Tag: Community Service

Walking that walk in the inner city – Guazabera Insights

On By scenebyginaIn Education, People, placesLeave a comment
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Febo speaking to inmates at Hudson County Correctional Facility. (image via YouTube)

In light of the daily debates taking place on social media and beyond about crime, drug use/abuse, and protests about police in inner cities, it’s nice when you see someone actually walking the walk behind the talk.

Dennis Febo of Guazabera Insights, LLC, is one of those people.

I’ve known Febo (though, virtually, not in person!) since 2013 through my college sorority network. (My sorority, Mu Sigma Upsilon has a brother fraternity (Lambda Sigma Upsilon), which Febo is part of.)

Screen Shot 2017-04-20 at 11.54.52 AMHe founded Guazabera Insights in 2010 as a health and educational services provider whose mission is to raise social consciousness and uplift communities. They do this through the dissemination of cultural and social consciousness education in communities of need, while addressing the social issues that affect communities through organizing and action.

Most of the work is done in Jersey City, a large and diverse city right outside of Manhattan in which 52% of its population speak another language other than English in the home, and, in some wards, citizens still struggles with crime. The organization also provides employment and internship opportunities in Jersey City and Paterson, N.J.

Each weekend, Febo and others from Guazabera Insights hit the streets to educate the public on healthier lifestyles. He explains why in this video, which was shot recently while engaging with the public in Jersey City’s Journal Square.

But the work doesn’t stop on the streets. How about helping the incarcerated at Hudson County Correctional Center, which many wrongly assume are beyond change, with a reintegration program?  Febo, a fantastic public speaker, does that, too, as illustrated in the video below.

You can watch a more comprehensive video of Guazabera Insights’ work at the Hudson County Correctional Center here.

A Brooklyn native, Febo graduated from the University at Buffalo with a master’s degree in Humanities Interdisciplinary: Caribbean Cultural Studies, studied in Havana, Cuba and Bahia, Brazil. His master’s thesis, “Sazón Batería y Soberanía: Puerto Rico in the Dance for Self-Determination,” is a documentary regarding Puerto Rican Sovereignty. He also attained a bachelor’s degree in Latino Studies, concentrating in history and politics.

Learn more about Guazabera Insights here.

Joel Osteen Ministries Teams up With Hundreds of Teens in Bronx, NY for Generation Hope Project®

On By scenebyginaIn Education, family, New York, People, placesLeave a comment
The NYC area 'Night of Hope' is on Sat. June 7.
The NYC area ‘Night of Hope’ is on Sat. June 7.

I am NOT the type to post inspirational quotes on social media by the Dalai Lama, Joel Osteen, or even Bill Gates. (Ha.) But I will share this cool news (the part about 250 underprivileged kids) coming out of the Osteen camp because this is what it’s all about, in my opinion — spreading love by helping out! That, in itself, is inspiring; no quotes needed. Thanks to the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Press Office for sharing this bit of news.

❤ –Gina

BRONX, N.Y. — On Thursday June 5, Victoria Osteen along with volunteers from The Generation Hope Project®, will take 250 underprivileged children to the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Bronx Zoo as a part of the activities surrounding this year’s “America’s Night of Hope,” at Yankee Stadium.

The third annual Generation Hope Project® will focus on mentoring—developing one-to-one relationships with young people who need strong role models. Volunteers will have an opportunity to share time with middle school children who might not normally get the chance to join in on the full zoo experience.

Generation Hope Project® will also work with organizations around the Bronx community on service projects including.

  • WCS’s Bronx Zoo – Volunteers will mentor and take 250 underserved middle-school age children to the zoo.
  • NYC Food Bank in Hunts Point – Packing food boxes to distribute in the community.
  • Community Kitchen & Food Pantry in Harlem – Stocking pantry shelves and food prep.
  • Green Pastures Baptist Church – Major cleanup of Hurricane Sandy damage, organization and rehabilitation of facility.
  • Bronx Christian Fellowship Church – Major cleanup and organization of warehouse, sorting donations, cleaning outside bays and church repair.
  • Latino Pastoral Action Center – Major cleanup of classrooms, painting, donation sorting, participating in children’s school activities.
  • Yankee Stadium Mentoring Baseball Game – Volunteers will accompany mentees and mentors to the game to highlight them and the programs in pre-game activities.

Generation Hope Project® is an outreach of Joel Osteen Ministries that engages young adults from around the country and around the world in service to communities in need. Through partnerships with local leaders, organizations, and other churches, GenHope has provided close to 3,000 hours of volunteer service, reaching thousands through its social media messages and bringing supplies and support to those in need. Learn more at www.generationhopeproject.com.

America’s Night of Hope will be held at Yankee Stadium on June 7, 2014 at 7pm. The event, which coincides with the volunteer projects, will draw more than 55,000 from across the nation for an evening of hope and celebration. This year marks the 6th annual event. The first was held at Yankee Stadium in 2009, then Dodger Stadium, US Cellular Field, Nationals Park, and Marlins Stadium in 2013.  For more information, go to www.joelosteen.com.

Joel and Victoria Osteen are the pastors of Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas-America’s largest church with more than 52,000 weekly attendees and one of the nation’s most racially and socioeconomically diverse. Joel’s weekly television program reaches more than 10 million households each week in the US and is seen by millions more in over 100 nations across the globe.