May, 2011 - Volume XVIII Issue V - Circulation... Plenty!

HAPPY MAY

May is the National Month for: Foster Care, BBQ, Bike, Salsa, Stroke Awareness, Arthritis, and Tennis!

This Month Pledge to: Reach out to a child in foster care! Volunteer for, or donate to a foster care charity! Ride a bike! Play tennis! Dance the salsa!

Keymáh's Essential Return to the Hill - Pt II

Is There a Doctor in the House?

Dr. Keymáh w/FAMU President Dr. Ammons

On Saturday, April 30, 2011, Florida A & M University bestowed it’s highest and most prestigious honor upon actress, director, producer and writer T'Keyah Crystal Keymáh. University President Dr. James H. Ammons conferred upon the famous alum, the Doctorate of Humane Letters at the school’s spring commencement, citing her career accomplishments and her charitable and philanthropic endeavors. Former FAMU President Dr. Frederick S. Humphries sent congratulations,  saying Keymáh was a worthy choice for the honor. The new doc’s acceptance speech cautioned the 2011 graduates to make good use of the years that would pass quickly between now and when they returned. 

T'Keyah Chairs 
Habitat WE Build May 14-15
Grab a Paint Brush & a Friend
And Join the Fun!
Habitat For Humanity Helping Women And Families Build New Lives « CBS Los Angeles

Ever since she heard President Jimmy Carter talk about providing homes for working families, T'Keyah Crystal Keymáh intended to join that noble effort.  Last summer, when Habitat for Humanity San Fernando / Santa Clarita Valleys (SF/SCV) held their first Women's Empowerment  (WE) Build she finally got the chance.  Working on Entertainment Industries Council's team, T'Keyah Crystal Keymáh helped to frame a house that is now inhabited by a grateful family!  She was so moved by the experience that she offered to serve as Chairperson for the 2011 WE Build on May 14 and 15, 2011.  During this year's build teams and individuals will plaster and paint and help build a children’s playground.  Check out my interview with LaFern Cusack!

“Team T'Keyah” (Alison Arngrim, Jenell Billingslea, Crysta Burgess, Ahmad Duren,  Chyann Jackson, Markashia Jeter, Margaret Laurena Kemp,  Kristie LaTray, Dawnn Lewis, Diamond McGhee, Lynora Miller, Chantice Murphy, Angela Nesbitt, Arianne Ousley, Linda Ousley, Deborah Taylor, Johnnie Thompson, Anneliese van der Pol, Christa Windley, Ruth Wright, and more) will work alongside many other teams including those of Home Depot, Lowes Home Improvement, and the CBS daytime dramas “The Bold and the Beautiful,” "The Young and the Restless," and “Guiding Light.” Bold and Beautiful’s Arianne Zucker serves as Habitat Ambassador for the build.  WE Build supports and celebrates women who work in non-traditional careers and those at the tops of their professions who encourage others by example and by sharing their success while women from all paths gather to uplift a community. 

In addition to providing homes for working families, Habitat for Humanity SF/SCV’s pioneering Enriched Neighborhoods program includes health and nutrition training, dental hygiene, teen empowerment, tutoring, and ESL classes. In Pacoima, only 43% of high school students graduate, but in Habitat’s Enriched Neighborhoods, every child has graduated high school and 92% of them are attending or have graduated from college or trade school. 

Please donate one or two days of your time to this build, or sponsor someone who can.  To participate, go to the Habitat for Humanity SF/SCV website, where, you can: Sponsor T'Keyah (for as little as $5 - Really!); Join T'Keyah's team, "Team T'Keyah"; or Form a team of your own, under Upcoming Events at www.humanityca.org.  The suggested donation to participate in the build is $40 (to cover your tools, t-shirt hard hat and lunch), but its just a suggestion.  You can participate without a donation of any kind!

Kemp Goes Green for Habitat WE Build

Transportation for Margaret Laurena Kemp (Children of God) to the May 14, 2-11 WE Build is provided by LAXCar Share which is owned and operated by Melissa Hebert, a dynamic African American women with a passion for sustainability. Here is how Carsharing works. Once you become a member, use your phone or computer to reserve a vehicle for the time you need to use a car. Go to the spot where the car is permanently park and use your 'special key' to get into the car, take your trip and bring it back to the same location. The flat rate (which includes gas) is charged to your credit card. http://www.laxcarshare.com/

Amen Ra Celebrates Ten!

