The Phoenix Project invites the community to the second annual City Soul, a free event featuring performers, free food, and fun activities, on Saturday, July 14 from 2-5pm at the Tabernacle Baptist Church Community Life Center. City Soul brings local nonprofits and residents together in a fun and relaxed environment to encourage conversation about Petersburg’s many opportunities and community resources.

“This event is a fantastic way for people to learn more about community resources and continue a dialogue about Petersburg’s future,” said Elizabeth Kimball, a recent graduate of the College of William and Mary and a member of the Phoenix Project’s Nonprofit Leadership Program. “We hope everyone will beat the heat and come out to enjoy the music, have some refreshments, and share their vision for Petersburg with local nonprofits,” explained Kimball.

More than two dozen local nonprofit organizations will be represented at the event, from Big Brothers Big Sisters to the Alzheimer’s Association, from Rebuilding Together Petersburg to Pathways. [A complete list is below.] The Phoenix Project is grateful for Tabernacle Baptist Church’s generosity in hosting the event.

The thirty students from the Phoenix Project’s Summer 2007 Nonprofit Leadership Program hail from fourteen different universities throughout Virginia. They have spent weeks planning City Soul and are excited to meet community members and learn more about their vision for the future. Residents will be encouraged to suggest work for future Phoenix Project students and faculty at the event. More than 150 residents attended last year’s event.

The Phoenix Project seeks to build partnerships between Virginia institutions of higher education and distressed communities while preparing the next generation of nonprofit leaders.

Confirmed Organizations Attending City Soul:
Alzheimer’s Association
Big Brothers Big Sisters Services, Inc.
City of Petersburg
Comfort Zone Camp, Inc.
Community Employment Centers Goodwill of Central Virginia
Crater Community Hospice
Downtown Churches United, Inc.
Elderhomes
Families 1st/Faith Fellowship Ministries
First Challengers Academy, Inc.
Focus INC
Foster Grandparent Program
Historic Petersburg Foundation
House of Restoration/House of Love
Kidz -R- Cookin’
Pathways
Petersburg Children’s Foundation
Rebuilding Together Petersburg
SeniorNavigator.org
Serenity, Inc.
Sycamore Rouge
The James House
The Rudi Johnson Foundation
Tri Cities Habitat for Humanity
Triangle Center for Development
Virginia Supportive Housing