CONTACT:Mr. David Fattah, Coordinator, 2009 Million Father March for City Of PhiladelphiaTelephone: (215) 473-5893Facsimile: (215) 879-5340E-Mail: falakafattah@aol.comPHILADELPHIA, PA (USA) – 12 August 2009 -- In 2007 and 2008, the House Of Umoja, Inc.’s leadership and organizing role for the National Million Father March in the City of Philadelphia moved thousands of Fathers to redefine and reshape their parental roles, energized a public school system, and rekindled community spirit. As a result, The Black Star Project (www.blackstarproject.org) which orchestrates the National Million Father March and is located in Chicago, Illinois and headed up by Mr. Philip Jackson has tapped the House Of Umoja, Inc. (www.houseofumoja.org) to lead and organize the 2009 National Million Father March in the City Of Philadelphia. On 8 September 2009, the first day of the 2009-2010 academic year, the City of Philadelphia will be one of an estimated 550 cities in the United States that will be participating in the 2009 National Million Father March.What is the 2009 Million Father March all about?“Fathers throughout the United States are being asked to escort their children to school on the first day of the 2009-2010 academic year and to become and remain proactive in their children’s education. The House Of Umoja, Inc. is asking all Fathers in every neighborhood in the City Of Philadelphia to ‘step up’ and escort their children to school on Tuesday, 8 September 2009, the first day of the 2009-2010 academic year. We are also asking Fathers to have their children commit to nonviolence by signing the Imani Pledge, to encourage their children to excel academically, to ‘want more, be more, and do more,’ and to pick up a copy of their child’s roster along with a copy of the Academic Calendar Of Events from their child’s school. We would like Fathers to meet the principal and teachers of their child’s school. We are calling on Fatherhood Practitioners, social entrepreneurs, male parenting organizations, faith-based organizations, religious institutions, businesses, and concerned citizens to become involved in the 2009 National Million Father March in the City of Philadelphia. We all have key ‘pieces of the puzzle’ to helping Fathers ‘step up’ and moving our children to ‘want more, be more, and do more’. The 2009 Million Father March is about everyone bringing their key pieces of the puzzle to the table to enable Fathers to ‘step up’ and move our children – our future – our bridge to the future to excel academically, commit to nonviolence, and embark on a path that will lead them to becoming productive and successful adults. The 2009 Million Father March is about the children. And when it’s all said done, shouldn’t it really be about the children?” Mr. David Fattah, the Coordinator of the 2009 National Million Father March for the City of Philadelphia and Co-Founder of the House Of Umoja, Inc. remarked.Founded in 1968 by Queen Mother Falaka Fattah and her husband Mr. David Fattah the House Of Umoja, Inc. which is celebrating its 41st anniversary, is an internationally acclaimed organization that has improved the lives of over approximately 3,000 urban adolescent males between the ages of 15 through 18 in the City Of Philadelphia. In 1974, the House Of Umoja, Inc. successfully negotiated a peace pact with gangs throughout the City of Philadelphia which brought to an end bloody and deadly gang warfare which had plagued the nation’s fourth largest media market for years.In July 2008, the House Of Umoja, Inc., launched a bold and innovative multi-tiered initiative – The THINK GREEN PEACE Campaign -- which is transforming vacant lots into gardens yielding vegetables and flowers through the collaborative efforts of, among others, youth and senior members in the community. Senior members of the community are sharing their knowledge of growing food with the youth and the youth are learning the value of the earth, how to grow food, how to become self-sufficient, and how to create a beautiful and nurturing environment.To find out how you can support the 2009 National Million Father March in the City of Philadelphia, contact Mr. David Fattah at (215) 473-5893 or via e-mail at: falakafattah@aol.com. For information about the 2009 National Million Father March which will be occurring in an estimated 550 cities, visit the website of the Black Star Project at www.blackstarproject.org. And for information about the House Of Umoja, Inc., visit its website at www.houseofumoja.org.# # #
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