African heritage music celebration helps with BASSE plans
MILTON, Del. – Community members far and wide came together for the annual African Heritage Music Celebration, and it’s all in the support of the Bryan Allen Stevenson School of Excellence (BASSE).
Community organizers tell us, Sunday was a day of celebration, and another step closer to the ultimate goal of building a school dedicated to academics, and social justice. Bryan Stevenson is a local lawyer and community advocate and his sister tells 47 ABC, Sunday was all about getting closer to making his dreams a reality. “We just wanted to have diversity and we want to expose to the arts how beautiful it can be and how music can be a healer,” says Christy Taylor, owner of Taylor Music Studios. “We just need money, we’re really grateful that hopefully in two years will be able to realize our vision come to life.”
BASSE has been in the works for over five years, and organizers say they still have a long way to go to acquire the funding and the land to build the school. Part of the fundraising efforts was Sunday’s African Heritage Music Celebration. Speakers at the event like Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester, encouraged attendees to release, teach and reach. Congresswoman Rochester says, those are words she hopes people will use in their quest for social justice and proper education. “You have to teach the truth so you can learn from it and move forward and and inspire, teach the truth.”
Organizers also tell us, fundraisers such as this one and seeing the community support the school’s dream, is inspiring. “I didn’t have those opportunities, I am from Sussex County and there’s things that I wish that I would have seen being a young student and the school is very innovative and open to new ideals I’m super excited for our students,” says Rashell Holland, community outreach coordinator for BASSE. Taylor adds, “We just want to really encourage young people to live their journey to walk into greatness much like a lot of the inspirational words of Bryan, that we can realize that here in Sussex County again with another group of young people.”
Organizers also say, they have numerous other fundraising events in the works. Their school’s board is creating a curriculum, and they tell us they recently hired a head of the school.
The school is predicted to open in the fall of 2023.
