Black Ball

A week ago today I was able to attend a celebrity benefit concert titled "The Black Ball" held in Hammerstein ballroom in the city. You would think the entertainment and the purpose of going would lie with the big names in attendance such as Jay-Z and Jessica Alba with performers including Alicia Keys, Gwen Stefani, Bono, and Cheryl Crow. However, it was the precious little five year old singer with the other African kids that really stole the show. They truly brought the message home, the message that the foundation "Keep a Child Alive" sends to every one of its supporters.
Keep a Child Alive is a program that invests in the spreading of education on AIDS and the dispersing of AIDS medication to the poorest and most highly effected areas of India and Africa. These singers had family members and friends die from AIDS much sooner than they had to, and now they're living their life under the authority of older siblings or remaining parents. "KEEP A CHILD ALIVE is an urgent response to the AIDS pandemic ravaging Africa. With more than 25 million already dead, the disease continues, wiping out whole societies, threatening economic infrastructure and creating tragic devastation in the family structure. Our work makes it possible for children and families to obtain life-saving AIDS drugs and support for survival, where without it, they would die. Keep a Child Alive gives 100%* of donations to our cause." Cited from the Keep A Child Alive website, keepachildalive.org. They also state on the website that a dollar a day is enough to buy the amount of drugs needed to save a life. http://keepachildalive.org/kcaAtWork/index.php?p=BlackBall2007 Click there to find a better description of the Black Ball.
How did I find myself at such a life changing event? Through our campus ONE chapter. I saw it advertised in the chronicle and signed up one the one.org/campus website. Hofstra happens to be first in the ranking of points. We won the 140 tickets to the Ball by being the college with the highest amount of registrations in a week. This was part of a weekly challenge, which, by the title, changes weekly. This past week it was who has the best ONE picture, which we won again with a picture of a dog in a ONE t-shirt. By winning these challenges we also win points. Currently, we are number ONE in the standings (no play on words intended), and we would like to keep it that way. Simply by writing this in a blog, I am winning Hofstra 75 points!
The best part about it all? No need to donate money. Simply by spreading awareness of their causes and the foundation, we get points and prizes like the tickets to the Black Ball, which you could take advantage of simply by registering! The point is to get the word out to people who do have the money, even if it's a relative or someone randomly on campus the day we're holding a ONE event.
I tried posting a couple videos helping explain the experience. One was of the African kids singing, and the other was of Alicia visiting a town in Africa. But the internet connection isn't fast enough, so that will have to wait and maybe I can find an easier way. However here are some to hold you over, http://keepachildalive.org/media/index.php?p=AKBAC, this one is of Alicia explaining her buiding of a clinic.
Needless to say, Alicia Keys and Bono are my new celebrity heros, not to mention they produce good music too. They really put the faith back in me that there are celebrities out there that spend money on more than just buying huge mansions and spending their time solely at parties. If I had one goal in life, it would be to become rich just so I could donate my money. Maybe a little paying off of school would be in order first, but if I coud build a clinic like she did, I would be in heaven. This event was very touching and I am truly glad I spent my night before two C&E midterms there, it was sincerely worth it. Please take a second just to look at what the foundations are doing for the world, and take two to sign up. If you see the ONE campaign anywhere, take a second look before simply walking by, and please contribute. Thanks! Feel free to ask me any questions about my experience, I didn't want to go into too much detail to bore you about the night, I am sure I've made you jealous enough, haha just kidding.