Although Beverlyn grew up in East Orange, New Jersey, she frequently traveled via plane to see her father in Atlanta. It was from the prism of an airplane flying out of Newark Airport that she became fascinated with the maritime industry. She referred to what she saw as the “secret place,” because no one around her knew anything about this world.
Ironically after admiring the ports of Elizabeth and Newark for years, Beverlyn met a maritime attorney on a plane at Newark Airport. The attorney suggested that she attend Tulane Law School if she wanted to know more about the industry. Subsequently, Beverlyn attended Livingston College and then went on to graduate in 1990 from Rutgers-Newark with a B.S. in Business Management. After Rutgers, Beverlyn attended Tulane Law School in New Orleans, Louisiana where she was the first African American female to graduate from the university with a Maritime Law Certificate.
After being admitted to the New Jersey Bar Association, Beverlyn agreed to delay her professional career and raised close to $1 million as Development Director of her all-girls Catholic high school, Benedictine Academy, which was in jeopardy of closing.
Shortly thereafter, Beverlyn was hired by Acting Governor Donald T. DiFrancesco to work with the Republican Senate Caucus. Beverlyn served as an aide to the Senate Education Committee. In that capacity, she most notably helped develop New Jersey’s multi billion dollar School Construction initiative. Also, she worked extensively on developing urban education reform policies.
Using her experience as an Education Committee Aide, Beverlyn formed a consulting company – Abbottlinks, Inc. to provide direct consultative guidance to school districts, universities, private providers, and construction companies with respect to the New Jersey Supreme Court ordered urban education reform mandates set forth in the landmark Abbott vs. Burke decision.
As an outgrowth of her consulting activities, Beverlyn saw a tremendous need in inner city communities to have healthcare and early childhood education combined. In 2002 she went on to co-found Horizon Pediatric Systems, Inc. to provide a safety net for low income families with young medically fragile children. The company owns and manages the largest pediatric medical daycare in the state. Beverlyn currently serves as Vice President of the organization.
In 2004 Beverlyn co-founded Camden Shipping Corporation. Camden Shipping is the first all African-American female shipping company of its kind in the history of the United States. The company performs services in several maritime trades.
First Camden Shipping set its sights on the marine construction industry. The company is the first minority female enterprise to own and operate a hydraulic dredge. Moreover, the owners of the company are the first female certified dredge operators in the country.
In order to be competitive in the maritime industry, a company must have various lines of business. Thus to that end, Camden Shipping obtained a Non-Vessel Operating Common Carrier license from the Federal Maritime Commission. The company imports and exports freight from all over the world.
Recently, the company has entered into an agreement with one of the largest shipping companies in the world. Camden Shipping is now positioned to become the nation’s first minority female owned company to manage supply ships for the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Before the establishment of Camden Shipping, minority female owned businesses and the maritime industry were mutually exclusive concepts. Camden Shipping’s historical entrance into the maritime industry was and continues to be met with much opposition and many obstacles. However, despite the overwhelming odds against the success of an all female and minority maritime company, Camden Shipping continues to thrive. Camden Shipping is changing the face of maritime.