Page 7 - Florida Sentinel 7-20-18

Local
‘Vision Board Party’ Offers Summer Fun For Teenagers
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
On Saturday, July 21st, the West Tampa Public Li- brary, 2312 W. Union Street, is the place to be for teenagers. The Dare 2 Dream Teen Vision Board Party will take place from 10:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m.
The event is being pre- sented by Mahogany Vybez and Charity’s Place and it is free and open to all youth between the ages of 11 and 16. The theme for the event is “Dream it, be- lieve it, do it.”
Ms. Rickya Williams,
one of the organizers of this event said, “We are going to have speakers who talk about their childhood and how they accomplished their goals. We will also have an inspirational video.
“But then teens will cre- ate their own vision board. Once it’s done, they can
MS. RICKYA WILLIAMS
share their ideas with oth- ers if they wish. There will be different events through- out the day, food and drinks.”
After the session is over, the kids will have an oppor- tunity to take boards home with them as a reminder to make the right choices.
“I just love children and I go through a lot of strug- gles and I know that kids do as well. I just want them to know that they have a sup-
MS. TIA MASSEY
port system outside of their families and that others can help,” Ms. Williams stated.
This is the first event, but the ladies plan to make it an annual event.
Ms. Williams is being joined by friend, Ms. Tia Masse, and her mother, Ms. Pathenia Gilbert.
“We have always wanted to do something that mat- tered and just have a natu- ral desire to help others. We
MS. PATHENIA GILBERT
created Mahogany Vybez because we felt there was a need that was lacking in the community when it came to our kids. And, we wanted to provide a safe, motivational environment for them while still have a good time.
“We are bold communi- cators, people developers, and lovers of humanity. We would like to share our gifts of love and innate knowl- edge with the world, one event at a time,” the friends
said.
Ms. Williams said she
has always been able to count on the support of her mom, and this time is no different.
Ms. Gilbert is the founder of Charity’s Place. A foster mother for more than 25 years, Ms. Gilbert has accepted homeless young people who had nowhere else to go.
She has mentored many people, some who were hurting or who had been beat down by life. And she continues to do so.
Charity’s Place came about after traumatic life experiences she witnessed within her family and friends. She knew that she had to be the catalyst to bring about healing.
Ms. Gilbert believes, “Strong individuals make strong families, and strong families make strong com- munities.”
FRIDAY, JULY 20, 2018 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 7-A