Page 10-B Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Philadelphia stars dance for sickle cell awareness

Last weekend was a wonderful medley of events that took place in the Philadelphia region. There were many wonderful, uplifting experiences that our community can look upon with pride. Local notables competed in the Second Annual ?Dancing with the Philadelphia Stars!? to raise awareness about sickle cell disease in the Delaware Valley Region. The black tie fundraiser for The Sickle Cell Disease Association of America, Philadelphia/Delaware Valley Chapter (SCDAA/PDVC) was held on Sunday, April 18 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel at Penn?s Landing. Borrowing from the reality show similar in name, the annual fundraising event showcases local well-known individuals to not only compete for bragging rights, but also to raise sickle cell awareness throughout the region and support sickle cell programming and outreach via the creative art of dancing. ?Often called the ?forgotten disease,? sickle cell disease affects 1 out of every 500 African Americans and approximately 80,000 individuals. One out of every 10-12 African Americans are carriers of the sickle cell trait, and approximately 2.5 million Americans,? said SCDAA/PDVC executive director Stanley Simpkins. ?It?s not a disease that is heavily discussed; many people don?t even know what it is. We wanted to do something that would catch the people?s attention. With ?Dancing With The Philadelphia Stars,? we said ?Wow, what better way to get people to take notice??? The dance floor was the place where nine well-known Philadelphians competed for the upbeat event for a great cause. Dance contestants featured a radio host, restaurant owner, elected official, noted wine connoisseur and five others. All used their best dance moves for the benefit of the SCDAA/PDVC. Brian Freedman, noted food and wine writer, performed the Rumba; Blondell Reynolds Brown, Philadelphia Councilwoman-At-Large, performed the Cha Cha; Christina Pirello, Emmy Award-winning host of the television series ?Christina Cooks!,? performed the Swing; Dana Spain, founder of the Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society, (PAWS) performed the Tango; Dorothy Johnson- Speight, founder of Mothers in Charge, performed the Salsa; G-N Kang, co-host of Wired 96.5?s Chio in the Morning, danced the Samba; Jason Evenchik, owner of TIME, Vintage Wine Bar, and Bar, danced the Quickstep; Maxx Stoyanoff-Williams, lead singer/MC of Black Landlord, danced the Merengue; and Sabrina Tamburino Thorne, finance budget coordinator at GPTMC, danced the Foxtrot. The lineup was rounded out with a performance by last year?s winner, Erin Elmore, co-creator of Scartini Scar-Cream and contestant on the third season of ?The Apprentice.? There was also a special appearance by newly crowned 2010 Miss Philadelphia, Andrea Helfrich. Other very special guests included City Councilwoman and Majority Whip, Marian B. Tasco; ?The Bachelorette?s? Craig Robinson and auto parts magnate Steve Thorne. The panel of judges were LaDeva Davis, director of dance at the Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing Arts; Shawn Lamere Williams, artistic director at Eleone Dance Theatre; Susan Glazer, director of dance at University of the Arts; and ?celebrity? judge Sen. Larry Farnese. The concept and purpose of ? Dancing With The Philadelphia Stars!? is to assist in raising money to fund Sickle Cell education and programs, and shine the spotlight on a genetic disease that exists in staggeringly high numbers in the African American and Hispanic communities. Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown and her dancing partner, Nik Pavlov, came in third place. ? PHOTO/ROBERT MENDELSOHN Dorothy Johnson-Speight, founder of Mothers in Charge, and her partner, Nodari Teruashvily. ? PHOTO/ROBERT MENDELSOHN From left, Yvonne Reynolds, Pandora Woods, Vanessa Tercero and Brielle Brown. ? PHOTO/ROBERT MENDELSOHN The first ?Dancing With The Philadelphia Stars? successfully raised $6,000. The winner of the evening?s event was Maxx Stoyanoff- Williams dancing the Merengue. Sabrina Tamburino Thorne came in second place with the Foxtrot and Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown and her Cha Cha won third place. Funds raised for the event topped last year and the event was a huge success. To learn more about Sickle Cell Disease, visit www.sicklecelldisorder.com. ??? The Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church Wedding Ministry held their first Bridal Expo on Saturday. It was a terrific entrée to the wedding season as brides, grooms, parents, members of the bridal party and everyone had a chance to explore the world of weddings in one location. The 28 vendors provided services ranging from photographers, limousine companies, travel agencies, caterers such as Eatible Delights and more. Baranette Bridal sponsored a fashion show featuring dresses for the fashionable mother of the bride and the bride who truly knows that this is her moment. More than three hundred people attended the hugely successful event, which promises to be an annual affair. Love is in the air! ??? Jack and Jill of America Inc., Delaware Valley Chapters, including the Bucks County, Chester County and Philadelphia Chapters, celebrated their ?Rites of Passage 2010 Black and White Gala? at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in King of Prussia on Saturday evening. The occasion was a milestone filled with pride for the high school juniors and seniors from the three chapters who ? at this point ? have demonstrated achievement of the six principals of the Rites of Passage of their African heritage. Event chairwoman Joye McDonald-Hamer said, ?as it takes a whole village to raise one child, we were happy to include teens from throughout the Philadelphia region who are not members of the group, but a part of our community.? The 2010 Jack and Jill Inc. ?initiates,? as students involved in the program are called, included Juan Andrews, Corbin Booker, Evan Booker, Earyn Edwards, Julian Franklin, Jonathan Hamer, Ashley Henry, Kara Kelton, Jerrod MacFarlane, Tyler Roderick, Anita Sheares, Leland Taylor and Taylor Young. The gala theme, ?Embracing Our Heritage ... Discovering Ourselves,? featured 13 juniors and seniors from public and private high schools in Bucks County, Chester County and Philadelphia. These outstanding young men and women paid tribute to their African ancestry and reflected upon the ?six spirits? explored during the Rites of Passage program. It Maxx Stoyanoff-Williams, lead singer of Black Landlord, and his partner, Katie Wilcox, came in first place. ? PHOTO/ROBERT MENDELSOHN From left, Zemoria Brandon, Samaria Brandon and Mario Hilton. ? PHOTO/ROBERT MENDELSOHN From left, Warren Peterson, Meridel Peterson, Marie Simpkins and Stanley Simpkins. ? PHOTO/ROBERT MENDELSOHN From left, Denise Jenkins-Pearson, Tannoa Jackson, Henrietta Enninful-Johnson, Trudy Tchume and Ahema Asar. ? PHOTO/ROBERT MENDELSOHN was a visually beautiful experience and included formal dance presentations with young men in black tie and young ladies in stunning white gowns. The Rites of Passage was a sixweek program in which the students participated in various activities that addressed six principles considered important as they progress into adulthood: selfawareness, community service, health and wellness, family, enterprise and spirituality. The event Models show off wedding attire at the Enon Wedding Expo. ? PHOTO/ROBERT MENDELSOHN included a traditional African Village procession of elders, torchbearers, leaf bearers, rose bearers, gift bearers, twig bearers and Kinte carriers. There were moving tributes to parents, a formal acceptance ceremony and the presentation of gifts. The Initiates were exposed to many positive experiences designed to strengthen their character as adults. They participated Out and About ? Page 9B

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