February 2024 Event Will Honor the Legacy of Influential Green Cove Springs Native 132 Birthday
GREEN COVE SPRINGS, Fla. — The Friends of Augusta Savage Arts & Community Center and City of Green Cove Springs is gearing up for a gala in honor of the 132nd birthday of its namesake, artist Augusta Savage. The gala will be held Feb. 24, 2024, at Sullivan Hall, Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Fleming Island, Florida
“It is time to learn and celebrate her life, accomplishments, and legacy… a time to keep her spirit alive,” Friends President Henrietta Francis said.
Born on Feb. 29, 1892, in West Palm, Augusta Savage was a prominent sculptor of the Harlem Renaissance movement and a dedicated teacher of the arts. She once noted, “I have created nothing really beautiful, really lasting, but if I can inspire one of these youngsters to develop the talent I know they possess, then my monument will be in their work.”
In honor of her legacy, proceeds from ticket sales and sponsorships will support the purchase of instruments for a beginners’ music class, initiating an Artist in Residence Program, and launching a STEM Program for girls.
Sponsorship applications for the gala can be submitted at the center’s website, fasacc.org. Signature Sponsorships are available for $1,500; Table Sponsorships are $600.
The Augusta Savage Museum and Mentoring Center, located at 1107 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., offers classes in fine and performing arts, and provides tutoring in reading and math. The center also organizes a series of events every February to commemorate Black History Month.
“The Center is important because it provides a space to awaken learning and unleash hidden creativity while instilling greater confidence to persevere and pursue their dreams. It is a place of possibilities and greatness,” Francis said.
The center’s mission is to enhance the life quality of youths and families, with a particular focus on underserved residents of Green Cove Springs. One of its long-standing initiatives, the Augusta Savage Community Clothes Closet, located in Charles E. Bennett Elementary School, provides new clothing, footwear, and personal items to students at risk of failing, or those living close to or at poverty levels.
The Friends of Augusta Savage Arts & Community Center is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that provides a range of programs to positively influence the community and support underserved youths and families.
In the words of Augusta Savage, “I was born a leap year baby, and it seems to me that I have been leaping ever since.”
For more information, visit fasacc.org.
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