Your Invitation to the 10th Annual Renewal Summit
- Co-Host Anne Akers, Health/Wellness/Beauty Editor The Three Tomatoes; Founder/Editor Glow Magazine
- Co-Host, Cheryl Benton, Founder The Three Tomatoes and The Three Tomatoes Book Publishing, author, public speaker
This year’s milestone Renewal Summit is designed to energize, uplift, and spark something new. From finding meaning after life’s curveballs to strengthening your inner toolkit to the latest science on living longer, we’ll explore topics that include emotional flexibility, stress recovery, purpose, and community—not as lofty ideas, but as real‑life tools that make aging feel more vibrant, grounded, and joyful.
Co-hosts Cheryl Benton and Anne Akers have curated an extraordinary lineup of special guests—experts, healers, innovators, and storytellers whose personal journeys will absolutely mesmerize you. Expect big laughs, honest conversations, practical takeaways, and a few goosebump moments.
Between sessions, the day is designed for attendees to connect… starting with check-in coffee/tea & bites, visiting our exhibitors, a beautiful seated catered lunch, and ending the day with an exclusive wine reception on the terrace.
Details:
Date: Friday, May 15 from 9:15 to 5 PM
Venue: The Scandinavia House, 58 Park Avenue, NYC (between 37 & 38th Street – an easy stroll from Grand Central Station
Ticket Options:
- Full Day Ticket: $155 includes coffee/tea/lite bites, all sessions, catered lunch, wine reception. Note: The first 25 people who sign up at the full day ticket price will receive a fabulous gift bag and a chance to win a 5-star Carribean Island vacation package valued at approx. $3,000.
- Two‑Pack Friend Bundle Full Day: $280 (save $15 each). Sign up with a friend and save.
- Morning‑Only: $75 (includes coffee/tea, yogurt, bagels during check-in, morning sessions, but NOT lunch)
- Afternoon Only: $85 (includes afternoon sessions and wine reception)
Program Highlights
More details will be announced shortly.
Morning Program
9:15 to 10 am – Check-in, coffee/tea, lite bites, visit exhibitors
10 am to Noon
10:00 am Opening Welcome
..from co-hosts Cheryl Benton and Anne Akers
10:20 am Keynote: Collective Consciousness, Resilience, and Redefining What’s Possible
Dr. Theresa Ashby
What if the next great revolution for women isn’t about breaking barriers—but about redefining how we change the world? Dr. Theresa Ashby invites women into a new conversation about resilience not as endurance or relentless striving, but as a conscious, collective practice that sustains us. She explores why the patterns that once propelled women forward are no longer the path to long-term vitality, wellbeing, or meaningful impact. Dr. Ashby is a business consultant, advisor, speaker, and author.
10:40 Panel: The Future of Aging—A Blueprint for Longevity
Moderated by Milana Knowles, a global longevity and wellness strategist and brand developer, this panel brings together leading longevity experts— Dr. Dana Cohen, a leading integrative and functional MD, Dr. Robin Berzin, MD, leader in functional medicine and chronic disease resolution, and Founder and CEO of Parsley Health, and Alexia Brue, a wellness entrepreneur, founder and CEO of The Practice: Habits for Healthspan. They will explore the newest tools that help us understand our health and extend our vitality. From real‑time biomarkers to advanced at‑home diagnostics, our speakers will break down the innovations reshaping how we age. Attendees will gain a clear, practical look at what’s possible now — and what’s emerging — in the science of living longer.
11:30 am Interview: The Transformative Power of Kindness
When Valerie Smaldone stepped away from her award‑winning run as host of the nation’s most listened‑to midday radio show, she went on a journey that ultimately took her a very different direction—co‑founding a media company devoted to spotlighting heroes and creating tangible good. She shares insights from producing the inspirational film The Thursday Night Club with Gloria Gaynor, Divine Renovation with Erik Estrada, the new series Finding Kindness, and the children’s book Officer Erik and The Very Special Dad. Her mission is to inspire people to help others, to give back, and to offer kindness along the way.
11:50 am Woman of Purpose Award and Giving Circle Grant Presentation
Deborah Koenigsberger
This year’s honor goes to Deborah Koenigsberger, founder of Hearts of Gold, a non-profit founded in 1994 in NYC whose mission and purpose is to break the vicious cycle of homelessness for single mothers and their children. Deborah will also be presented with a $5,000 grant for Hearts of Gold from The Three Tomatoes/Glow Beauty Health Wellness Magazine Giving Circle in partnership with She Angels Foundation.
Lunch, Connecting Time, Exhibitors – noon to 1:15 PM
A catered seated lunch will take place on the second floor and terrace and a chance to connect with other attendees and visit our exhibitors.
Afternoon Sessions 1:30 to 4 PM
1:30 pm Panel: The Resilience Toolkit—Practical Strategies for a Stronger Self
This energizing panel brings together moderator Sonia Satra, a mindset and fitness thought leader, with experts Brett Cotter, author and founder of Stress Is Gone, Deborah Goldstein, founder of Driven 2 Wellness, and Sharon Heno, a stroke survivor and thriver helping others navigate their struggles. They will share the practical tools, mindsets, and daily habits that help people stay grounded through uncertainty and bounce back from life’s challenges. From emotional regulation to cognitive reframing to community-based support, they’ll explore evidence-backed strategies anyone can use to strengthen resilience. Attendees will leave with actionable techniques they can begin using immediately to feel steadier, more empowered, and more connected to their own capacity to rise.
