Ladies Who Lunch: Tinkerbelle the Dog with owner Sam Carrell and Gina Naomi Baez

Amanda Bertoncini
Sep 27, 2016
2 min read

On September 23rd, 2016 I crowned Tinkerbelle the new Princess of Long Island!

I had the pleasure of having lunch with very strong and fierce women! The star- of course, was Tinkerbelle the Dog. For those of you who don't know, Tinkerbelle is a 5 pound Papitese (Papillon/Maltese). Tinkerbelle began her rise to fame like any struggling actor, but sadly in a shelter. Thankfully, Sam Carrell, a sweet, bubbly and kind woman adopted her and gave her a life of luxury. Sam was walking down the busy NYC streets to open Tinkerbelle up to the world and make her feel more comfortable around people and animals. It is not surprising that an agent stopped Sam and wanted to work with Tinkerbelle. She got her first campaign when she was chosen by Ralph Lauren to be featured in "The Dog Walk" print and video campaign. That's when Tinkerbelle found her love in fashion, entertainment and travel!

I'm pretty jealous- Tinkerbelle had a better seat than me at New York Fashion Week! It's OK I respect that! Luckily, at NYFW is where I was introduced to these lovely women:

Left: Gina Naomi Baez

Right: Sam Carrell

In my hands & Never letting go: Tinkerbelle!!

Gina Naomi Baez is an inspiration to all. She is multi talented, driven and a true survivor. You may recognize her from her most recent roles such as Orange Is The New Black Season 4 and her lead role as Nancy in Oliver on Broadway. Gina is a native New Yorker and is a great representation to our city. At the young age of 13, she was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma, but that never kept her from going to school and pursuing her love for music and acting. Thankfully today she is cancer free and her motivation as she had as a kid to combat cancer has only made her stronger and more determined in her adult life.

You must watch her YouTube channel with the famous Instagram pup Tinkerbelle featuring music videos and covers of pop songs. Check out "Let it Go" from Frozen which went VIRAL! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0NFjpcv3dM

Of course I came bearing gifts! Thank you James Suozzi for making the adorable Pocahontas costume and bandanna! You can find more of James Suozzi's collection at Patricia Field and on Etsy (Click Link here: https://www.etsy.com/people/suozzman)