The Spark Fund, the results of the collaboration Global Children’s Fund AND Imperativelaunched a youth-led initiative to provide $200,000 in grants to support Atlanta-based organizations focused on Black men’s mental health.

The initiative consists of a panel of black men aged 18-30 who were supplied with educational tools to assist them with the grantmaking process and equal opportunity training. The men then researched and chosen five organizations, each of which received a $40,000 grant.

Recipients: Black Male Initiative Georgia, Close Ties Leadership Program, Silence the Shame and The Counseling Brothers of Atlanta.

“As a 21-year-old Black man, I believe it is important to support the mental health of young Black men and boys because they face unique challenges related to systemic racism and societal expectations.” he said Kenneth Jones, Spark fund participant. “By supporting mental health, we can help break the stigma around seeking help and promote emotional well-being in our community.”

Dr. Avery Rosser, president and CEO of The Counseling Brothers of Atlanta, expressed gratitude for receiving the scholarship.

“These funds will allow us to provide free and limited counseling services to Black boys and men in Atlanta, ensuring they have access to the support they deserve,” Rosser said in a news release. “Additionally, we will be able to offer specialized training for mental health professionals, helping them better understand and address the unique experiences of Black men in counseling.”

A study conducted by Forbes shows that Georgia within the rating 49/50 when it comes to access to care. Other barriers to mental health take care of black men include inadequate insurance and a scarcity of mental health care facilities. According to research conducted by the American Psychiatric Association Black men represent just 4 percent of mental health professionals, which can contribute to the shortage of culturally competent mental health professionals amongst black men.

Healthcare pioneer and retired cardiologist Dr. Henry W.B. “Hank” Smith III has been known for helping save lives for nearly forty years.

Now Smith is making one other major contribution by helping the black community build wealth and achieve other positive outcomes akin to improved health.

Smith, considered one of the primary black American cardiologists in Greensboro, North Carolina, hung up his stethoscopes last January. He practiced for 39 years before retiring from Cone Health HeartCare. He said BLACK ENTERPRISES that he spends his days encouraging collective donations to financially strengthen the Black Investments in Greensboro (BIG) fund.

MAKING AN IMPACT ON THE BLACK COMMUNITY THROUGH FUNDING

The fund, a Black-led everlasting endowment on the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro, was founded by Mae Douglas, Smith and 10 other Black community leaders in 2019. They serve on the steering committee. Today it’s price $1.5 million, and the fund’s mission is to improve education, health and economic conditions in Greensboro and Guilford County, North Carolina.

“Grants fund programs and alliances that advance these goals.”

Demonstrating his support, Smith shared that he and his wife, Cheryl, have contributed roughly $110,000 to the fund and proceed to donate annually. The Smiths live in Greensboro.

The first $50,000 grant was awarded last 12 months because the fund grew to offer short-term capital for Black contractors to buy surety bonds to enable them to bid on work projects. Smith says a second grant — likely in the quantity of $100,000 — will likely be awarded later this 12 months or in early 2025 to support apprenticeship programs for Black and disadvantaged highschool students. Find out more concerning the fund Here.

AIMING TO REMOVE SYSTEMIC BARRIERS AND DIFFERENCES

As the fund grows, additional capital will likely be used to improve the well-being of its recipients. In his opinion, the event of the fund within the case of collective philanthropy depends upon continuous contributions and market recognition. “The grants will be higher-level investments aimed at removing systemic barriers that cause and perpetuate Black socioeconomic disparities.”

But Smith’s desire to offer back didn’t come easy. He developed a love for interventional cardiology after graduating from Harvard Medical School in 1978 and Morehouse College in 1974.

AFTER OVERCOMING OBSTACLES, BECOME THE BEST CARDIOLOGIST

He gravitated towards cardiology attributable to the high incidence of heart problems in America, especially amongst African Americans. Smith says Morehouse repaired his low self-esteem and helped him realize that a profession in medicine was possible.

He recalls that in Statesboro, Georgia, where he grew up, there have been no black doctors and only a number of white doctors visited blacks. He noticed that in spite of everything the white patients were admitted, the black patients needed to enter the office through the back door. “There were no role models. It wasn’t until I entered Morehouse and the support of the HBCU community, faculty and fellow students that I began to consider medicine.”

As a pioneer, Smith was an early advocate of using procedures using balloons and stents to stop a heart attack. He says “balloon angioplasty” was unproven when he became a cardiologist, nevertheless it evolved to turn into the treatment of alternative for heart attacks, and stays so today.

Moreover, Smith related that each one the center attack cases he had within the early years were difficult since the equipment was primitive. However, he says the situation improved significantly within the late Nineteen Eighties and early Nineteen Nineties. “Improvements proceed to be made, covering most cases.

Many celebrities have expressed regret over having had Brazilian butt lifts over the past few years, and singer SZA is the newest person to confess it. In an interview with , the Snooze artist expressed her regret.

“I’m mad that I did this shit,” the “Snooze” singer said within the magazine’s December issue published Thursday.

SZA surprised fans when she dropped her album BBL in 2022, and subtly confirmed that she had gotten it in her hit song “Conceited.” The Grammy winner also received a BBL award after breaking her ankle.

“I gained weight by sitting still during recovery and attempting to preserve body fat. It was just silly,” she said. “But who gives af-k? You have BBL, you realize you don’t need this crap,” she said. Sza added that the BBL was unnecessary because she had more necessary things to fret about.

“I need to get my fucking sanity back,” she told the magazine, adding: “I’m not saying you’ll be able to’t do these items at the identical time, I just realize that wherever you go, you are going to be there. “

The SOS singer expressed some dissonance within the interview, because although she admitted that she regretted her decision, she also expressed how much she liked her sensual figure. The actress doesn’t express a powerful “no” to future cosmetic procedures.

“But I love my ass. Don’t get me wrong. My butt looks nice,” she shared. “And I’m grateful that it looks quite… I don’t know, natural sometimes, but I don’t even care.”

“It’s something I wanted. I enjoy it. I love shaking it.

Other celebrities who’ve openly expressed regret over cosmetic procedures include Cardi B, Angela White, formerly generally known as Blac Chyna, and rapper Latto. Cardi B and Angela have also taken steps to reverse their BBLs.