OUR FOUNDER/PUBLISHED AUTHOR
VANESSA KING, FOUNDER, PRESIDENT & PUBLISHED AUTHOR
Vanessa King is the Founder, CEO, and Board President of Queen Nefertiti Productions Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that produces a variety of pageant competitions at the state, national, and international levels. Under her leadership, the organization oversees Ubuntu Pageants International, Miss Black Ohio US Scholarship Pageant, Miss Black Ohio USA Talented Teen, Ms. Black Ohio USA, Hope Journey USA & Canada Pageants, and Ohio American Royal Miss & Pageant.
Vanessa has been involved in the pageant industry since 2000 as a competitor, director, and judge. She has held titles on the local, state, regional, national, and international levels and has judged numerous pageants throughout Ohio and beyond. Her experience in the entertainment industry began in the late 1970s as a model, and she has since continued to make significant contributions to the performing arts through her work in pageantry.
She is a Christian Mental Health Coach, Licensed and Ordained Minister, and Wedding Officiant, blending faith, compassion, and purpose to support others through healing and personal growth. Vanessa is a #1 Best-Selling and International Best-Selling Author, contributing to God Says I am Battle-Scar Free: Testimonies of Abuse Survivors (Parts 3, 4, and 5), a series dedicated to raising awareness of abuse and giving a voice to survivors.
Her community impact has been widely recognized. Vanessa was among the first recipients of the Jewel Award, presented by Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Columbus Chapter, and has been featured in several editions of Who’s Who in Black Columbus for her leadership in business and the arts. She has received honors from former Ohio Governor Ted Strickland, former Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman, and the Ohio Senate for her outstanding service. In 2023, she was selected as one of Columbus’ Outstanding Senior Volunteers by Medical Mutual and in 2025, she received the Empowerment Legacy Award by She Speaks Success Region 3 for her work as a self-defense advocate, pageant director, and multi-business owner.
Deeply engaged in civic and community service, Vanessa has been a member of the Junior League of Columbus since 2021 and currently serves on the Girl Scout Program Team of the Kelton House Council. She also volunteers with the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts (CAPA).
Vanessa holds a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Management from Oakland City University and is a veteran of the Army National Guard, where she served for 13 years in both Ohio and Indiana. A proud native of Columbus, Ohio, she is the mother of Cassandra and grandmother of Austin.
She lives by the powerful mantra:
“The future is always unknown. Live your own life. Live in the moment. Live so well in the present, so that when tomorrow never comes, you may have no regrets.”