Philanthrofest invites Miamians to get engaged with their community
From The Miami Herald
As their hometown has added artistic heft and urban sophistication to its sun-and-fun profile, two Miamians see a major piece missing on the path to metropolitan maturity: a sense of community engagement grounded in a belief that everyone can play a part in building the city.
And so attorney Estrellita Sibila, who created the Miami Crawls fundraising initiative, joined with James Echols, who started two volunteer groups, to launch Philanthrofest. The event, which takes place for the first time Saturday at Midtown Miami’s Greenspace, aims to lure Miamians with free music and family fun in hopes of connecting them with the 90 nonprofit groups that will be represented.
“We want people to come out and learn about the civic and cultural organizations that make South Florida a better place to live,” says Echols, an event producer and co-founder of Life is Art and Soul of Miami. “We want to move the conversation and thought in Miami to make it a more civic-minded place.”
The nonprofits cover a wide spectrum, from the arts to foster care to environmental awareness to housing the homeless. There will also be music and dance performances, an art show, Museum of Science children’s activities, vendors and a fashion show.
About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
Knight Foundation supports transformational ideas that promote quality journalism, advance media innovation, engage communities and foster the arts. We believe that democracy thrives when people and communities are informed and engaged. For more, visit www.knightfoundation.org.