Beauty in the World
Grammy® Award Winner Macy Gray to Headline Urban Nights Denver
Joseph Family Foundation to Honor Robert L. Cohen and Melanie L. Lewis Dickerson as “Urban Legends” for Community Leadership
DENVER (March 19, 2018) —The Joseph Family Foundation, a Denver-based nonprofit organization committed to strengthening Colorado communities, has announced that Grammy® Award Winner Macy Gray will headline Urban Nights 2018: Beauty in the World on Saturday, August 4th at the EXDO Event Center in Denver’s vibrant River North (RiNo) Art District.
The 7th annual fundraising event benefits Urban Peak, a nonprofit committed to serving youth experiencing homelessness or at imminent risk of becoming homeless, and will honor Robert L. Cohen, Chairman and CEO of The IMA Financial Group, Inc. and Melanie L. Lewis Dickerson, portfolio manager for Community Solutions, as “Urban Legends” for their community leadership. Rob has devoted many years of service and philanthropic giving to the at-risk community and Melanie is currently and passionately active with the at-risk youth community.
“Urban Nights 2018 provides an opportunity to celebrate community and support one of the most vulnerable populations in our cities,” said Sarah McCarthy and Andrew Feinstein, who is co-chairing the event. “Thanks to the courage of leaders like our Urban Legend award recipients and organizations like Urban Peak, these young people have access to the services they need to exit homelessness and create self-determined, fulfilled lives.”
Urban Nights 2018 will celebrate the beauty and utility of various urban art forms. In addition to the concert by Macy Gray, the evening will feature music and dance performances, live mural painting, urban sculptures/art installations, fashion created by local students and designers, an interactive virtual painting experience and the best of Denver’s food truck scene.
With a passion for at-risk youth issues, Macy Gray will participate in a meet-and-greet and additional fundraising opportunities throughout the event. Other artists and performers include local professionals, students and at-risk youth who are passionate about art.
Known for highlighting Denver’s best Fashion, this year’s Urban Nights fashion show is sponsored by the Art Institute of Colorado and produced by Evelyn Knuckles, owner of Evey K Fashionliner Boutique.
Local designers will work with at-risk youth to develop one-of-a-kind fashion for the evening featuring models rotating in and out of various stages throughout the event. Six finalists will be chosen to showcase their work.
During the month leading up to Urban Nights 2018, Tracy Weil, co-founder of RiNo Art District and one of Denver’s most renowned artists, will re-create EXDO’s mural wall working with past and present clients of Urban Peak. The mural will be unveiled and completed during the event.
For ticketing and information about the event, visit www.urbannightsdenver.org or call Christy Kurowski at 303-807-2909
About the Joseph Family Foundation
Joseph Family Foundation is a nonprofit organization based in Denver, Colorado.
The foundation exists to strengthen our communities by supporting causes that foster individual opportunity, further education, support diversity, provide power to vulnerable populations, demonstrate the love of God’s creatures and promote the dignity of all people. For more information, please visit josephfamilyfoundation.org.
About Urban Peak
Urban Peak ignites the potential in youth to exit homelessness and create self-determined, fulfilled lives. Founded in 1988, Urban Peak is the only nonprofit organization in Denver that provides a full convergence of services for youth ages 15 through 24 who are at imminent risk of, or experiencing, homelessness, including the only licensed shelter for homeless youth ages 15 through 20. For more information, visit urbanpeak.org.