September 19, 2019; By Jasmine E. Crenshaw

On Wednesday, September 4th, our third annual Fellows Fest was held at Carrigan’s Public House here in Birmingham. Fellows Fest is where our Fellows present their projects to the public and other invited guests in exchange for donations for project expenses. Throughout the night, guests used $5 tokens to bid on their favorite projects. 

Our 2019 Fellow class spoke about their projects to a healthy crowd size of over 30 people.  Larissa Strath, a student at the UAB College of Arts and Sciences, had the most profitable project of the night, raising $215 from tokens and online fundraising. Her project, in partnership with Cooking Well, focuses on the improvement of the nutritional needs of individuals living with chronic illnesses.

Jason Perry and Jessica McKenzie, two more of our Fellows, also had a successful night. Respectively, they raised $170 and $110 through tokens and online donations. Jason aims to build a mentoring program for a special group of young male George W. Carver High School students through a partnership with the City of Birmingham Department of Youth Services. Jessica is teaching healthy habits of nutrition and exercise to young Birmingham-area girls using a research-based curriculum through Girls on the Run Birmingham. 

In all, our 2019 Fellow class raised $690 for their projects, and we are incredibly proud of their accomplishments. You can visit our Facebook page for photos from the night. 

There is still time to donate to all of our Fellows’ projects, including to Larrisa, Jessica, and Jason’s. The more the donations and support are given, the better the projects will be for the communities served!