The Soultown! Volume III: Issue 8 AUGUST 2019 | Page 15

WHAT’S REALLY GOOD?
Courtesy Photo
As the event flows from maintenance to action, Take Back Our Community organizers and family members we take a moment to rejoice and reflect with our children and grandchildren.
talents, featuring live music, dance, spoken word,
arts and crafts, food, and children’s activities. After
the opening ceremony at noon, an exciting roster
of talent provides free entertainment, including
ToonzSquad from Omaha; the Hip Hop Literacy
kids; Waterloo Writing Project; singer and musician
Trevell; and local funk/r & b band, Flava. Various
dance and drill teams will wow the Fest crowd with
a tempting taste of the music, dance moves and
high energy that will be on full display later that
day for the drill team competition. “These teams
will be going head-to-head in the parade, with an
exhibition at the end of the parade where one will be
crowned the winner,” Williams says. Trophies will be
awarded to the top three competitors, with the 1st
place winner also receiving a cash prize. The Fest
also has a broad range of vendors offering original
art, shirts, books, and food, along with activities and
face-painting for children.
Concurrently and just a few blocks away in
Sullivan Park, yet another free family event takes
place: Heal The Family’s 11th Annual Take Back Our
Community event from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Heal the
Family, behavioral health and therapeutic counseling
“I felt it was my duty to try and
give back in whatever
capacity I could to assist
in the promotion of peace and
unification of our city.
During that particular time, our
city was plagued by violence,
drugs and
the loss of young lives.”
--- Michael Robinson, Organizer
service presents Take Back Our Community as an
opportunity to give back. The back-to-school event
provides students with school supplies, raffle prizes
including new bicycles, laptop computers, gift cards,
and free food, while local artists such as Kevin
Burt, Wes B, Brion Martin, Low-Key, Staza Phillips
and many more have highlighted the event. At the
time the event began, Friends of Heal The Family
Executive Director Mike Robinson saw a clear need
for bringing the community together in support of our
youth. “I felt it was my duty to try and give back in
whatever capacity I could to assist in the promotion
of peace and unification of our city,” Robinson states.
“During that particular time, our city was plagued by
violence, drugs and the loss of young lives.”
Capping off the East End Weekend is the
‘Marching Against The Darkness’ Drill Team
Competition at Waterloo East High School from 5
p.m. to 9 p.m. This annual competition is hosted
by Legacy Branding & Events, and dance or drill
teams from Waterloo and across the Midwest will
participate. The Marching Cobras of Kansas City; the
Marching Saints of Omaha, Nebraska; the Unlimited
Next Level Drill Team of St. Paul, Minnesota; and
Waterloo’s own Union Crusaders Drill Team are
but a few of the amazing teams that will perform,
and the event provides an exciting conclusion to a
weekend already filled with a flurry of activities.
Capture your own ‘lightning in a bottle’ by
attending one—or all—of these great summer
events. But whatever else you do, don’t say “there’s
never anything to do here!”
I am Chaveevah Ferguson, I thank everyone
who participated in the East -End Weekend for
having SOUL! ,
Aug. 2019 • The Soultown International Magazine • Celebrating 2 years • Connecting Our Cultures to Our Cyber & Conscious Communities • thesoultown.com
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