2 wonderful boys ages 13 and 17. By day I'm a Senior Manager in a Contact Center with a passion for reading and making a positive impact on the lives of others in any shape or form. When I'm not working, you can find me reading self-care books, listening to different podcasts and enjoying time with my family and friends.
Our Sponsors
.png)
Facilitators
Willie Shaw
Willie is a graduate of one of the oldest HBCU, Rust College. Her degree is in sociology/Social Welfare & Human Behavior.
Willie also has double master degrees. One in General Education and as a learning Behavioral Specialist which includes learning disabilities, emotional disabilities, Autism and traumatic Brain Injury from National Louis University in Evanston, Illinois.
During her professional career she has served as chair of the school improvement team, authored many reading curriculums, authored and presented a variety of workshops, developed many programs for school assemblies, Served as department chair, and authored a liaison program that currently continues to be used in Evanston district 65 schools.
Willie has been a member of Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church for 36 years. At Mt. Zion she has served as a Sunday Teacher, Youth coordinator, Christian Education chair, Scholarship President, Girl Scout leader for 20 years, and superintendent of Sunday School.
Willie retired with 35 memorable years of service in public education. At the top of her retirement list was to consolidate all those accumulated pieces of paper with family notes into a resource that could be used by her family and all those desiring to begin or continue exploring their own ancestry. That book “Family Links was published in 2013.
As of 2023-2025, Willie actively serves as a life member of the NAACP (Executive Committee board member, Civic Engagement & social Chair & member of youth & education committees), Amour Downs Girls Mentoring facilitator, Focused Ministries fundraising chair, Northwestern’s Osher life-Long learning study group coordinator, Osher’s DEI chair & vice-chair, League of Women voters (LWV board member). Willie is also actively involved in her high school & college alumni associations. She has developed various programs and served as the chair of the Hall of Fame Program, Disaster Relief Fund and as chair on numerous occasions for the biennial reunions.
She is the proud mother of one daughter & three grandchildren.
Our Story
ADG was founded in 2018 by Dr. Fee. The premise of ADG is to “arm” girls ages 8 to 21 with confidence and other qualities, to eliminate self-doubt and to empower through book characterizations. The books are selected based on lessons or themes where girls can learn, grow, and aspire. Books, rather fiction or nonfiction, can demonstrate characters’ struggles, successes, and other issues or experiences that may feel enormous at the time. Discussion of book characterizations offer a multitude of opportunities to help girls expand their own perspectives and understandings of life.
Over the past several years while teaching Dr. Fee noticed that girls’ self-esteem, regardless of their race or academic level, seemed to be low. “Many seemed unsure of their capabilities, had difficulty projecting their voice, and not recognizing their true worth and intelligence” stated Dr. Fee. “I saw a good fight so I got in!”
Remembering the feeling of empowerment and confidence that I possessed after high school graduation, I want to bottle that feeling and pour lovingly into the girls. It is my hope that ADG helps girls to capture that “Ready for the world” feeling and know their self-worth at a much younger age. I do not consider ADG work, it is a passion!
Dr. Felisha Parsons
(Dr. Fee)
Impacting the lives of youth, Dr. Fee has been an educator for over twenty-five years. Having earned a Doctorate of Education in curriculum & instruction from Loyola University Chicago in 2016, and three Masters degrees one would not believe that as a young child, school was not a favorite of hers. Attending elementary school in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Dr. Fee avoided school and instead walked around the neighborhood listening to the elders.
My intake of the world growing into adulthood changed my perspective about education. Having a thirst for knowledge and a lifelong learner, Dr. Fee joins a family legacy of proud graduates of HBCU Southern University and A&M College where she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management. Her interests include school discipline, student engagement, childhood trauma, and youth development.
Dr. Fee worked in corporate for a few years, and later after moving to Louisville, Kentucky wandered on the campus of UofL looking to change her career path. She always wanted to be a teacher. There she met Dr. Bonnie Marshall, who later became her supervisor and life mentor. “Dr. Marshall has been an angel in my life.” Dr. Fee also met her hero, Muhammad Ali. Ali stood up for what he believed in and sacrificed his livelihood. His story became an inspiration for Dr. Fee to found ADG helping girls find their confidence to greatness.
A life member of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated, Dr. Fee serves her community from youth to the elderly and everything in between. Currently she serves on two local board organizations that have an emphasis on youth development in leadership and community service respectively. Her involvement speaks to her passion as an educator and her love founding ADG.
Dr. Fee loves to travel, play board games, yoga, and attend concerts. She has an eclectic taste in music and belongs to a book club for over 20 years. Dr. Fee is a southern girl who loves the south, embraces her southern roots, and southern cooking. Strong family values – preparedness, persistence, service and kindness keeps her grounded. Dr. Fee’s favorite quote by Ali embodies her life, “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on Earth.”
Our Mission
Armor Down Girl’s mission is to arm all girls centering African American girls and girls of color with the confidence they need in the world. Arming girls by increasing their confidence, eliminating self-doubt, and developing a growth mindset through a structured, consistent programmatic system that reflects self-love, dignity, diversity, positive self-image, and resilience; and by arming girls with financial confidence and STEM exposure.