Media Only Contact: John A. Stokes, (202) 673-2195 (DPR)
The District of Columbia’s Department of Parks and Recreation today announced that its Ferebee Hope Recreation Center, 3999 8th Street, SE, will be the site of Ward 8 Empowerment Day, a free event which features live entertainment, basketball, football and tennis tournaments as well as services and offerings from national and local vendors. The event, which will be hosted by hip-hop artist Plies (Big Gates/Slip N Slide/Atlantic Records), will take place Saturday, August 23, from 12 noon to 4 pm, and boasts opportunities for residents to register for year-round programs and activities aimed at increasing violence prevention and intervention throughout Ward 8.
Event sponsors include Microsoft, Music World Entertainment (headed by Matthew Knowles, father of entertainer Beyonce Knowles), House of Dereon (headed by Tina Knowles, Beyonce’s mother ), University of Phoenix as well as the DC College Access Program (DC CAP), the Ward 8 Empowerment Group, It’s Cool to Be Smart, Inc. and Big Gates and Plies Power of Visions (the non-profit organization recently founded by Plies). Free food will be provided by Outback Steakhouse of Oxon Hill; community churches will be on hand to ensure that all participants are fed.
“I am excited the organizers and sponsors of the Ward 8 Empowerment Day chose DPR’s Ferebee Hope Recreation Center to host such a worthwhile community event,” said DPR Director Clark E. Ray. “The day will exemplify how government and the private and public sectors can come together to better the District of Columbia.”
Ward 8 Empowerment Day was established to help combat the direct stings and damaging effects resulting from the epidemic of violence and all forms of abuse experienced by residents of the District of Columbia, specifically within the Ward 8 Community. Event organizers hope the day brings significant change in areas such as Washington Highlands, the largest residential neighborhood in Ward 8, among one of the most violent neighborhoods in the District of Columbia, and where one third of the city’s 181 homicides in 2007 occurred.
For more information: Contact Tessie Jackson, Director of Communications of the Ward 8 Empowerment Group, at (202) 257-8006.
About Empowerment Group, Inc.
The Empowerment Group, a Community Relation’s Management firm works to advance the interests and well being of disadvantaged communities across the Nation. The Empowerment Group offers over 20 years of combined social, community and philanthropic experience. Effectively combining the determination of the community with the unconditional collaboration and support of many corporate partners the Empowerment Group, a 501 (c)(3) non-profit, creates and maintains a safe and thriving community environment; one community after the next. Learn more at www.ward8empowerment.org
About It’s Cool To Be Smart, Inc.
It’s Cool To Be Smart, Inc. a private, non-profit 501 (c)(3), was established in Ohio in 1997 under the name Stretching the Limits II/Hip Fit Kids to provide outreach programs for children and seniors who were handicapped, disabled, and/or mentally ill in collaboration with the music industry. The organization’s mission is to empower teenage girls to become future business leaders by creating mentoring opportunities with influential women in music, film, television, and sports throughout the nation. Learn more at www.itscooltobesmart.org
About Big Gates and Plies Power of Visions, Inc.
Keeping in the tradition of Plies' philanthropy, Big Gates and Plies Power of Visions will provide funding for legal representation and aid to needy individuals, specifically those who are incarcerated, with the goal of promoting a more functional, productive, and just community. The organization will also provide educational forums, classes, workshops, trainings, opportunities, and other charitable activities aimed at individuals in the community, in particular focusing on rehabilitation. In addition, Big Gates and Plies Power of Visions will focus on promoting activities for youth and minorities, including education, mentorship, cultural experiences, and preventative measures aimed at combating incarceration in the Tampa and Ft. Myers, Florida areas. For more information on Big Gates and Plies Power of Visions Inc., visit www.myspace.com/powerofvisionsinc or direct inquires to powerofvisionsinc@gmail.com.