Hi all,

This is Trevor W Goodchild, Corporate Liaison for the non-profit The Better Hip Hop Bureau of Austin, and this saturday we're throwing a basketball tournament called Balls and Beats at:

Alamo Park Basketball Courts

2150 Alamo St 
Austin,
TX 78722. 

We need to get the word out to the youth and the community that hip hop isn't just about bling bling or commercialism, but about music for the sake of music.  In an effort to link the community with positive hip hop we are organizing this event.  The Daily Juice, and Jim Jim's shaven ice will be vending there and we'll have DJ's spinning records, hip hop artists rapping, and possibly break dancers though there's no guarantee (due to their schedule).  At this time we're looking to get as many children involved as possible so if anyone has leads on reaching more kids, please reply.  The Griffin School is notifying its summer session children, and yesterday I was on 91.7 Koop's Concrete SkoolYard making a PSA promoting this totally free event, but no one has signed up at our website: www.hiphopbureau.org to play b-ball.

Below is our letterhead:

"Citizens of Austin’s hip hop community, including musicians, artists, fans, activists, business owners, etc., have banded together to form the Better Hip Hop Bureau Austin. Despite the enormous profitability of hip hop’s influence in the music, entertainment, night life, and all other industries in the “Live Music Capital of the World,” our community currently has no voice in this city. The purpose of the Bureau is to unify our voices and our mission is to be heard.

Through community-building activities, the Bureau also exists to extinguish all negative stereotypes of hip hop culture that mass media consistently portrays. We successfully completed a park cleanup in February, and we have received enormous support from other community organizations, radio stations, colleges, and local businesses.

The Better Hip Hop Bureau of Austin will be hosting a 3-on-3 youth basketball tournament Saturday, July 19, 2008. Open to boys and girls ages 13 to 17, the afternoon will include the tournament, a halftime show featuring local hip hop artists, free t-shirts and giveaways for participants, and a grand prize for the winning team. 
We encourage other community organizations and interested individuals to get involved. The Bureau is strictly grassroots, which means we do not have a budget. Listed below are items still needed to provide a free, fun, and safe event for the youths and their families:

Donations – Basketballs, t-shirts, and special giveaways for participants; water, juice, or sport drinks; prizes such as medallions, trophies, or gift cards etc. for winning team.
Volunteers – Referees that can be trusted to make fair calls, but still allow for a fun game; coaches for teams that may need a little coaching; announcer to liven up the tournament and keep the energy positive.
Youths – We’ve received a lot of support for promoting the event, we just need to make sure enough youths are interested and will show up for the tournament.

If you’re interested in providing an enjoyable community activity this summer and can help out in any way, please email us with any questions or ideas. Thank you for your time!"

Trevor W. Goodchild
Corporate Liaison BHHB 512-524-4046

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