By Aaron Allen, The Seattle Medium
Ascend Hospitality Group (AHG), a Black-led collaboration of restaurants in Washington, Oregon, Utah, and Arizona, has teamed up with Amazon and music superstar Ciara, the wife of football star Russell Wilson, in support of more than 500 local students in need across the Puget Sound region.
To celebrate the start of a new school year, students and their families from seven different local non-profits enjoyed an afternoon of events and fun at the “AHG Has Your Back” Second Annual Block Party at Amazon Fresh in Bellevue, WA, where they got to meet Ciara, personalize and take home a fully-stocked backpack from Ciara’s Dare to Roam gear line, dance, and play games.
According to Elaina Morris, President and CEO of AHG, children need to be made aware that community leaders, businesses and supporters are there to support and aid to ensure the students begin this new year on the right foot and prepared for success.
“We created AHG Has Your Back to make sure children in need know we all have their backs. With the program, we set out to bring together local community partners and philanthropic-focused, high-profile community supporters to ensure these students have the necessary supplies to get back to school with confidence,” said Morris.
“Through our unique collaboration with steadfast community partner Amazon, we partnered with Ciara and the Why Not You Foundation to donate 500 of her one-of-a-kind Dare to Roam backpacks. I’m so grateful to our generous community, business partners, and my own team here at AHG whom all use their time, talents, business, and personal influence to come together annually and support our collective dream of ensuring that education becomes the great equalizer amongst our kids.”
The non-profit organizations in attendance included:
• 4 Tomorrow, a Latino and Youth focused organization based in Bellevue that serves East King County.
• The Boys & Girls Club King County and Bellevue.
• The Friends of the Children, a chapter of a nationwide organization dedicated to breaking the cycle of generational poverty through salaried, professional mentoring.
• Rainier Athletes, an organization that uses sports and mentorship to direct students towards a path to achievement and to close a growing opportunity gap within Bellevue’s community.
• El Centro de la Raza
• Why Not You Academy, Ciara and Russell Wilson’s non-profit organization dedicated to fighting poverty through education and empowerment.
Jesse Franklin, executive director and founder of Rainier Athletes, says this event is the perfect way for kids to start off a new school year.
“This event sets the stage for the entire school year,” said Franklin. “The custom designed backpacks not only provide students with an essential resource for going back to school, but also highlights their uniqueness. Students and families walk away from this event with a healthy dose of authentic community connections, bellies full of BBQ and snacks, and sense of readiness to start the year off right!”
City of Bellevue Deputy Mayor Jared Nieuwenhuis and State Representative Tana Senn also attended the event, along with Amazon’s Pearl Leung, Head of Bellevue Community Engagement. Both Deputy Mayor Nieuwenhuis and State Representative Tana Senn reflected on the values of AHG Has Your Back Block Party and how business, the community and other foundations share in well being of our community’s youth and on how exciting and stressful bringing in a new school year can be.
“Bellevue values education as key to supporting and embracing our future, and we are fortunate to have businesses and foundations that share our commitment to ensuring kids in our area have the tools they need to be successful as tomorrow’s leaders, innovators, and thinkers,” said Nieuwenhuis. “It is incredible to see the excitement of these kids as they get backpacks and supplies that will make them ready to go into their learning environment this year.”
“As a mom, I know the back-to-school time is exciting…and stressful,” said State Representative Tana Senn. “I love seeing the community coming together to add to that excitement…and provide backpacks and school supplies to help reduce some financial stress for kids and families. “
