FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 13, 2008

Singer/Songwriter Corey Smith and the Jacksonville-based humanitarian organization, Be The Change International, announce partnership to help Africans fight HIV/AIDS pandemic

The Jacksonville, Florida based humanitarian organization, Be The Change International, and singer/songwriter Corey Smith announced a new partnership to raise awareness and funds for Be The Change International’s HIV/AIDS in Africa programs.  "The more I learn about this organization, the more honored I feel to be associated with it and the more passionately I support its mission. When the folks from Be The Change contacted me last spring, I immediately recognized that I was being given an extraordinary opportunity. Now, after traveling to South Africa and spending time in a few of the communities hit hardest by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, I am wholeheartedly committed to making the most of our partnership and joining in the fight for an AIDS-free world.”

Be The Change International provides funding, evaluation and monitoring for grassroots HIV/AIDS education and prevention programs; caregiver support services; and orphaned and vulnerable children programs run by Africans. Dr. Robert V. Lee III, Founder and Chairman of Be The Change International and Siyafundisa, says “Programs run by Africans for Africans have been proven to be more effective than programs offered by organizations whose teaching message is based on another country’s cultural values.  Siyafundisa’s youth peer-to-peer HIV/AIDS prevention programs, delivered in partnership with Harvard’s School of Public Health, has been a huge success in South Africa because it is based on African youth understanding and trusting each other. Our job at Be The Change International and Siyafundisa is to give community youth leaders the facts about HIV/AIDS, how to prevent its spread, and how to care for loved ones living with the disease. Once armed with the facts, the youth leaders do the rest – they promise to share the facts with their peers, who in turn promise share the facts with their peers. We’re reaching thousands of youth and creating an explosion of awareness that will help eradicate the spread of the disease in our lifetime.”

Lee continued, “No one understands the power of peer relationships more than Corey. His chart-topping rankings for unsigned artists on MySpace.com are largely due to peer promotion from within his fan base. He connects. He can have fun with the best, but he can also sense when someone needs help and would give you the shirt off his back if you needed it – he’s real. He has a remarkable musical gift, but truthfully, his ability to connect to people, and his desire to reach out and help others live a better life, is an equally remarkable gift.”  Smith responded by saying, "I like to think that most us want to make the world a better place. The problem is that we don't always know how.  So I count it a great privilege to be working alongside talented people who understand how to make a difference and have invited me to be a part of it by doing something that I love -- making music." 
 

Visit bethechangeinternational.org for more information, to download the new version of Corey’s song, “Be the Change” and to make a donation to Be the Change International’s programs.  
 

For further information, please contact

Pam Kearney - Be the Change International: 904.355.0000 | This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or

Marty Winsch - Mountain Entertainment: 864.962.8220 | This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it