V-103’s Greg Street and We Need 2 Read honored at Rainbow PUSH Coalition Keep Hope Alive Gala during the Creating Opportunity Conference
Atlanta, GA – Greg Street, long-time CBS Big Station D.J., whose trademark, “Six o’clock, Six o’clock, it’s time for Street to Rock” is an urban legend in Atlanta. Street is being honored as entrepreneur of the year at the Keep Hope Alive Gala taking place during the 13th Annual Creating Opportunity Conference on Friday, October 12 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Atlanta.
Street will be honored for his non-profit corporation’s support of the written word. The Gala also celebrates Rev. Jessee Jackson Sr’s birthday and features a performance by new sensation the Wardlaw Brothers. Other award recipients include poet, Hank Stewart; NFL Player Association CEO, DeMaurice Smith; and Columbia High basketball team.
Hosted by the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, Citizenship Education Fund, Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. and Rainbow PUSH national VP, Janice L. Mathis, Esq., the 13th Annual Creating Opportunity Conference is rich in opportunities for youth. Activities on Saturday, October 13th include a College Fair, Youth Summit, Sports Luncheon and Youth Talent Showcase.
With the theme “Building Bridges to Sustain Growth and Inclusion,” the conference will take place October 12-13, 2012 at the Hyatt Regency on Peachtree.
As one of the most recognizable voices in radio, Street is a true voice of the people. He has rocked the airwaves in Atlanta (CBS Radio V-103/WVEE) over a 20 year span, and positioned himself as the music gateway to the South. This legendary DJ was an influential component in the careers Outkast, Mary J. Blige, Puffy and T.I., just to name a few.
Street is a longtime proponent of literacy and the founder of the Greg Street Scholarship Fund Program, We Need 2 Read. We Need 2 Read requires high school seniors to create a team of five students. Each team is challenged to read and write reports about as many books as possible. The team that reports on the most books and its school are eligible for $10,000 in scholarships. The contest is open to high schools throughout metro Atlanta. We Need 2 Read is a GA non-profit corporation whose mission is to prepare and motivate students by offering enriching activities that spark the students’ interest in reading and other literacy programs.
Street also recently inked a deal with Cash Money Records to produce books under his own label. Street will collaborate on various book related content and plans to author his own books through Cash Money Content.
Street was named Billboard’s Major Market Personality of the Year, NBPC Major Market Personality of the Year in 1997 and 1999, and successfully became the first recipient of the Think B.I.G. Heart Award from the Christopher “Notorious B.I.G. Wallace Memorial Foundation.
According to Janice L. Mathis, the awards are based on outstanding achievement in a profession or industry. “We want to inspire our audience and encourage them to fight the good fight. Rainbow Sports produces the sports luncheon and we are proud of former Dallas Cowboy Dextor Clinkscale’s work to connect youth to real live opportunities beyond the playing field and the stage.”
A stellar list of regional business leaders are scheduled to appear during Creating Opportunity Conference including former Choicepoint CEO Doug Curling, Regions Bank SVP Lajuana Bradford, builder Dave Moody, Wells Fargo VP G.G. Dixon and Goodwill Industries of North Georgia CEO Ray Bishop.
From the faith arenas, an all-star roster is expected including CME Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Kenneth Carter, Dr. Cleopatrick Lacy, and the Rev. Juandolyn Stokes, along with Dr. Cameron Alexander, Pastor Jasper Williams and Rev. Lorraine Jacq White.
“The conference agenda is packed with features that will inform and inspire you,” Rev. Jackson said, “including sessions on doing business with local governments and corporations, retirement planning, economic conditions and a leadership summit to plan strategy for 2013 and beyond.
According to Axel Adams, national director of One Thousand Churches Connected, an initiative of CEF, “we are especially pleased to present a series of financial literacy workshops in partnership with Wells Fargo. American consumers should never again be at the mercy of others to understand how to manage their financial lives.”
Conference sponsors include The Coca-Cola Company, Nationwide, Georgia Power, Regions Bank, Wells Fargo, The Home Depot, Kroger and Volkswagen.
Proceeds from the conference benefit the work of RPC and CEF to preserve home ownership, fight foreclosure, promote civic responsibility, education, civil rights, workers’ rights and voting rights in the Southeast and across the nation.
The Rainbow PUSH Coalition is a progressive organization protecting, defending and expanding civil rights to improve economic and educational opportunity. The organization is headquartered at 930 E. 50th St. in Chicago. To learn more about the RainbowPUSH Coalition and CEF, please visit www.rainbowpush.org, or telephone (773) 373-3366. For more information about the Peachtree Street Project and the Creating Opportunity Conference, please call (404) 525-5663 or visit rainbowpushatlanta.org.
