Today we’d like to introduce you to Brian Glasper.
Hi Brian, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I lost my father to diabetes complications while I was in college in 2005. I was distraught over it and channeled all of my energy into creating my nonprofit and promoting a large-scale awareness initiative by the name of A-Town Day. We were fortunate enough to bring the city’s entertainment industry together with the healthcare industry and the community to discuss topics from diabetes and cancer to domestic violence and voting. It was a healthcare festival, concert, and day of awareness. We had involvement from the top radio stations, record labels, hospitals, colleges, and community-based organizations in the city. This festival series ran from 2007 to 2013, and we promoted it everywhere from Turner Field to Lakewood amphitheater. Portions of our proceeds went to organizations like the Diabetes Association of Atlanta and the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation to name a few.
Since 2007, we’ve been promoting our Feed the Need Initiative where we give food to Atlanta’s less fortunate. In a similar fashion, our Project Clothes Minded Initiative has been delivering clothes to Homeless shelters here in Atlanta since 2008. We recently started our Community Clean Up initiative, partnered with Fulton County Community Supervision. Probationers that need community service hours are able to receive those hours by working with us to help clean up historic areas of the city. We’ve also partnered with the A-Town Art Agency to do beautification projects around the city and paint positive murals and messages of Awareness in places where it’s needed. Please get involved in one way or another, even if it’s not with our organization. Do something good for someone in your community, in your neighborhood, in your city. That’s where it starts. Just get involved! www.bawarefoundation.org
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It has not been a smooth road. Anyone that does events, especially large-scale events understands that anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. It’s a matter of how you handle it from start to finish that determines if other people know you’re in the middle of a situation or if comes off flawless. There are so many moving parts when it comes to events that you have to remain fluid and move along with the situations, don’t let them move you. As a matter of fact, if I have to give some advice that’s what it would be. Don’t be stagnant, go with the flow and adapt to the changes as needed! Keep fresh tools in the toolbox!
As you know, we’re big fans of B-Aware Foundation. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
We connect the arts & entertainment industry to the healthcare industry and the community. I’ve worked in the entertainment industry in one way or another since 1998. I’ve worked with some of the best clubs, record labels, and DJ crews this city has to offer. We tried to make it cool to talk about tough subjects by announcing healthcare statistics in between performances at our events. We created a new type of event when we came on the scene in 2007 and we’ve constantly pushed the line with groundbreaking initiatives that bring serious issues to the forefront. We will be releasing fundraising merchandise on our website in the next month. We want readers to get involved. Please go to our site and find out more about our organization. Get involved! Donate time and/or money or both. If you don’t like our organization then find one you do like and donate to them, either way – GET INVOLVED!
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
I know this might sound cliche, but never give up. So many times I wanted to pack it up and quit. When you’re starting out, it seems like all you do is get knocked down. That might be so, but it builds character and strength. You’ll need these if you’re going to stick it out. Pray and work, work and pray. You’ll never get where you’re going if you stop. You owe it to you to be the best version of yourself possible. Just do it!
Contact Info:
- Email: brian@bawarefoundation.org
- Website: https://www.bawarefoundation.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bawarefoundation/
