Happy Reggae Month
Happy Black Love Month
Happy Heart Health Month
Happy Black History Month

There is so much to celebrate in these 28 days so we have to try to make each day count. I love celebrating Black Love so that is where most of my focus is this month. Also, since the heart is really the center of Love, I am also encouraging you to have a healthier heart.

Love is such a powerful emotion that it typically leaves us in emotional pain, but we continue to search for love throughout our lives, and our lives are truly not complete without LOVE. #Preach

I have been fortunate to have love as a constant in my life -- as both a recipient and a giver. My heart is happy because of that, and I truly understand what Rabbi Dr. Dessler said so eloquently, “The people make a serious mistake in thinking you give to those whom you love, and the answer is, the real answer is you love those to whom you give.”

One of the greatest ways I experience love is through giving (especially to those who can never give me anything tangible in return). I encourage you to do the same (actively). It will change your life in ways that will keep you light and lovely, every step of the way. It will keep a permanent smile on your face even on the darkest of days.

I started my 28 Days of Black Love on Facebook and will share one of those posts here. I hope you enjoy and I sincerely hope that you will support me when I publish my book. I would LOVE that!

2/5
Black  ❤️  Take 5:
And then she said, “Oh my God! She’s beautiful.”
And the he nodded and said, “Yep. She is, especially on the inside. She’s really the best.”
And then she asked, “What happened?”
And then he looked sad and said, “I’m not sure but she left a hole in my heart.”
And then she said stated with a very soft conviction, “I guess WE’RE never going to make it then.”
And then he said, “We’ve made it this far, but I don’t know how much further we can go.”
She wasn’t sad. She wasn’t upset. She knew because she always felt it. And then, she smiled (because she loves smiling).
She said, “I understand. Go get her.”
But, he hasn’t moved (yet) because he felt crippled by his love for her.
...to be continued  😊

Rosie Peppy Parke (Yaa Gyasi)
Creative & Executive Director
Peppy Entertainment & Promotions AND The Give Black Foundation

February is Heart Health Month | How Healthy is YOUR Heart?

According to the Office of Disease Prevention, heart disease is the leading cause of death for men and women in the United States. Every year, 1 in 4 deaths are caused by heart disease.

The good news? Heart disease can often be prevented when people make healthy choices and manage their health conditions. Communities, health professionals, and families can work together to create opportunities for people to make healthier choices.

Here are some links and resources to help YOU and those you love take care of your heart.


Please join us at the
14th Annual Women's HerStory Month Celebration
Saturday, March 30, 2019
Sweet Home Jamaica
3612 S. Hanover Street, Brooklyn, MD 21225

Click HERE for tickets and/or donation

Spotlight on Denise 'Didi' Dixon
One of the 6 Awardees at SIP

Denise Dixon has nearly 20 years of event planning and marketing experience. She has provided service for large and small companies including Grace Foods, Digicel, EDM Sales, Irie Jam Media Group (NYC), VP Records, Universoul Circus, and Coral Cliff Resort and Casino. Over her tenure, she has enhanced the production of countless events throughout the US and the Caribbean—The Jamaican Jerk Festival, BRT Weekend, Irie Jamboree, DC World Reggae Festival, Carifesta (DC), the Chicago Jerk Festival, and Baltimore Carnival, to name a few.

Denise is the founder and CEO of the Division of Marketing and Events, LLC (DoME). Based out of Maryland, DoME offers an array services -- festival and concert planning, public relations/media relations, artist development and management, website development, consumer research/data collections, and material dissemination. The team aims to adapt to the mission and vision of their clients, ensuring that every deliverable meets their expectation. One of the most recognizable elements of DoME, is its team members. The company is devoted to give employment opportunities to non-US citizen college students, primarily students from the Caribbean and African countries. These teams have been able to use DoME as a stepping-stone into the permanent workforce.

Denise also has recognizable philanthropic spirit. She is drawn to providing help to vulnerable populations in the US as well as Jamaica. She dedicates her time supporting her church (Metropolitan Seventh Day Adventist) initiatives. She also committed to visiting and collecting donations for an orphanage in Jamaica, Robin’s Nest. Moreover, she is a board member of the Irie Buttterfly Foundation, a New York based organization with a mission to educating, inspiring, and entertaining children through Caribbean culture.

Denise has a BA in Public Relations and Promotions from Morgan State University; an MSc in Management from the University of Maryland University College; and is currently enrolled at Arizona State for her doctoral degree in Behavioral Health.

Denise takes pride in everything she supports. She dedicated to her clients, the enrichment of entertainment, and under-served communities.
"Thank you Rosie Peppy Parke! To be a recipient of a SIP award is an amazing feeling. It is an encouragement for me to continue to work hard because I am making a difference in someone’s life. In addition, the SIP award is allowing me to address my own stigma as a woman in the workforce.  I get disheartened because I think I am working in vain. I have felt like I was being taken for granted and like I did not meet a "certain standard". On March 30, I will proudly say, these depressing thoughts were once a part of my past. The SIP award is a confirmation of that! I hope that this event will inspire me to encourage other women, especially young women, to strive for what is in their hearts and not what the “world” wants them to be." -- Denise 'Didi' Dixon



We are thankful to our sponsors
At HI USA, they think travel should be as much about making a difference in the world as it is about seeing it. That’s why they’ve created Explore the World Travel Scholarships. Recipients receive $2,000 to help finance their international trip that includes an educational or service component.
In 2018, they awarded 104 scholarships to young people across the U.S. so they could go learn Arabic in Jordan, volunteer in India and Vietnam, teach math in the Dominican Republic, or board a plane for the very first time to study abroad in Europe.  Scholarship recipients  have returned home from their travels with a profound sense of intercultural appreciation, and a renewed dedication to spreading the word about travel and tolerance at home.

In 2019, they will be giving out 86+ scholarships to would-be travelers around the country, aged 18-30, who need a little extra help along the way. Click HERE to learn more and please share with all the young people between 18-30 who you know.