Recent Events
Ambassador Barbara Masekela Hosts
“Social Justice Sees Forever” Fundraiser
at South African Embassy
 Ambassador Barbara Masekela and the staff of the Embassy of the Republic of South Africa graciously opened the embassy’s doors to host our first-ever Fall fundraiser event last month. The wine-tasting event featured South African wines from the ambassador’s private collection, with Washington Post wine critic Ben Giliberti on hand to offer tasting notes and comment on the past, present, and future of the region’s wines.
In his introductory remarks as he presented Ambassador Masekela, See Forever board member James Forman, Jr. – co-founder of the See Forever Foundation and Maya Angelou Public Charter School – recalled participating in anti-Apartheid protests in front of the embassy with his father, civil rights leader James Forman.
“In the days when I was marching out front, I never dreamed I’d see the inside of this embassy,” joked Forman. “Yet here we are, not so many years later, receiving a king’s welcome.”
With a smile, Ambassador Masekela emphatically announced that she never dreamed she’d be inside the embassy herself either – the world works in mysterious ways – and that she was just as honored to be able to host guests who share her commitment to education and social justice.
Over 120 See Forever supporters and new friends participated in the event, enjoying South African cuisine and music as they sampled the wines.  The event was sponsored by Steptoe & Johnson LLP, AOL, the Academy for Educational Development, Jack Davies, Ted Leonsis, Mary Kennedy, and and Steve Langdon, and a host committee of luminaries including; Ambassador Masekela, Susan Bollerer, Eileen Bramlet, Dr. Johnetta B. Cole, Jack Davies, David Domenici, Ellen Folts, James Forman, Jr., Robby Gregg, Jude Kearney, Carol Sutton Lewis, Esq., Delano E. Lewis, Sr., Julianne Malveaux, Michel Martin, Gay McDougall, Cheryl Mills, Ifeoma Nwokoye, Charles J. Ogletree, Jr., Cynthia Robbins, and Joe Watson. View thank you and complete list of supporters.
Despite a short planning time frame, the event raised more than $30,000 for See Forever programs at the Maya Angelou Public Charter School, and left everyone eagerly describing the magic and looking forward to doing it again in the future.
See Forever would like to thank our many sponsors and guests, including the sponsors whose in-kind donations made the event possible: Alston & Bird LLP, Sodexho, the South African Embassy, Wide World of Wines, and Wines of South Africa.
The event helped bring together a community of supporters of the See Forever mission, with the South African embassy providing the perfect setting for conversation and networking in the cause of social justice. Echoing the “Think globally, act locally,” mantra, Ambassador Masekela said she was delighted to see so many people coming together in support of a common cause.
“What I’ve always loved about wine is that it does bring people together in a way that is convivial,” said Giliberti, who noted that South Africa had been known for its wine production prior to Apartheid and is now fully back to form. “It’s fitting that we’re here tonight in support of See Forever and in celebration of South African wine and our gracious hosts.”
 MAPCS Student Honored at Children’s Defense Fund Scholarship Awards Ceremony
On November 14, MAPCS Evans Campus student Charlette Nicole Smith was one of five Washington, DC area high school students awarded a $10,000 Beat the Odds scholarship from the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF).
The scholarship awards, which also included laptop computers and assorted other gifts for each student, were presented by Academy Award-winning actress Renée Zellweger at a gala event in Washington celebrating young people who demonstrate resilience in the face of tremendous adversity. Co-chairs Ali Wentworth and George Stephanopoulos hosted the event.
“I am so proud of these young people,” writes Marian Wright Edelman, Executive Director and Founder of CDF, in an essay for her Child Watch column detailing the hardship stories of Charlette and the other award winners. “They and the thousands of young people like them – many all around us and struggling quietly each day to stay on track and do the right thing – deeply deserve our recognition, praise, and support.”
In her Beat the Odds scholarship interview, Smith spoke of finding the strength to carry on in the midst of poverty and her family’s struggles, including losing her father to the AIDS epidemic when she was a child and her mother’s current battle against lung cancer.
When asked about her commitment to her own education in the face of such adversity, Smith said her mother had been a constant source of strength and taught her that you have to be strong for yourself before you can be strong for anyone else. “I want to be strong for my mother,” Smith said.
Such strength is what drives Edelman and her work with the Children’s Defense Fund, and she has been seeking out similar stories since establishing the Beat the Odds awards in 1990.
“Too often we hear about the negative outcomes of teenagers faced with problems such as poverty, violence, homelessness, family separation, or substance abuse,” said Edelman in her remarks at the event. “The Beat the Odds program celebrates the positive potential of young people by honoring those who have succeeded and providing role models for those who are still struggling.”
Zellweger, who won a 2004 Academy Award for her performance in Cold Mountain, said that Charlette and the other award winners had become role models for her, noting that their inspiring stories helped put her own life and career in perspective.
“I have had the great fortune as an actress to play many roles, but I don’t know if I could have attempted to play the roles that these extraordinary young people have,” said Zellweger.
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