FNX & Factory Underground Present: HOMETOWN LOVE2 2.0 Charity Barbecue and Basketball Tourmanent

FNX & Factory Underground Present: 

HOMETOWN LOVE2 2.0

Charity Barbecue and Basketball Tourmanent

CARVER CENTER

17 Academy Street,

Norwalk, CT 06850

Saturday, May 20, 2017

Factory Underground recently partnered with our music recording artist and Carver alumnus Kenneth Shuler (FNX) to help Carver Foundation of Norwalk succeed in Fairfield County's Giving Day. Now we are planning the second annual Hometown Love event at the Carver Community Center!

 The day will include a ten-team “5 on 5” full-court basketball tournament drawing players from New York and from across Connecticut. Guests will enjoy games and a grand barbecue cookout. The family-fun event will include a renowned DJ, an inflatable bounce-house, face painting and much more!

Please join premier national risk specialists Willis-Towers Watson Insurance in sponsoring the event!

The fundraising goal is to raise at least $10,000 for Carver summer camp scholarships and to collect more than 1,000 non-perishable or canned food items to be distributed to families by Person-to-Person.

DONATE HERE: https://www.carvernorwalk.org/#/hometown-love-2-saturday-52017/

FNX's original inspiration to launch Hometown Love at Carver in June 2016, (and here for another feature in The Hour) was to create a fun, interactive community-pride event, and to feed as many people as possible with a canned-food drive. Love of community is certainly reflected in the title of the event, named for one of his more personal songs. FNX’s inspiration for this event arises from his personal story that The Hour and other media have written about in the feature articles referenced above. Carver played a significant role in FNX’s academic and professional music and business success.

Carver today is the largest provider of after-school programs for middle and high school students in Norwalk.  Carver summer learning programs include Summer Enrichment (5- to 13-year-old students at two sites); Freshman Summer Success Academies for graduated 8th-grade students transitioning into 9th grade at Norwalk and Brien McMahon High Schools; and summer learning experience for 5th-grade students transitioning into middle school. Since 2005, 100 percent of Carver’s seniors have graduated on time and nearly 100% of our graduates go on to college. 85% of Carver students graduate college within 6 years.

Hometown Love Sponsorship packages:
$2,500 Presenting Sponsor

•  Name and/or logo displayed on tournament trophy
• Presenter at tournament award ceremony
• Prominent signage on event banner and full-page ad in the event program journal
• Cocktail Reception and Thank-You Concert at the Factory Underground in Norwalk
• Name and/or logo featured on Caver, FNX Music, and Factory Underground websites and social media
• Sponsor support exalted in all press relations
• Meet & greet with all VIP attendees

$1000 Hometown Love Champion

• Cocktail Reception and Thank-You Concert at the Factory Underground in Norwalk
• Signage on event banner and full-page ad in the event program journal
• Name and/or logo featured on Caver, FNX Music, and Factory Underground websites and in social media
• Sponsor support exalted in all press relations
• Meet & greet with all VIP attendees

$250 Hometown Love Team (limited to ten team sponsors)

• Basketball team sponsor with name on the team's t-shirt
• Half-page ad in event program journal
• Named on event page on Carver, FNX, and Factory Underground website and in social media

$100 Hometown Love Friend (No limit to the number of FRIENDS! Your name listed in the event program journal!)

Norwalk rapper FNX Provides Food to Families in Need (Norwalk Hour, December 26, 2016)

Photo by Erik Trautmann, Heart Connecticut Media

NORWALK — When Norwalk rapper Kenneth Shuler decided to give back this holiday season, he hoped he would be able to help four local families.

As of Christmas Day, he and a team of friends and family have provided two to three weeks of food for 11 Fairfield County families and counting.

“It’s been amazing,” Shuler said. “It’s a testament to the type of legwork the FNX team has put forth. Marc Alan (of Factory Underground) has been a big help, and it’s just been an amazing experience.”

Shuler released his debut hip-hop album under the moniker FNX (pronounced phoenix) on Black Friday. Produced by Norwalk’s Factory Underground, Shuler has been giving away the 17-track album for free, asking instead that fans donate the money they would have spent to a GoFundMe page used to purchase food for hungry families in Fairfield County.

Photo by Alex Von Kleydorff, Heart Connecticut Media

Using statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture that say $250 is the cost to feed a family of four for a week, Shuler had hoped to give one week’s worth of food to one family in Norwalk, one in Stamford, one in Bridgeport and one in New Haven, selecting them with the help of local nonprofit agencies.

The fundraiser brought in $1,400. By completing the shopping himself and finding items on sale, Shuler was able to provide even more food than anticipated, feeding two families in Stamford, three in Norwalk, one in Bridgeport and two in New Haven. Shuler said the FNX team will feed an additional two families next week.

“I feel great about what we were able to do,” Shuler said. “When we got to the door of the families and I said, ‘Hi, I’m FNX and I have some food for you,’ they didn’t know what to say. Not too many people expected it. As we started to bring in the food, joy started to come by, and we started to be able to communicate. It was just a blessing. I was blessed to be able to do it.”

The fundraiser is not Shuler’s first time giving back to the community. In June, Shuler hosted the first Hometown Love Initiative event in conjunction with Factory Underground and the Carver Center. The event featured a barbecue, basketball tournament and food drive, drawing alumni and community members for an event so successful they are planning to duplicate it next year.

“We’re really happy to support people in the city of Norwalk, but also across Fairfield County,” Shuler said. “We appreciate the support of everyone who either directly donated or donated to the GoFundMe.”

Shuler’s album is available at fnxmusic.bandcamp.com, and donations can be made at gofundme.com/fnxholidayfooddrive.