Rocky Dawuni outreach with Leaf Community Arts Festival

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text=”Rocky Dawuni Joins Pisgah Elementary School to promote Cultural Arts Education ” font_container=”tag:h2|text_align:left|color:%23ffcc00″ google_fonts=”font_family:Roboto%3A100%2C100italic%2C300%2C300italic%2Cregular%2Citalic%2C500%2C500italic%2C700%2C700italic%2C900%2C900italic|font_style:700%20bold%20regular%3A700%3Anormal”][vc_video link=”https://youtu.be/GmcGREGgln0″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text el_class=”justinb”]Each May & October for the last 22 years, an intergenerational family of 12,000 people join together upon the beautiful Lake Eden grounds to experience the power music, art and culture has to transform lives, strengthen community, and foster unity. LEAF Festival takes place on the site of the old Historic Black Mountain College with a stunning array of rolling hills, lakes, streams, and mountain beauty on hundreds of acres of comfortable camping grounds. LEAF scours the globe for artists, musicians, performers and facilitators that are not only masters of their craft, but who also care deeply for the power of arts education and family engagement.

GRAMMY nominated Afro Roots star, Rocky Dawuni was invited to perform two shows at the esteemed LEAF festival as well as participate in the community outreach program with a local school. As a musician and an activist, Rocky decided to dedicate his 3 day workshop to Music and Creative Activism. Rocky was invited to teach at the Pisgah Elementary School in North Carolina to a group of third graders. Rocky had one of the most amazing experiences of his professional and personal life and from the testimonials from the teachers and students the feeling was mutual! His live concerts at Leaf were also absolutely amazing and very well received!

“I can’t say enough wonderful things about Rocky! I don’t think that I have ever met a more amazing person where their “light” is always shining! He was so wonderful with our students. He greeted each child individually and shared his culture, music, and the importance of education. We had a kindergarten student that needed to check out for a doctor’s appointment and cried because she wasn’t going to see Rocky on Friday. Her parents waited a few minutes for Rocky to arrive, and she immediately ran over to him to hug him. What a terrific artist and soul! To say we loved him is putting it mildly. We wanted to keep him!”

Jeanann Yates, Principal, Pisgah Elementary School

[/vc_column_text][vc_custom_heading text=”What is The Leaf Community Arts?” font_container=”tag:h2|text_align:left|color:%23ffcc00″ google_fonts=”font_family:Roboto%3A100%2C100italic%2C300%2C300italic%2Cregular%2Citalic%2C500%2C500italic%2C700%2C700italic%2C900%2C900italic|font_style:700%20bold%20regular%3A700%3Anormal”][vc_column_text el_class=”justinb”]LEAF Community Arts is a non-profit organization in which all donations and festival proceeds supports cultural arts education programming locally and globally! Since 2004, LEAF Schools & Streets has served over 55,000 youth with programs in over 20 Western North Carolina locations. LEAF International features cultural preservation programs in 10 countries worldwide. Your attendance at LEAF not only provides you with an amazing weekend experience with friends and family, but provides a platform for fostering the growth of our youth into creative leaders in their communities worldwide. Twice a year, LEAF invites performing artists from around the globe to lead Visiting Teaching Artist Residencies with elementary, middle, and/or high school students in the Asheville/Western NC area. This opportunity empowers the youth to truly become global citizens and artistic leaders by working with role models of different cultures and see beyond right now into the possibility for the future

“I am truly humbled by the entire LEAF experience and the opportunity to share my music with the students at Pisgah Elementary. It left me with a permanent smile. Principal Yates and her staff have something special going on with kids at Pisgah and I am honored for being invited to share the experience .Thank you to every single person who was involved in this incredible program. Let’s keep building together!” – Rocky Dawuni

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Photos by Steve Atkins / Fox Cove Photography

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