It's time again for the Stax Music Academy's largest fund-raiser of the year, Staxtacular 09 Presented by SunTrust! The party is Saturday, February 21st, at the Stax Museum and is hosted by the Memphis Grizzlies' Rudy Gay, Mike Conley, and OJ Mayo. There will be great good and cocktails, a silent auction of fantastic items you won't find anywhere else, and tunes spun by DJ Buck Wilders.
Tickets to the event are $150, and while we're all feeling the crunch of the economic downturn, maybe this is a good opportunity to just have a great time and give back to the children of the community who need your help.
If you aren't familiar with what goes on from day to day at the Stax Music Academy, we encourage you to learn more. While we work primarily with at-risk inner-city teenagers, the Stax Music Academy now offers mentoring, music education, and unique performance opportunities to a wide range of students from throughout the community. We are fortunate in that we are here on a daily basis and get to see first-hand how the kids grow and develop, how their self esteem improves dramatically, how they grow more and more anxious to attend college, and how the camaraderie among the diverse group of young people is so much like the family that was Stax Records. It's young people learning to respect themselves and others. It's learning to get along with others. It's learning that hard work and dedication pays off. It is nothing short of life-changing for most of the "kids." All of this presents its own set of challenges to us both in terms of expense and quality of service, but we know from our daily experiences that we are helping create strong character among the youth we serve and we know it has to continue.
It has a lot more to do than just helping a teenager learn to play an instrument or sing. When you see a young person from Memphis fly on a plane for the first time, see the ocean for the first time, play in front of dignitaries from around the world for the first time, or, in some cases, just finally have a safe place to be among responsible adults and good friends for the first time, it is an experience that can't be measured in any really rational way. It is very emotional and very fulfilling.
So please know that by attending this year's Staxtacular fund-raiser, you'll not only have a great time but you will also be helping us with this tremendously necessary work. Stax has a glorious, fascinating past. This is the way we ensure it continues into the future forever.
Click here for more information on Staxtacular 09 Presented by SunTrust and/or to purchase tickets online.
