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Judge Penny Brown Reynolds to Keynote The Motherless Daughters Foundation’s Fifth-Annual Gala on SATURDAY!

Hello World,

The Motherless Daughters Foundation will host its Fifth-Annual Gala — what may be the organization’s largest and most exciting fundraising gala to date — September 16, 2017. The semi-formal affair will take place from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Georgia International Convention Center at 2000 Convention Center Concourse in College Park, Georgia. Doors open at 5 p.m.  Judge Penny Brown Reynolds, an Emmy Award-nominated executive producer, speaker and television personality AND ordained minister, will deliver the keynote address.

MDF will recognize Grammy-Award winning singer/songwriter Jill Scott, the founder of Blues Babe Foundation, a North Philadelphia-based nonprofit focused on cultivating academic and artistic success in youth coming from the most underserved communities of North Philadelphia and Camden.

 The complete list of honorees includes:

Jill Scott, singer/songwriter and founder of Blues Babe Foundation, a North Philadelphia-based nonprofit that provides a free summer camp for youth, among other services

Taffi Dollar, co-pastor, World Changers Church International; author and motivational speaker

Hank Stewart, Emmy Award-winning poet and founder, Hank Stewart Foundation

Gary Davis, founder and executive director, Next Level Boys Academy

Emcees for the evening will be WAGA-TV Weekend Anchor Deidra Dukes and Shaunya Chavis-Rucker, broadcast personality, and division chief for the Fulton County Office of Broadcast, Cable and Film.

“We are both humbled and excited to recognize honorees who are exemplars in supporting and empowering our youth — from one spectrum of the globe to another,” says Rassalyn Willis, founder and executive director, the Motherless Daughters Foundation. “There’s no question empowering today’s youth through opportunities, access, mentoring, skills development, education and more helps to ensure their future success.”

The event that serves as the nonprofit’s major fundraiser will kick off with a walk down the red carpet and include a seated dinner, entertainment, and silent auction of exciting items such as travel, cultural and dining experiences, autographed memorabilia and unique treasures.

The Motherless Daughters Foundation provides a mentoring program for girls ages nine to 15 living without support of a positive mother figure in their lives. Through Motherless Daughters, girls are paired with relatable mothers; they also have an opportunity to participate in summer camps plus year-round educational and enrichment experiences. Girls receive scholarships and donations of clothing and school supplies and more.

Atlanta First Lady and affordable housing developer Sarah-Elizabeth Reed serves as brand ambassador for Motherless Daughters, and Xernona Clayton, CEO of the Trumpet Awards Foundation, Inc., is honorary mother for Motherless Daughters, which was founded by president/executive director Rassalyn Willis. A community activist, Willis is owner of Xclusive Hair Studio and Spa in historic College Park, Georgia.

Individual gala tickets are $75. Money raised will go toward providing scholarships, career development programs, school supplies and clothing, computer purchases, housing for homeless individuals participating in the programs and transportation to personal enrichment events. For more information, go to www.motherlessdaughtersfoundation.org or call (404) 669-9800.

Sponsors include Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Southwest Airlines, Georgia Power and Upscale magazine.

About the Motherless Daughters Foundation

The Motherless Daughters Foundation is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization committed to embracing and encouraging the growth and development of young girls entering their adolescent years without the support of their natural birth mother due to unforeseen circumstances. Through enrichment programs focusing on self-awareness, social development, and community involvement, our hope is to provide an environment that will build character, promote confidence, release charm, and cultivate the beauty that each “Motherless Daughter” beholds.

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RCA Inspiration and Lionsgate to Release ‘Greenleaf Soundtrack: Volume 2’ FRIDAY!

Hello World,

Today, September 7, is my birthday so I took the night off from recapping OWN’s Greenleaf, but I will be back in formation next week (and last night’s episode was Campbell Soup Good…mm, mm, GOOD too)! But I still have some Greenleaf news!

RCA Inspiration and Lionsgate, a global content leader, announced Greenleaf Soundtrack: Volume 2 will be released on Friday, September 8, 2017 with pre-order sales available right now!

The soundtrack features music from Season 2 of the acclaimed OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network original series, Greenleaf, which stars Keith David, Lynn Whitfield and Merle Dandridge.

Greenleaf Soundtrack: Volume 2 features both emerging and iconic artists performing original songs such as “Won’t He Do It” (Koryn Hawthorne), “Shine The Light” (cast member Deborah Joy Winans) and “Rise Up” (Roshon Fegan) and previously released music including, “1, 2, 3 Victory” (Kirk Franklin), “Heaven” (Mary Mary) and “Better Days” (Le’Andria Johnson). The soundtrack also includes a remix to “The Root,” the show’s title theme, performed by the legendary Mavis Staples.

