On Sunday, Kissimmee’s Solid Rock Community Church partnered with AARP Orlando, for the “History and Heritage” event. The event was filled with painting, stories from deep-rooted community members and fellowship within the church and the community. In honor of Black History Month, this event allowed people to share art, stories, and testimonials that celebrated their culture and talents in the community.
Tiffany Jeffers, the founder of the Black Empowerment and Community Council of Central Florida, hosted this event to celebrate black history and culture.
“I thought that it was important for us to display our black beauty and excellence on canvas for everyone to see, and I’m so glad that we were able to partner with AARP to do that,” she said.
Yazmin Alfonso, the Associate Director of AARP Orlando, believes in the power of community involvement.
“I met Tiffany, who is just an incredible advocate in the community, and when she told me about Solid Rock Community Church, I knew that I wanted to do more in Kissimmee,” she said. “One of the goals that we have with AARP is to work with multicultural communities, so my emphasis is really on the black and Hispanic community. When she told me about this church, and how there’s going to be another location in St. Cloud, and everything that was happening here, I asked myself, ‘How can AARP work with the black community to support the great things that the church is doing? How can we bring opportunities to the church?’ That’s where we came collaboratively with this idea.”
Dionne Polite, the Director of State Operations for AARP Florida, has been overseeing outreach and engagement for the state of Florida for 16 years, but she is also an artist who shared her artwork at the event.
“Yazmin’s been talking to me about the relationship she’s building with Solid Rock Church and told me about this opportunity. She knew that I was also an artist, and she wanted me to bring my artwork and tell my story,” Polite said. “It’s not something I do frequently, because it triggers the memory of losing my parents within six months of each other. “
Even with the painful memories of her loss, she uses her painting talent to cope in a positive manner, and she wanted to share her story at the event.
“Something that I think allowed me to embrace being an artist is the opportunity to let go and let God. If you are an artist, you are inspired of what comes from the heart. If you’re a believer, God leads your hand, and you end of with something that is unique to you,” Polite said. “Even though many of us look alike, uniqueness comes from our fingerprints and what we give out. Art is one of the ways that we can show that God has given us a gift that is unique to us. Art has helped me focus; it’s helped me with my sense of confidence. It’s not about who’s going to like it, it speaks for itself. Art helps me balance, relief from stress, anguish, tension, and many of the things that people of color deal with, allows me to let go.”
Alfonso said she hopes to forge more partnership opportunities like between Solid Rock and AARP Orlando.
“I hope that we can just bring the connection of community. When people see AARP, they only think of us as a membership organization. But we are so much more that that. Our goal is to work in the community and support efforts that rally help people with brain health, and to help them live their best life by providing them resources and information, and that’s what we do within the community.”
