December 22, 2024
As our hearts here at GBN continue to go out to all those affected by the recent Boston Marathon bombing, we find comfort and inspiration in President Barack Obama’s speech today at a church service titled “Healing Our City” at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston memorializing and honoring its victims and survivors. Here is the link to it at nytimes.com.
article by Lesa Lakin and Lori Lakin Hutcherson
When my daughter, Phoenix Coldon, did not come home and had not called on Monday, December 19, 2011, after leaving our driveway on the previous afternoon (Sunday, December 18, 2011), I called several local television stations to get her face and missing situation before the local population. I had absolutely no success. I then designed my own flyer with pictures of Phoenix as well as her physical description and description of her vehicle that she was driving. I put that flyer on my personal Facebook page and sent it to everyone on my e-mail list.
Someone down the line gave Phoenix’s information to the Black and Missing Foundation that I had never heard about. Derrica Wilson called me, offered her assistance, and changed the entire process. She and Natalie designed a more professional flyer, listed Phoenix on their website, contacted not only local television stations but national stations and newspapers, and talked with me for hours while I talked about my beautiful Phoenix. They even just held the phone while I cried, sobbed, blew my nose, and cried some more.
I love both of them and am grateful beyond words for their help. I hope to meet them one day and give them a warm hug and kiss on the cheek. We have not found Phoenix yet, but I am more confident that we will find her soon as a result of the exposure that was afforded to Phoenix by the Black and Missing Foundation.
So if you want to be a part of the solution, visit the Hope Without Boundaries 5K site for more information.
article by Jeff Mays via newsone.com
Sixty-six years ago on April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in professional baseball when the Brooklyn Dodgers started him at first base, making him the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. This weekend, in addition to the national release of the Warner Bros. “42,” a feature film about his life, Robinson will be honored by a rare display of his, as well as Negro League memorabilia, at the Sports Museum of Los Angeles. This exhibit, hosted by the Zimmer Children’s Museum, coincides with Jackie Robinson Triple Play Day, which also includes family-friendly events, food, prizes and a historical scavenger hunt for kids.
Proceeds from Triple Play Day go to support the Zimmer Children’s Museum’s youth services program, youTHink, which empowers youth to find their voice around social issues that matter to them and make a difference in their communities.
For more information on this special event or to purchase tickets, go to: http://sports.zimmermuseum.org
article by Lori Lakin Hutcherson
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Urban Prep Academy is continuing its record of success. For the last three years, all graduating seniors from the charter school’s Englewood campus have been college bound. This year, the inaugural graduating class of the West Campus has accomplished the same goal. In all, 167 seniors, all African-American males, have been accepted to a four-year college or university.
“What this 100 percent proves beyond a doubt is that it need not be the exception but it should be the expectation for every child in the city of Chicago,” Mayor Rahm Emanuel said at a ceremony where the final students exchanged their red uniform neckties with the red-and-gold striped ones that signify their college-bound status.
Urban Prep founder Tim King said he was exceedingly proud of the young men. “It’s really heartwarming. It’s really an inspiration,” said Tim King. “These guys are an inspiration to all of us because they show you what can happen when you really work hard and do the right thing. I feel great. There are no words to describe how powerful and wonderful it is to be a part of Urban Prep.”
According to Essence.com, rapper Eve is back with new music and teamed with Cobra Starship to uplift troubled teens with her song, “Make It Out This Town.” The inspirational video features students overcoming their problems and numerous incidences of bullying. It’s the follow-up single to her lead song, “She Bad Bad,” both from her forthcoming album, Lip Lock, out May 14.
article by Lori Lakin Hutcherson and Lesa Lakin
He sat down with theGrio at the unveiling of AXE’s Face range and Shave line to discuss how having good vision contributed to his career success and what he’s learned about leadership from teammate and Denver Quarterback Peyton Manning.
What about good vision made you want to pursue it as a charitable effort?
I feel like society puts emphasis on maintaining your senses, eating the right foods, and personal hygiene, yet I feel not enough is not dedicated to your eyes. While you’re able to get your teeth fixed or replaced when they’re not cleaned properly, you only have one pair of eyes you know?
If you start off having a bad foundation in relation to your eyes at an early age, you’re starting off on the wrong foot as a kid. You’d be amazed to know how many kids need glasses, but aren’t aware that they have eye problems. I’m here with my foundation to solve that.
UNITED NATIONS – Lesedi Mogoatlhe has dedicated her life to empowering African youth by helping them to find their voices through radio journalism.
In a time of economic, cultural and political challenges, young South Africans face extraordinarily difficult issues. As teens, they worry about their friends, families, education and social standing, but must as South Africans also deal with the harsh realities of poverty, disease and violence.
A trainer with Children’s Radio Foundation(CRF) in South Africa, Mogoatlhe focuses on building interest in social issues, provoking critical thinking and nurturing communication.
“It’s tempting to list the number of challenges and inequalities faced by the people on the continent, to talk about how the natural resources are being misused, or how corruption has become synonymous with African leadership,” Mogoatlhe told IPS, “but this seems like a futile exercise if I can’t contribute solutions to these problems.”
Having a voice is essential to having a livelihood, and through organizations like the Children’s Radio Foundation and trainers like Mogoatlhe, more and more youth are becoming equipped with basic communication skills that do more than simply allowing them to say how they feel.
Joan Erakit spoke with Mogoatlhe about her work in radio journalism for youth in South Africa and its impact on young people’s lives. Excerpts of the interview follow.
Q: You train youth to empower not only themselves but also their communities through radio journalism. What sort of trends have you begun to see?
A: Youth that come from rural environments are hungrier for knowledge than youth in urban environments. They seem to be more focused and curious about opportunities that come to them, and they tend to be better at organising themselves and using everything that the platform of radio brings their way.
I’ve also realised that the first moment of empowerment that occurs for the youth happens when they have a microphone to speak through. Something about having their voices amplified seems to also amplify everything else about them.
High schooler Caleb Smith (pictured) recently defied his disability by winning his first wrestling bout for his St. Paul Minnesota high school, according to CBS Minnesota. Smith lost his limbs when he contracted a rare meningitis blood disorder at the age of 3-years-old that caused his blood vessels to burn.
Due to his illness, the Harding senior’s parents were forced to make the heart-ripping decision to have their son’s arms and legs removed at their respective joints. “I was 3, so I hadn’t developed writing and walking skills completely, so it was pretty easy getting used to it, Smith said of his experience.
Fifth grade was when Smith began to dabble in the highly aggressive sport of wrestling, and his
positive attitude about himself allowed him to take part in his first match.
As far as the sport goes, even though Smith weighs a feathery 120 pounds, don’t let his size fool you; the teen has learned to use his physique to help him maintain a competitive edge against his opponents. According to his high school coaches, Smith moves better than his rivals and has led his school in escapes this year.
“He’s got the kind of strength people don’t normally see at 120,” coach Otto Kraus told CBS Minnesota. “Plus, the way he can move makes it hard to wrestle him.”
The young dynamo does have one drawback, though: he gets winded more easily than his opponents. In order to combat this Smith says he trains tirelessly so that he can overcome wrestling’s physical challenges. “For them to run 10 yards or whatever, it takes them like 20 steps,” he said. “But it takes me like 30 because my legs can only move so far,” he told CBS Minnesota.