The full list of tracks is as follows:

  1. Kayce Grogan-Wallace – “The Judgement”
  2. Jekalyn Carr – “Hold Me Close” (She was featured on last night’s episode. Remember that scene with Charity and Jabari? That was a kiss last night, right?)
  3. Kirk Franklin – “123 Victory”
  4. Roshon Fegan – “Well Done”
  5. Deborah Joy Winans and Sean Dominic – “Been Saved”
  6. Mary Mary – “Heaven”
  7. Deborah Joy Winans – “Shine The Light”
  8. Roshon Fegan – “Rise Up”
  9. Koryn Hawthorne (feat. Roshon Fegan) – “Won’t He Do It” (Did y’all see that Gospel Chris Brown singing that last night? smh…)
  10. Joshua Nelson and Asia’h Epperson – “How I Got Over”
  11. Le’Andria Johnson – “Better Days”
  12. Mavis Staples – “The Root – Main Title (Remix)”

Greenleaf Soundtrack: Volume 2 is currently available for pre-order via all major digital retailers:

smarturl.it/GreenleafS2-Pre

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TAKE THE LID OFF: Trust God, Release the Pressure, and Find the Life He Wants for You – NEW BOOK ALERT!!!

Hello World,

When the pressure of life seems to boil over – and it does for everyone – Pastor and GRAMMY-winning musician Smokie Norful has one piece of advice: take the lid off. This concept was inspired by watching his grandmother make her signature dish of sweet rice. When the heat got too high, the pot began hissing and boiling over, like it was about to explode and create panic. His grandmother would remind him the only way to avoid an eruption is to remove the lid. Like that pot of rice, the only way to avoid an emotional overload is to take our own lids off — that is, to stop being trapped inside ourselves and instead look to God and his grace to show us the strategy that makes us all he intends us to be, and serve him in the way he has called us to.

This is the premise behind Norful’s new book Take the Lid Off: Trust God, Release the Pressure, and Find the Life He Wants for You (Thomas Nelson), which is available as of TODAY. In Take the Lid Off, Norful — who is the founder and pastor of Victory Cathedral Worship Center, a congregation of 5,000 members with three campuses in the Chicagoland area — outlines four steps to take to relieving the pressure and drawing closer to God in the process:

1. Look Inward, experiencing the cleansing of forgiveness and the power of God.

2. Look Outward, seeking for others to experience the joy of living for God and have the best God has to offer.

3. Look Upward and marvel at God’s love and strength to accomplish his purposes.

4. Move Onward, devising a strategy to accomplish all God has put in our hearts to do.

Norful — through detailed explanations and relatable examples — guides readers in understanding that, when you focus on these four steps, the pressure of life goes down, you gain peace and perception, and things work out much better in the end. By working to “take the lid off,” readers can become the people they were created to be.

Interesting Biographical Highlights From Take the Lid Off :

*Norful is a PK (preacher’s kid).

*Prior to his music career, he worked as junior high school teacher in Pine Bluff, Arkansas where his father was the president of the local school board.

*Although Norful was a successful gospel artist, he was miserable at one point and had even stopped going to church.

*Fellow gospel artist Donnie McClurkin was instrumental in convincing Norful to become a pastor.

*Some people who supported Norful in his music career weren’t as supportive when he became a pastor.

*Norful’s GRAMMY Awards are displayed behind his sons’ trophies for karate, T-ball and soccer.

*When Norful became a pastor, he gave up 80 percent of his income for several years.

Check out the Take the Lid Off trailer below:

To underscore the message of Take the Lid Off Norful is partnering with his long-time label home, Motown Gospel, to release a digital-only album titled Nothing Is Impossible. The 12-track project, available Sept. 9, 2017, features some of Norful’s most beloved songs of encouragement and inspiration, including “Still Say Thank You,” “No One Else” and “Run Til I Finish.”

About the Author:

SMOKIE NORFUL is founder and senior pastor of Victory Cathedral Worship Center, a congregation on three campuses in Bolingbrook and Chicago, Illinois. A multiple Grammy-winning artist who has sold more than three million albums worldwide, he has also received Stellar awards; Dove awards; an NAACP Image Award nomination; a Soul Train Award nomination; two nominations for the BET Award for gospel music; two RIAA certified Gold-selling compact discs; and countless other accolades. A graduate of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and Trinity International University in Deerfield, Illinois, Norful also served on the board of regents for Trinity International University. He lives with his wife and family in the Chicago area. 

Learn more about Norful at SmokieNorful.com, and connect with him

on Facebook and Twitter.

Take the Lid Off is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, ChristianBook.com, 

and other major bookstores nationwide and online.

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