NANAY
Receives Magic Johnson Community Empowerment
Center Grant
Miami, Florida – April 12, 2006
NANAY, Inc., a 501(c)(3) community-based organization
that has been providing supportive services to elders and youth for 11
years, has been selected as a recipient of Magic Johnson Community
Empowerment Center Grant, awarded by the Magic Johnson Foundation.
Twenty-four
top-of-the-line 80-gigabyte desktop computers, 25 flat panel monitors
and keyboards, one Savin 9920 network printer, one color HP color laser
jet model 5500 and one Lexmark Optra S-2455 laser printer were delivered
to the NANAY Community Center in North Miami where the new Magic Johnson
Community Empowerment Center will be located. NANAY is expected to
begin providing state-of -the-art virtual technology for all youth and
adult program participants in May.
The initiative
will offer a wide variety of opportunities and services including
financial and homeownership counseling, adult education, basic skills
training, English as a second language education, entrepreneurial
programs, literacy training, web-based interactive learning and
leadership development. In addition, NANAY will focus on helping high
school students to prepare for future employment opportunities through
resume preparation, technology training, internships, job-shadowing,
career counseling, interview coaching and job-readiness workshops.
“This
is a program that has been created to provide not only technology access
to inner-city communities but also education regarding Information
Technology to the underserved urban population, in conjunction with
program partners like NANAY”, said Jeanella Blair, program director with
the Magic Johnson Foundation Technology Initiative.
Since the program was launched in 2004, 20 Magic Johnson
Empowerment Centers have opened across the U.S., including Atlanta,
Bladensburg, Md., Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Houston, Lansing,
Mich., Los Angeles, Jacksonville, New York City, Oakland, Calif.,
Philadelphia, Seattle and Washington, D.C.
"We are pleased about this new development, and are
confident that NANAY will continue the excellent services that it is
already providing to the community,” said Peter Roulhac who had served
as Vice President and Director of Community Development at Wachovia
National Bank, N.A. in Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties, and was primarily
responsible for introducing NANAY to Magic Johnson Foundation. He has
been recently appointed as first Managing Director of The Orange Bowl
Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Orange Bowl Committee.
"Thanks to the Magic Johnson and Wachovia partnership,
NANAY is now able to bridge the digital divide,” said Bennie Trinidad,
NANAY Executive Vice-President. "NANAY is now in an even better position
to help residents prepare for homeownership and future employment
opportunities, particularly in the City of North Miami.”
NANAY is currently working partnership with Wachovia
Bank to provide financial literacy programs to the community, and will
be expanding its program to also include computer training and
homeownership counseling.
“NANAY is currently designing a five-year sustainability
plan that include operational, programming and evaluation measures to
help ensure the centers' success”, said Evelyn Bruce, Executive Director
of NANAY Community Center.
“NANAY will continue to provide quality services and
address problems in our community, through partnership with government,
business, civic associations, the medical community, law enforcement,
schools, faith-based groups, and local residents,” said Dr. Joy Bruce,
NANAY President. “Our goal is to serve as a catalyst for new initiatives
that will strengthen families and improve the well-being of youth elders
in our community.”
About
NANAY
NANAY, Inc. (National Alliance to Nurture the Aged and
the Youth), is a 501(c)(3) community based organization that was
established in 1994 to provide supportive services to elders and youth.
The NANAY Community Center in North Miami has been providing free
counseling, transport, computer classes, caregiver support, health
support, recreational activities and intergenerational programs since
2000. The NANAY Health Center officially opened in 2004 to provide
preventive and primary health care to the medically underserved and
uninsured. NANAY Community Development Corporation (NANAY-CDC) was also
established in 2004, to undertake NANAY’s third mission of providing
supportive housing, financial literacy programs and homeownership
counseling to low income families. NANAY is currently supported by
grants from the Florida Department of Elder Affairs, Alliance for Aging
for Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties, Florida State Department of Health,
Alliance for Human Services, Miami-Dade County Office of Community and
Economic Development (OCED), and North Miami CDBG.
About
the Magic Johnson Foundation
The Magic Johnson
Foundation is a non-profit organization that focuses on improving and
addressing the health, educational and social needs of those residing in
the inner city. In addition, the Foundation has made a strong commitment
to bridge the digital divide by donating technology grants to
organizations providing service to economically and socially
disadvantaged youth and families. Founded in 1991 by basketball legend
and NBA Hall of Famer, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, the Foundation has raised
more than $25 million for charity.
About
Wachovia
Wachovia Corporation, one of the largest banking chains
in the United States, is a diversified financial services company that
provides a broad range of banking, asset management, wealth management,
and corporate and investment banking products and services. It is one of
the largest providers of financial services in the United States,
operating as Wachovia Bank in 15 states from Connecticut to Florida and
west to Texas. Wachovia provides the
FDIC Money Smart curriculum that helps adults enhance their
money management skills, understand basic financial services and build
financial confidence. Wachovia is also a major contributor to the
development and outreach strategy of BorrowSmart, a public education
foundation that provides information to homeowners on home equity
borrowing, smart money management, and spotting and avoiding abusive
lending practices.
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