Unsung Heroes: A Grand Celebration of Latinx and Black Resilience, Oct. 30

Press release from Date My City:

“Unsung Heroes: A Grand Celebration of Latinx and Black Resilience” will be held on Sunday, October 30 at 3 pm at UNC Asheville’s Lipinsky Auditorium. This celebration is free and open to the public.

We are inviting the entire community to join us in celebrating not only these identified heroes but also to come together, to connect and align our efforts as we move toward a more resilient community. We have so much to be thankful for in our community and we know that there is great potential when we work together, recognizing what each of us has to offer.

Unsung Heroes will highlight points of light in the community through storytelling, music, and dancing. The emcees will be Miss Asheville, Kahlani Jackson, and Alejandro Padrón of Hola Carolina Magazine. Performers include Project Negus, RAICES, GPE Kade and Terry Letman.

“We will celebrate the heroes’ stories of resiliency and how they have committed their life’s work to shouldering movements by lifting up ideals, giving wisdom and guidance to their communities,” says event producer Sheneika Smith. “By uncovering and celebrating the work of individuals and groups who demonstrate resilience, we will provide an opportunity for attendees to connect to this community’s resource grid.”

Attendees will leave Unsung Heroes uplifted and ready to access the extensive network of resources our community has to offer.

The Unsung Heroes that will be celebrated are:

Educational Enrichment – Keyla Estrada
Keyla Estrada immigrated to the United States from Mexico in 2015. A senior at Erwin High School, she is now a leader in the Nuestras Escuelas/Our Schools campaign and an instructor of traditional dance and Spanish language literacy with the RAICES program.

Ally – David Forbes
David Forbes, founder of the Asheville Blade, advocates relentlessly and unapologetically for marginalized communities through the powerful medium of journalism.

Arts & Entertainment – Oskar Santana
Oskar Santana (DJ Malinalli) is a DJ who supports community, grassroots organizations, and social justice movements through his work as an artist and entertainer.

Health & Wellness – Kathey Avery
Kathy Avery is an Registered Nurse for the Asheville Buncombe Institute for Parity Achievement (ABIPA), who works with vulnerable populations providing health services and education.

Environmental Stewardship – Eric Howell
Eric Howell began as a student at Green Opportunities after making the decision to turn his life around. He is now an instructor and math tutor for the program.

Entrepreneurship – Dulce Lomita Mobile Home Cooperative, LLC
Maria del Rosario Segovia Salas, Ricardo Segovia Salas, Patricia Guerra, Bruno Hinojosa, Maria Ruiz, Rosalba Cruz, Abel Gonzalez are member-owners of Dulce Lomita. This LLC is a resident owned and governed mobile home park, and is working on creating a shareable model to prevent displacement of mobile home residents.

Historic Preservation – Priscilla Nydiye
Priscilla Nydiye has performed extensive research on the black community when information and scholarship seemed scarce. She researched, wrote, protested and continues to advocate for difficult issues using history as her framework.

Spirituality – Rosalia del Carmen Islas
Rosalia (Rosy) del Carmen Islas is a healer and spiritual guide who tirelessly holds space for the Latinx community’s continued healing and spiritual wellness.

Community Legacy – John R. Hayes
John Hayes has served the Asheville community since 1977 through the Hillcrest Enrichment Program, Hillcrest High-steppers Majorette and Drum Corp, the NAACP, the Empowerment Resource Center, and WRES 100.7 FM.

Community Legacy – Lucia Hinojosa Hernandez
Lucia Hernandez has been an instructor for RAICES since the beginning of the program. She holds an important place in the Latinx community as a mother and grandmother figure, because many families have been separated from their elders due to migration.

Sponsored by Buncombe County, UNC Asheville and Date My City, Unsung Heroes will be the culminating event of UNC Asheville’s African Americans in WNC Conference. More information is available at datemycity.net.