2:20 pm Interview: Stillness as Strength: Bob Roth on Resilience and Longevity
Beatty Cohan will interview Bob Roth, CEO of the David Lynch Foundation, who is one of the most influential voices in Transcendental Meditation (TM). They will discuss how TM strengthens resilience and longevity—emotionally, neurologically, and physiologically—especially for people under chronic stress. Roth’s work has brought TM to over 1 million people, including at risk youth, veterans, survivors of domestic violence and frontline healthcare workers. He is the author the New York Times best-seller “Strength in Stillness.” Beatty Cohan is a nationally recognized psychotherapist, author, and radio host “Ask Beatty.”
2:40 pm Panel: Finding Light After Loss—Conversations on Healing and Resilience
This powerful conversation brings together voices who have faced profound loss and emerged with extraordinary strength. Moderated by Valerie Smaldone, producer and co-founder JustDOGood Entertainment, the panel features Theresa Bruno author of He’s Not Coming Home, Ruthie Chamichian-Smith author Resting Warrior, and Honey Berg author It Won’t Kill You to Talk About Death. Together, they explore how grief can transform into resilience, how connection fosters healing, and how hope can re-enter a life forever changed. Their stories remind us that even in our darkest moments, we are never without the possibility of light.
3:30 pm Interview: Reshaping How the World Thinks About Health, Resilience, and Longevity
Dr. Darcy McConnell is medical director of Foundtain Life New York Center. She is a board-certified physician specializing in Family Practice with a focus on preventative care, longevity, and functional medicine. She is passionate about promoting wellness and disease prevention through holistic and integrative care. Her passion aligns powerfully with Fountain Life to shift healthcare from reactive to proactive, so you can live without limits, with more energy, clarity, and confidence at every stage of life.
3:50 Special Guest Musical Performance: Christina Connors, The Power of Optimism
Our program for the day will end with a powerful performance by Christina Conors, whose company, A New Soul Productions, is dedicated to serving caregivers and those in their care through music. She will perform and explore how music creates positivity and healing while transforming the unhealthy patterns that overwhelm and exhaust us. In our overstimulating world, women need tools to support themselves so they can continue supporting others from a place of strength and renewal. Christina Connors is a transformational mentor, MBSR-certified mindfulness practitioner, and recording artist supporting. Her deep commitment to promoting emotional resilience and well-being through creative expression is the cornerstone of her work. She was the 2019 winner of Tomatoes Got Talent.
Wine Reception 4:15 to 6 PM
We will return to the second floor and terrace for a wine reception, and a last chance to visit exhibitors.
The Exhibitor Marketplace on the second floor which brings together curated exhibitors offering the latest in health and wellness technologies and services, luxury skincare, fashion, books and more. There is ample time to visit attendees during check in, lunch, between sessions and during cocktail hour.
Visit the Wellness and Longevity Corner
Meet the innovators shaping the future of health, vitality, and women’s wellness. This is your chance to connect directly with top leaders and experts across longevity, integrative medicine, skincare, and more.
Fountain Life. Welcome to the world’s most advanced longevity destination. By combining award-winning diagnostics with AI insights drawn from more than 15+ billion data points, we create a complete picture of your health and can detect disease decades before symptoms appear. Winner Longevity Clinic of the Year 2025.
Dr. Dana Cohen uses Integrative Medicine to “integrate” traditional treatments with complementary therapies, emphasizing the proven track record of science.
Immunocologie Skincare for Skin Health Meet the founder and learn all about this natural, science driven luxury skincare products developed to give you the results you deserve, no matter your skin type.
Collagen Bar is NYC’s premier science backed MedSpa specializing in collagen restoration and cutting-edge regenerative skin treatments for tighter, smoother, more youthful looking.
skin at any age.
MOCEAN is a leading integrative physical therapy and wellness center in NYC offering pain relief, functional medicine, and longevity optimization in Midtown. You’ll get to experience some of their therapies.
Roman Empire Farms. They produce seed to shelf hemp products using biodynamic farming principles that adhere to sustainable, holistic methods.
More Exhibitors
Beyond our Wellness & Longevity Corner, the Exhibitor Marketplace features an inspiring mix of creators, innovators, authors and mission‑driven brands.
Mentis Estate is a three-generation Greek family estate, hand-picked Athenolia olives from Laconia’s groves yield a limited pure extra virgin oil-aromatic, buttery and beautiful balanced along with artisanal Meditteranean sea salt.
Beverley Olivacce. A fashion collection that is a luxurious, timeless, elegant brand that will always have you looking on point for all of your social soirees.
The Three Tomatoes Publishing. Amplifying women’s voices. Meet some of our authors.
Miriam Novalle the T Salon will be serving tea outside the auditorium.
The tomato behind The Three Tomatoes.
Cheryl Benton, aka the “head tomato” is founder and publisher of The Three Tomatoes, a digital lifestyle magazine for “women who aren’t kids”. Having lived and worked for many years in New York City, the land of size zero twenty-somethings, she was truly starting to feel like an invisible woman. She created The Three Tomatoes just for the fun of it as the antidote for invisibility and sent it to 60 friends. Today she has thousands of friends and is chief cheerleader for smart, savvy women who want to live their lives fully at every age and every stage. She is the author of the novel, "Can You See Us Now?" and co-author of a humorous books of quips, "Martini Wisdom." Because she's lived a long time, her full bio won't fit here. If you want the "blah, blah, blah", read more. www.thethreetomatoes.com/about-the-head-tomato