Founder Dr. jeff obafemi carr invites you to celebrate the 10-Year Anniversary of Amun Ra Theatre

Thursday, May 19, 2011 • 6 p.m.-8 p.m. • Tennessee State Museum 
TICKETS: $50 • ATTIRE: CASUAL CHIC

• VIEW TENNESSEE STATE MUSEUM EGYPTIAN EXHIBIT •

• WINE AND HORS D’OEUVRES • SILENT AUCTION •

• LIVE MUSIC AND DANCING • CELEBRITY APPEARANCES •

 PURCHASE TICKETS AT www.brownpapertickets.com AND AT THE EVENT

 Najwa Celebrates 20!

Najwa I invites you to a 

20th Anniversary Celebration of

the Najwa Dance Corps

Brush Up Your Shakespeare!

With The WhiteRobin Group

The WhiteRobin Group Co-Founders Scott Whitehurst and Angela Robinson Whitehurst use their consulting firm to help performing artists identify, develop and actualize their talents.  NOW OFFERING: A SHAKESPEARE INTENSIVE, on

Monday, MAY 23, 2011 from 12pm - 6pm - at The Network NYC, 242 W. 36th St., New York, NY - Cost: $100.00 - Scott Whitehurst - Teacher

GIVE YOURSELF THE TOOLS TO DEEPEN YOUR WORK AND BOOK THE NEXT JOB - How does the actor marry truthful, contemporary behavior to classical verse?  Learn: *  how to decode iambic pentameter  * how to play imagery in blank verse  * how to use prose  * how to make the words your own  * how to “take the audience along” in soliloquies and speeches

REGISTER NOW @ http://www.whiterobingroup.com/page2/page2.html or call 201-408-5500

Kemp Goes To Capetown

With Your Help

Margaret Laurena Kemp, who won international acclaim for her portrayal of Lena, in the feature film Children of God  (which premieres in New York on May 20), has been invited to lecture and perform for the Mother Tongue Theatre Project in Capetown, South Africa.  Follow her journey home as she continues to workshop and perform her brilliant new solo theater piece, A Negro Speaks of Rivers, and as she raises funds for this history trip.  Kemp, who earned her MFA in Classical Theatre from the Shakespeare Theatre at The George Washington University in Washington, DC, is a Certified Fitzmaurice Voicework Associate and teaches and coaches voice at University of Southern California, California State University, Fullerton, and privately in Hollywood. She has performed and lectured across the country, in Ireland, Greece and London and will lecture in Barcelona on her way to South Africa.   Her television appearances include recurring roles on The Orlando Jones Show and guest appearances on the ABC Television shows In Justice and Commander in Chief.  With T'Keyah Crystal Keymáh, she co-produced her first solo performance piece Creative Instructions, which sold out shows at Art Share in Los Angeles. http://anegrospeaksofriverssouthafrica.blogspot.com/

KUDOS KUDOS KUDOS KUDOS

Congratulations to: my niece Jacqueline Walker on graduating from Kentucky State University, my neice Jennifer Walker on her bold move to Miami; my cousin Lamont Zeno on graduating from Howard University; my cousin Lauren Hickman on completing her MBA from Clark Atlanta; my cousin Brittany Wilson on graduating from William T. Dwyer High School; 
 Shenita Moore on her role in Anthony Thurman’s, animated short, The Depression of Detective Downs 2: On Depression's Edge;  P. R. Hawkins on her new ebook, Talk That Talk, by on Amazon kindle; the  Florida A & M University Class of 2011; FAMUan Will Packer, on being honored by AMC/IMAX with a "Brightest Stars Award"; and FAMUan Mitzi Miller on being named Editor in Chief of Jet Magazine -  go on girl woman!

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The Crystal News respectfully acknowledges the life and transition of: Billy Bang, Phylicia Barnes, Dwight Wady Crawford, Alfred Freedman, Sidney Lumet, Douglas Alan Mann, Ollie Matson, Madelyn Pugh, Phoebe Snow, and Julian Swain. We are blessed to have known their warm heart, bright smiles and good works. We are inspired to follow their brave and noble examples.

Have you hugged someone you love today?

The Crystal News - http://thecrystalnews.blogspot.com/ 
T'Keyah Fights City Hall - http://tkeyahfightscityhall.blogspot.com/ 

Keymah Presents - http://keymahpresents.blogspot.com/ 

www.tkeyah.com - Where Crystal visions come to life!