Meghan drafts Steph and Ayesha Curry, Sheryl Sandberg for her star-studded 40X40 mentorship campaign

Steph and Ayesha Curry, and Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg are among the 40 well-known public figures tapped by Meghan Markle to help her launch a global effort to mentor women who lost jobs and career opportunities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ayesha Curry is joined by husband Stephen Curry as she prepares a chicken and waffles recipe on stage during a cooking demonstration at the BottleRock Napa Valley music festival in Napa, Calif., on Thursday, May 25, 2017. (Anda Chu/Staff Archives) (Anda Chu/Staff Archives)

The Bay Area luminaries are among the activists, artists, and sports, business and political leaders designated by the Duchess of Sussex to contribute 40 minutes of their time to mentor a woman trying to re-enter the workforce.

Steph and Ayesha Curry each shared news about their participation on social media, while the Daily Mail reported that the 40 also include Sandberg, as well as Hillary Clinton, Adele, Ciara, Stacey Abrams, Katie Couric and Melissa McCarthy.

Meghan announced her 40X40 campaign Wednesday as a way to celebrate her 40th birthday. The wife of Prince Harry and ex-full-time member of the British royal family shared the news in a humorous video chat with McCarthy, which was recorded at her Montecito mansion. Others tapped for the effort include Gloria Steinem, Priyanka Chopra, Gabrielle Union, Amanda Gorman and fashion designer Misha Nonoo.

Meghan celebrated her 40th birthday with a light-hearted video and an appeal for people to mentor women trying to get back into the work force https://t.co/B1eCurMI2n #40×40 pic.twitter.com/iZXk10KOm6

— Reuters (@Reuters) August 5, 2021

For her participation, Ayesha Curry wrote on Instagram: “Today I am so excited to support Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex, on her 40th birthday by donating 40 minutes of service by supporting women disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. If you can, please join me and commit 40 minutes to community service or mentorship. Together, we can contribute to a global wave of compassion and positive change!”

Steph Curry also wished the U.S.-born duchess happy birthday Wednesday, with the Golden State Warriors star tweeting that he, too, would help with the campaign, “honoring those women who give everything.”

Happy BDay to Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex! To celebrate her 40th birthday, join @ayeshacurry and me in dedicating 40 minutes of your time to mentoring and community service, honoring those women who give everything