Page 8 - Florida Sen tinel 2-17-17

Local
Tampa Community Prepares For 2nd Annual Girls Summit
Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. Recognized For Life-Saving Efforts
LifeLink® partners with Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity to share the ‘Donate Life’ Mes- sage
LifeLink of Florida awarded the Gamma Eta Sigma Chapter (Tampa) of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. with the inaugural Pledge Life Challenge trophy during the fraternity’s 2017 state confer- ence in January, for their ef- fort to educate the community about organ and tissue dona- tion.
The chapter president and 1st Vice Director, Zannie Mount, was humbled to re- ceive recognition for his chap- ter’s efforts in promoting donation.
A friendly competition be- tween Phi Beta Sigma chapters in five counties began in Sep- tember 2016. These chapters were invited to participate be- cause they serve communities that coincide with LifeLink’s federally designated service area.
The Pledge Life Challenge was issued because, with more than 5,600 Floridians and 119,000 in the United States awaiting a lifesaving trans- plant, the need for increased registration as organ donors grows daily.
Errick Farmer, Ph.D., Florida State Director of Phi Beta Sigma said it best, “The need for organ donation im- pacts thousands of Floridians. Several of our members have been impacted by donation, and participating in the chal- lenge was one way to show our support.”
Individuals can register as donors by visiting www.Do- nateLifeFlorida.org and indi- cating their decision, or when getting or renewing their dri- ver’s license.
Shown above, left to right: Zannie Mount, President of Gamma Eta Sigma Chapter of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity; Cathy Jordan, Life- Link volunteer; and Brandi Ahonsi, LifeLink of Florida.
LifeLink of Florida, which facilitates organ and tissue re- covery in west and southwest Florida, has partnered with Phi Beta Sigma for several years, sharing information about organ and tissue dona- tion at their state conference and in the community, but this was the first Pledge Life Chal- lenge.
Chapters were given a list of ideas for outreach to impact organ and tissue donation awareness and registration in Black communities.
Each idea had a point value attached to it and the chapter with the most points was named the Pledge Life Chal- lenge winner.
Participating chapters also included Delta Omicron Sigma, Pinellas County; Nu Mu Sigma, Lee County; Theta Eta Sigma, Polk County and Alpha Alpha Iota Sigma, Sara- sota/Manatee Counties. In ad- dition to the Pledge Life trophy, the winning chapter also earned a catered dinner at a future meeting.
“We are thankful for the support and positive impact
members of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity dedicated to pro- mote organ and tissue dona- tion,” said Ruth Duncan Bell, Sr. Vice President of Public Affairs at LifeLink. “With the help of community organizations like theirs, we can save more lives.”
LifeLink forms community partnerships with professional and civic organizations, faith communities, companies and schools. Please visit www.Life- LinkFoundation.org and com- plete the “Contact Us” form to obtain more information about how this lifesaving mes- sage can be shared with oth- ers.
LifeLink of Florida is the non-profit, community serv- ice organization designated by the federal government to facilitate organ and tissue do- nation in west and southwest Florida.
LifeLink of Florida serves fifteen counties in west and southwest Florida, and Mar- tin County on the east coast. Contact LifeLink of Florida for more information at (800) 262-5775.
Through the vision of Dr. Jeffery Johnson and sev- eral community leaders who have partnered with him, the Second Annual “You De- serve To Be Loved” Girls Summit will be held on Sat- urday, April 29, 2017 at Spoto High School, 8538 Eagle Palm Dr., Riverview, Florida.
It will be scheduled from 8:30 a. m. to 4 p. m. and will be organized to address the negative challenges amongst today’s young ladies, while giving them tools for aca- demic, social, and career suc- cess.
This year’s attendance goal is 500 girls between the 6th and 12th grades and 200 pa- rents. The objective of the summit is to inspire young ladies to achieve their dreams while building their inner character and confidence to know they are worthy of re- spect and deserve to be loved.
Breakout sessions will in- clude topics on self-esteem, entrepreneurship, social skills, financial literacy and more.
The event will feature cre- ative activities during work- shops, dynamic guest speakers from the commu- nity, panel discussions, free food, makeovers, and the re- turn of the highly anticipated fashion show.
Some of the youth attend- ing will possibly come from single parent households, low-income neighborhoods, or have suffered forms of abuse or unthinkable living conditions.
The Summit’s mission is to
DR. JEFFERY JOHNSON
empower and uplift these young ladies in a safe and con- structive environment.
The event is open to all ethnicities and faith-based backgrounds. Register online is at www.jajj.org.
Dr. Jeffery Johnson
who is a Tampa Bay commu- nity leader, pastor, and colle- giate professor says, “The summit is designed intention- ally for young women to leave invigorated to achieve their dreams, accomplish their goals as well as to make posi- tive friendships with other like achiever’s and connec- tions with potential mentors.”
The 2017 Girls Summit is a free event and for sponsorship and vending opportunities please contact Rasha Kelly, sponsorship coordinator, at 813.475.9227 or rkelly321@hotmail.com.
The current 2017 sponsors include: The Florida Sentinel Bulletin, Echo Luv Enter- prises, The Children’s Board, The Brandon Law Group, Bethesda CDC, JAJJ Enter- prises and Wilson’s Funeral Home.
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