UPTOWN
January 2008

Agents Of Change

UPTOWN finds out what happens when 6 multifaceted, powerful, and beautiful black women confab on the subject of giving

JACI REID

Who said Superwoman has to wear a cape and bustier? Certainly not business-suit-wearing heroine Jaci Reid. She and husband Morris make community outreach look like child’s play as they open their pockets—and even their home in the Hamptons—to raise funds for programs like VH1’s Save the Music, The Washington Ballet Gala, and Dance Theatre of Harlem.
–Nicole Duncan Smith

“My husband and I don’t have kids, and I find that a lot of the charities and organizations that I involve myself in involve children. That’s kind of my way of having a family of my own that I am caring for. It’s just what we do. We help each other out. And if you can’t give a dollar, a huge currency is your time.”

JONELLE PROCOPE

What would life be without Amateur Night at the Apollo? Well Jonelle Procope, president of the Apollo Theater Foundation, works night and day to make sure the famed cultural institution will always be around. She also makes sure Harlem residents know how much the Apollo appreciates their support—she helps organize canned food drives, free music concerts, and school tours.
–Mahogany L. Browne

“Helping an institution in the community is a way to indirectly benefit a people. I feel very strongly about the Apollo’s responsiveness to the community of color. It’s important for me to say that my community supports the institute, too, and that underscores the importance of giving back.”

NANCY LANE

Former Chase Manhattan and Johnson & Johnson exec Nancy Lane has a taste for the finer things in life, but she doesn’t just crave them for herself. In her mission to help make the world a more beautiful place, Lane has served on the board of directors for the Studio Museum in Harlem since 1973. She’s also on the board for the International Center of Photography, World Learning, and the NAACP, among others.
–Oji Obiekwe

“One of my early volunteer experiences was at a women’s prison in Bedford, N.Y., because a former secretary of mine had been there as a prisoner. They turned her life around—she went on to get an undergrad degree, a master’s degree, work in the justice system, and marry a great guy. This is almost a fairy tale. I wanted to see how in the world had they done it, and to give back in thanks for what they had done for her.”

SHERRY BRONFMAN

For longtime philanthropist Sherry Bronfman, giving back is a way of life instilled since childhood. The former actress and ex-wife of Warner Music Group Corporation CEO Edgar Bronfman Jr. has dedicated her life to the fine arts—she’s chaired numerous benefits for the Friends of Education at the Museum of Modern Art and volunteers with the Schomburg, The Louis Armstrong Foundation, and The Temple of Understanding, an organization that brings people from different religions together.
–Nelena Jackson

“I think the misconception is that black people do not participate in their own growth in their community. There are many of us who have done an enormous amount in the black community, and there are people who came before us, opening the doors.”

BEVERLY BOND

From radio to reality TV, black girls face a daily barrage of media-perpetuated stereotypes. Tackling these images might seem daunting, but that’s exactly what model-turned-DJ Beverly Bond has done. In 2006 Bond founded Black Girls Rock, a nonprofit providing black teens with positive reflections of womanhood through education, counseling, and mentoring. “My goal is to help young women see themselves as multidimensional,” says Bond. “There’s more to life than dancing in a video.”
–Imani Dawson

“I started my own organization, Black Girls Rock, as a reaction to the one-sided imagery of women of color in media and videos and hip-hop. It’s amazing that so much inappropriate material is reaching our children and no one seems to care about it.”

CRYSTAL MCCRARY ANTHONY

Author, attorney, and BET J producer/personality Crystal McCrary Anthony believes firmly that “It takes a village to raise a child.” That’s why the former wife of NBA star Greg Anthony and mother of two is an active member of JumpStart, a national nonprofit that prepares disadvantaged children to succeed in school. She’s also a member of a theater revitalization initiative called The New 42nd Street and the women’s literary imprint Voice.
–Tomika Anderson

“As much help as we need right here...something within me was saying that I wanted to do something global. A young girl comes on my show and I discovered that this was a Rwandan genocide survivor. She’s trying to build a community center that’s going to give mosquito netting to an entire community, which would stop malaria and save the lives of thousands of people. I know where my next check is going.”

PHOTOGRAPHY BY MICHAEL MURPHREE