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June 25, 2005
WHAT’S UP EVERYBODY?!?! Long time no see, huh? You have no idea how much has happened since our last update. We’ve turned an idea into reality. It’s beautiful. Really, come down and check it out. 1599 Central Parkway, right next to the ballet. The entrance is in the back on the Liberty side. I’m going to do my best to keep this short and sweet, but it’ll be hard. And because pictures tell a thousand words, please go to www.natiyouthcenter.org to see all the great photos we’ve been taking. First off, we opened. On time. That was an accomplishment. We have developed an AMAZING eight person staff (all unpaid mind you) that’s on hand every night we’re open. Diggs and Charles are our production assistants keeping the beats flowing in the recording studio and helping young people hone their skills on the mic. MsNickee is our very own beautiful downtown diva teaching an inspiring modeling class that takes youth of all shapes and sizes and teaches them not just how to walk down the runway, but also about self-respect, healthy eating, and teamwork. DJ Apryl Reign is on the ones and twos in the back room teaching young people the art of turntablism. Nay Nay teaches hip hop dance and you should see these kids move. And Islord, Life, and I do our best to fill in where ever we’re needed. And with an average of 75 unduplicated youth walking in our doors every day to take advantage of our programming on every Tuesday and Thursday from 5 to 10pm, there is a lot of filling in to do. We had originally hoped to have 30 people per night – and although we knew our idea was hot, we couldn’t have known the response would be this overwhelming. And we’re doing it on a shoestring budget. I can’t emphasize enough how important it is that you support this project. If you gave last year, now is the time to double up. If you gave us 50 bucks on an idea, I’d ask you to consider $100 this year because we’re getting it done. Right now we’ve got enough money to pay our rent, phone bill, and toss a couple dollars here and there towards programming. But we’re literally bursting at the seams on a lot of nights, and it’s become clear already that we need more space and paid staff to keep things smooth and sustainable. The floors above us are empty and waiting. We could fill them tomorrow if we had the resources. We’re doing our first set of quarterly surveys this week, so I’ll have data in a week, but I can tell you right now from talking to our youth that the vast majority of people we’re working with don’t go anywhere else. Cincinnati is always so concerned about what to do with the young people on the streets downtown. Let em come to Elementz: The Hip Hop Youth Arts Center, that’s what!! I truly believe there is no project that equals ours when it comes to creativity and innovation in Cincinnati. In fact, I’ve been at a couple conferences around the country this summer and can say confidently that what we’re doing is amazing from a NATIONAL perspective. Like I said at the beginning, come on down and check it out. You’ll see what I’m talking about. Let me encourage you one more time to check out the website at www.natiyouthcenter.org, click on make a donation to do just that, check out the Wish List to see if you’ve got a Polaroid camera or fridge in the basement that we could put to use, and check the NEW Volunteer Wish List for how you could help us out. And lastly, we’re currently working on putting together a newsletter to show our success, and we’d love to send you a copy. Unfortunately, too much of our database is based on email and we need your addresses. Take a second and email me back with your address and phone number so we can fill in your info on our system. Thanks so much to everybody out there for the support and believing in us. It’s been a long road, and we’ve still got a long way to go, but we’re starting to see the very real benefits of our efforts. Peace, Gavin Leonard Director @ Elementz: The Hip Hop Youth Arts Center 513.721.5800 work 513.266.1508 cell gavin.youthcenter@fuse.net
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