Calgary Black Chambers raises funds to support students

A special Black History Month event was held Friday night in Calgary to raise money for scholarships for black students.

In celebration of Calgary's Black History Month, the 2nd Annual Calgary Black Chambers Black History Month Dinner kicked off with a full house.

Money raised from the event goes to high school students and current post-secondary students going to university.

“We hope to raise $50,000 for the Calgary Black Chambers Legacy Scholarships. We have 10 of them and we will send five of them to the university for the black grade 12 and the other five will go to the university students,” he said.

Chamber founder and president Chi Iliya-Ndule says the organization's main goal is to make Calgary the fairest place for black people to live, work and play in Canada.

“When I found out we were sold, I was so happy I had tears in my eyes, people are really willing to put their money where their mouth is to help black kids get to where they want to be financially,” Iliya-Ndule told CityNews.

“I'm so overwhelmed and so grateful that they're all here to support this cause.”

Artist Jola Adeniji is helping raise funds for the scholarship fund by creating artwork that will be auctioned off during the event, which she says is a good way to give back to the community. The observance of Black History Month is significant for the Nigerian artist who has called Calgary home for about seven months.

“It's important to me because it feels like home, it's important to me because it's part of who I am, part of my culture, it's more like-minded people, it's just a way to say, 'Hey, we know a lot.' the way. Bad things happened in the past but we were understood and we recognized that we were equals,” Adenji said.

Essence Martinelli, who has organized the dinner for the past two years, said the room was full of black community members and allies, but noted the determination to continue giving voice to black students and others affected by racism.

“It's unfortunate, but systemic racism still exists and it's important for us to be aware of it,” he explained.

“There are unfortunate struggles that students still go through in public schools and private schools, so this really shines a light on making sure that the black community can really achieve their goals, hopes and dreams.”