MILWAUKEE — The Celebrity Poetry Slam is about raising money for a greater cause: 'My Sistas KeepHer's F.I.R.E. Awards Show.'
The organization uplifts young women in the community through mentorship and sisterhood, using poetry as a vehicle to inspire, guide, and award the young ladies.
"The work we do always includes spoken word poetry as well as writing exercises to get the girls to open up and dig deep," Shelly Conley, co-founder of My Sistas KeepHer said. "Once they open up, we pour back into them."
Lanikiquia, one of the first young women to go through the program says it changed her life.
"They introduced me to sisterhood, they introduced me to healing, and I had never even known what that was," Lanikiquia explained. "It taught me how to be a better woman, how to be conscious of how I act around other people. Some people don't have anyone; if you are struggling at home and need someone to talk to, they are one call away."
The FIRE Awards: Celebrating Excellence
Every year, My Sistas KeepHer hosts the F.I.R.E. Awards (Female In Recognition of Excellence). This red carpet-event honors six young women and seven adult women in the community.
"It's a way for us to help bridge the gap between the elders and the young people and celebrate all that they are doing, have done, and are becoming," Conley explained.
The Celebrity Poetry Slam is just one fundraiser to ensure all the young women can attend the glamorous awards show for free.
Tina Nixon, co-founder, believes we all have a responsibility to uplift each other.
"If you support the celebrity slam, you are supporting the F.I.R.E. Awards," Nixon said. "It's helping the young women in the program with confidence and pride. We want them to see doctors, lawyers, and entrepreneurs so they know these people come from the same place you come from."
Local Businessman Steps Up
Local barbershop owner Gee Smith is a celebrity poet in the slam.
"My poetry gift hasn't quite hit me yet, I'm as ready as I can be, " Smith said. "It's definitely out of my comfort zone, but it's important to be engaged and put a spotlight on the young women so they can see what's possible."
The Celebrity Poetry Slam is on April 25. at 6 p.m. at Trendsetters near N Industrial Rd. & W. Mill Rd.
The F.I.R.E. Awards take place on September 21.
If you'd like to learn more about 'My Sistas Keepher' 'The F.I.R.E. Awards' and the poetry slam visit the website by clicking here.
For more about Shelly Conley click here
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