Children of various ages from Studio106 danced to hip-hop music under the direction of choreographer Laquette Milner. The dancing was one of several events at Fun Day, a recent event sponsored by Mothers Against Senseless Killings held at Martin Luther King Jr. Park.
Members of the community gathered at the park to enjoy face painting, a bounce house along with dancing and singing from various individuals. The purpose of the day was to bring the community together and inspire youth, according to Shirley Harris, MASK vice president.
“We have several goals, the first is for the youth,” said Harris. “They hear about the bad things all the time. I want them to see the community coming together doing something positive.”
MASK began in January 2003, after a nephew of Mickey Sturdivant, MASK president and founder, was killed. That instance drove her to do something about neighborhood killings.
“We are a support group to bring healing to people,” said Sturdivant. “You are not supposed to bury your child.”
MASK is a volunteer group in the community. All of their services to families and youth are free. MASK organized Fun Day after the July 8 Harper family tragedy. The park had various booths, all community volunteered.
“I think this is good for the community, the kids especially. Maybe it will inspire the kids to come and participate in this sort of thing and get them off the streets,” said attendee Mckinley Norwood.
Milner teaches ages 3 to adult at Studio 106. It opened two and a half years ago, and was the first to bring hip-hop to the streets Milner said.
“This gives everyone a chance to do something for their kids,” said Milner. “It shows the kids they can do something with their life. No matter what music, it’s something people will enjoy.”
Teen Challenge, a faith-based program focused on helping teens with problems, also took part in the festivities. They created a program called Kids Club that meets at the park every Saturday to teach children about Christian values.
“Seeing people changing is great,” said Derek Roth of Teen Challenge. “We try to change kids’ lives, we do all we can.”
Earlier this year, MASK organized a Mother’s Day luncheon. The group hopes to make both the luncheon and the Fun Day annual events. For Thanksgiving, the members plan to hand out food to the homeless and a Christmas giveaway.
“We need to get behind our young people in the community,” said Sturdivant. “Nothing is going to change, we have to get in there and have some intervention and prevention.”