THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 26, 1996 TAG: 9607240129
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 12 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ERIC FEBER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 86 lines
This year's Afrikan-American Family Day, which will take place Saturday, will be an improvement over last year's maiden run.
The event, sponsored by the Kujichagulia Academy, a preschool and kindergarten, took place at its grounds on Cedar Road.
``Last year's did well for us,'' said Sean Eure, one of the school's founders and an organizer of the event. ``It gave me enough insight and knowledge to allow me to make this year's a better event.''
It was originally organized to celebrate the importance of the African-American family, bring them together and bring people of other races together for a day full of inspiration, music, food and fun.
Eure said this year's event will move to a greener and more spacious area and will include more helpful attractions.
``We're moving the event to Lakeside Park,'' Eure said. ``It's a more convenient location for everyone, and it gives us a prettier atmosphere. The surrounding park is very nice and worth a visit all by itself.''
But while folks enjoy the park on this second annual Family Day, they'll be able to subscribe to a newspaper, have their health checked and register to vote.
``We're including several community-minded events,'' she said.
The NAACP will hold a voter registration drive in an effort to get more people involved in the local, state and national electoral process.
``This is our effort to get more people involved in their community and have a say in how it's run,'' she said. ``Registering to vote is so very important. We feel setting up a registration booth at a weekend family type event will get many people to register to vote. Since they're there anyway to have a good time with their family, people, in the spirit of the day, will be more apt to register.''
Representatives with the New Journal & Guide newspaper will set up a subscription booth and Sentara Family Care will set up several types of free health screenings.
``Most people won't go to the doctor to get their health checked,'' Eure said. ``But in this atmosphere of a family fun day, people may be more prone to get screened and possibly medical help.''
The Sentara folks will be on hand to give free blood pressure, cholesterol and other health check-ups.
Eure said the day will also include musical entertainment and inspirational speakers.
The Good Life Band, a well known jazz outfit, will perform original and classic jazz compositions and Felix Simmons, well known area griot, or African storyteller, will spin yarns, offer wisdom and keep people entertained.
``He has performed for our school several times,'' Eure said of Simmons, who is also an apprentice cooper at Colonial Williamsburg. ``In fact, he knew about us and invited us to participate in a Martin Luther King Jr. march he helped organize. He said if there's anything he can do to help us, he'd be there.''
Eure said the event will also include several children's activities including crafts, face painting and making artistic designs using dried pasta or beans.
To further inspire young folks and families, Eure said she scheduled author Justin Fenwick, whose books include ``The Autobiography of Our African American Self'' and ``Word of Becoming, From Renaissance to Revolution: Poems, Short Stories and Essays from the Front Lines of the Black Mind.''
``He's a powerful speaker who is able to move mountains with his words,'' she said.
Eure also scheduled poet Kendra Brown.
``She's far beyond her years,'' Eure said. ``She's well focused and we expect her poetry to move and talk directly to a lot of young people.''
Eure said the event is also planned to inform Chesapeake folks about the Kujichagulia (means self-determination in Swahili) Academy.
The school was founded by Eure and several other concerned parents and educators last year to keep the African heritage alive in African American pupils, to stress learning and discipline, respect for elders and love of all people and cultures. She said organizers dream of one day establishing a school from grades pre-school all the way to high school.
``We're still in our molding period,'' she said. ``We're still developing. We're just now starting to tap into the community and its resources. Our family day is to show people how serious and focused we are. We're losing too many of our youths. We need to get them on track with learning and books and a deep knowledge of their culture and heritage and a respect for other cultures. We're hoping people of all races and cultures come out and enjoy the day.'' MEMO: AT A GLANCE
What: Afrikan-American Family Day
Who: Sponsored by the Kujichagulia Academy
When: 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Saturday
Where: Lakeside Park, Byrd Avenue and Bainbridge Boulevard
Call: 578-5731. by CNB