ORLANDO – The holiday mode is in high-gear and you don’t want to miss the Youth Business Marketplace AWARDS DAY on Saturday, December 16th, from 1:30 PM until 4:00 PM. This FREE community event will be held at James R Smith Neighborhood Center, located at 1723 Bruton Blvd, Orlando 32805. Come, dress casual/sport attire, and support these young entrepreneurs as they showcase their unique products that are great gift ideas. Awards will be presented to students who consistently participated in five monthly workshops and learned how to establish and market a business. Enjoy music, refreshments, and live performances by So You Want Your Name In Lights (SYWYNIL) teen talent showcase finalists. Special guest performer, Patricia, “The Ghetto Queen” will engage you to join her in authentic Afro dance. An original member of Africa’s most recognized youth dance group, The Inspire Ghetto Kids of Kampala, Uganda, she is currently a teacher and youth mentor with the Credible Messengers of Florida. This youth business development activity is an expansion of So You Want Your Name In Lights (SYWYNIL) Youth Mentoring Programs that began in 2019. SYWYNIL, a 501c3 organization, is an arts-focused, crime-prevention initiative designed to empower at-risk, under-served youth with making right choices while developing character, confidence, leadership, discipline, self-esteem, and positive life-skills. Workshops include financial literacy/budgeting, healthy wellness, entrepreneurship, podcasting, pottery, and life-social skills/etiquette training activities that are non-duplicated in public schools settings. Music-related activities allow students to gain hands-on experience with basic piano lessons, drums, songwriting composition/copyrights, music recording production, musical theatre exercises, field trips, and talent showcase performance opportunities. Our showcase and entrepreneur winners receive various incentives that include, but are not limited to, prizes and scholastic awards given to support their various career and business interests that may or may not be music/arts-affiliated. This project is sponsored, in part, by Orange County Government, City of Orlando Mayor’s Matching Grant, Orange County Sheriff Office, and United Arts of Central Florida. For more information and donations, visit www.nameinlights.org.
