MAYOR PEREZ FOCUSES ON

 INVESTMENT IN HARTFORD KIDS!

---NEWS ADVISORY---

---MAYOR PEREZ’S EVENTS ON THURSDAY SEPT. 27^TH---

9:40 a.m.--- Mayor Eddie A. Perez will thank approximately 100 volunteers from Home Depot, Center City Churches, and the Betances School Community for providing a ‘makeover’ at the school aimed at improving the reading skills of students.  The grant of the Home Depot materials, worth approximately $25,000, will be utilized to build things like bookshelves and benches at the 100-year-old school that is located at 42 Charter Oak Avenue in the Sheldon-Charter Oak neighborhood. 

1:00 p.m.--- Mayor Perez congratulates NBA star and former UCONN standout Emeka Okafor for making a generous philanthropic investment to the University of Connecticut’s Neag School of Education, which runs the Husky Sport Program in Hartford.  This program provides student mentors in the areas of nutrition education and physical education.  Michael Hogan, the President of UCONN and Hall of Fame Coach Jim Calhoun will also be on hand for this special presentation at Clark School, 75 Clark Street in the City’s Northeast neighborhood.

2:30 p.m.--- Mayor Perez will encourage students to participate in the New Franklin Trust Federal Credit Union Branch at Weaver High School.  The goal is to educate young people about money management and offer internships that could lead to careers in the financial industry.  The ribbon cutting ceremony will take place at the school, 415 Granby Street, in Hartford’s Blue Hills neighborhood.

5:00 p.m.--- Mayor Perez will help kickoff a youth violence prevention conference, sponsored by the Office of Youth Services and Capital Workforce Partners.  This first annual “Peace It Up” intervention conference is intended to bring together community providers, funders, young people, the faith-based community, policy makers and legislators.  The kickoff will take place at the Riverfront Boathouse in the North Meadows section of the City.  The conference begins September 28^th at the Connecticut Convention Center.