RALEIGH, N.C., Aug. 7, 2015 – Passage Home and the J.D. Lewis Multi-Purpose Center drew an enthusiastic crowd of more than 1,300 for the “Building a Stronger Raleigh Together” Family Festival and All-Star Exhibition game at Broughton High School on Saturday, Aug. 1. The events were part of a campaign by the nonprofits to raise $250,000 in 2015 to combat issues facing local families in need, including access to stable housing, healthy food, education, jobs and more.

Key community supporters, including Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina and Cargill were in attendance on Saturday, as well as Passage Home CEO, Jeanne Tedrow and Raleigh City Councilman Bonner Gaylord. Those in attendance enjoyed food trucks, inflatables, a climbing wall, a chance to play soccer with Wells Thompson of the Carolina RailHawks, and music by Chris Hendricks.

Following the Family Festival, Phoenix Suns small forward T.J. Warren and San Antonio Spurs forward David West played alongside N.C. State assist leader and legend Chris Corchiani in an exhibition game with numerous other Raleigh basketball standouts such as PJ Tucker, James Mays, and Brock Young. There were some amazing dunks from overseas players, Dre Anderson and Milton Chavis, to get the crowd excited and showcase some of the local talent that Raleigh produces.

The fun isn’t over yet. “Building a Stronger Raleigh Together” will be hosting a third and final campaign event of their inaugural year – a VIP Affair – on Thursday, September 3rd at Wine and Design from 7-10 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at www.strongerraleigh.com or at the door on September 3rd.

For more information, visit http://strongerraleigh.com.

QUOTES:

“We are so excited about the strong turnout of the event this past weekend,” said Jeanne Tedrow, CEO of Passage Home. “I am so proud of the Raleigh community for coming together to help our neighbors in need! We are thankful to all our supporters and participants, and hope to build on this momentum moving forward.”

DETAILS:

- Passage Home’s mission is to break the cycle of poverty for the communities they serve in Wake County. The organization does this by connecting families and neighborhoods to resources and opportunities. They prepare people to receive their blessings. By staying true to key values and focus strategies, Passage Home continues to lead the charge on eliminating poverty in Wake County.

- The mission of the J.D. Lewis Multi-Purpose Center is to service and impact youth through enhanced educational opportunities designed to create a positive leisure, cultural and educational experience that enhances the quality of life.

NEW MEDIA CONTENT:

www.strongerraleigh.com

Building a Stronger Raleigh Together Facebook page:

www.facebook.com/strongerraleigh

Building a Stronger Raleigh Together Twitter feed:

www.twitter.com/strongerraleigh

Passage Home Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/passagehome

Passage Home Twitter feed:

https://twitter.com/PassageHome

J.D. Lewis Multi-Purpose Center Facebook page:

http://on.fb.me/1NLeV8d

J.D. Lewis Multi-Purpose Center Twitter feed:

https://twitter.com/JDLewisCenter

ABOUT PASSAGE HOME:

Passage Home is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit community action agency headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1991, the organization fights poverty and homelessness in Wake County by developing people and places, and strengthening communities. Through its network of local corporations, congregations and community organizations, Passage Home focuses on two core services: family self-sufficiency (people) and economic development (places). The nonprofit also strives to improve the community it serves through giving program participants a hand up, not a handout. Passage Home relies on 29 full-time employees, 10 part-time employees and more than 500 volunteers to make its vision a success. For more information, visit http://passagehome.org.

ABOUT THE J.D. LEWIS MULTI-PURPOSE CENTER:

The J.D. Lewis Multi-Purpose Center was established in 2004 in order to bring the Raleigh community together with programs, activities and life experiences. The programs at the center are designed in order to create a positive legal, cultural and educational experience that enhances the quality of life for those in the area. For more information, visit http://jd-lewis-center.com/.

ABOUT “BUILDING A STRONGER RALEIGH TOGETHER”

Passage Home, the J.D. Lewis Multi-Purpose Center and its nonprofit, The B.A.G.S. Foundation are working together along with VIP Community Ambassadors to build a stronger Raleigh. It is a movement spanning five months and three events with a focus on breaking the cycle of poverty in Southeast Raleigh and a fundraising goal of $250,000. The movement is in its inaugural year with the goal of uniting more and more nonprofits together each year as they work to build a stronger Raleigh together. These funds will allow Passage Home, the JD Lewis Center and its nonprofit, the B.A.G.S Foundation to increase their combined impact by 775 homeless and low-income families and individuals. Together they can impact 11,899 people.

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