Big news, Dallas: This Saturday, March 4th, Big Thought is hosting its annual Big Night gala at The Factory in Deep Ellum.
During the Big Night, several North Texas community leaders will be honored for their commitment to service, leadership and their impact on the local community. There will also be a paddle-raise auction to benefit Big Thought, a Dallas-based nonprofit organization committed to providing arts and cultural opportunities to marginalized youth and communities.
Media personality and actress Bevy Smith will emcee the event. Known for his stints on shows like Bravo’s Fashion Queens and Amazon Prime’s Harlem, Smith wears many hats in the industry. But her favorite role is as a mentor.
“Being a mentor, to me, is really the ultimate giving back,” says Smith. “I was very fortunate from the age of about 18 to have a really amazing group of mentors. And those mentors I had when I was very young. The lessons they taught me and the opportunities I was given came to me because I was their mentee. I learn still, and I’m still growing because of those lessons and those opportunities.”
Smith himself has been mentoring young people for nearly two decades. Growing up in Harlem and having access to arts and cultural opportunities was crucial to her formative years.
Some of Smith’s fondest memories include visiting New York’s Museum Mile.
“It’s home to the Guggenheim, it’s home to the Met, it’s home to some of the greatest museums in the world,” Smith says. “So I grew up going to museums and knowing about art. But many of my peers did not have the same opportunities. Art is really a great liberating process for children. Art can teach them to use their imaginations, it can help them dare to dream, and it takes them and transports them to a place they’ve never been before, but might be able to imagine now.”
Also attending the Big Night will be Dallas Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence and his wife, Sasha, who will both serve as event hosts.
DeMarcus Larence first became involved with Big Thought last year, after meeting one of the leaders at a football game. He then had the opportunity to read to some of the children who have passed through the organisation.
“To actually be able to rally around the kids, it opened up my heart to want to do more in the community,” Lawrence says. “And seeing Big Thought’s track record and the sensational work they’ve done over the last 30 years, it was a no-brainer for me.”
The past year has been a big year for the athlete. Back in November, he launched DrinkSip, a non-alcoholic beer. As an athlete and entrepreneur, Lawrence hopes he can serve as an inspiration for kids who grew up in tough neighborhoods to tap into their creativity.
“To actually be able to rally around the kids, it opened my heart to want to do more in the community. And seeing Big Thought’s track record and the sensational work they’ve done over the last 30 years, it was a no-brainer for me.” – DeMarcus Lawrence
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“It’s another form of art, being able to understand the talents that God blessed you with and how you can use them in today’s life,” he says. “There are opportunities out here for you to live out your dreams, and we have to make sure we provide a safe space for the kids. As adults and leaders in our communities, we need to make sure we provide these safe spaces.”
During the Big Night, several local creative contributors will be honored with prizes. Oak Cliff’s Aria Jones will receive the Mitch Jericho Visionary Voice Award for her work as Big Thought’s Community Action Team site guide. The award honors a young person who has created their own path to success and made a positive impact in society.
The Gigi Antoni Courageous Creator Award, which recognizes an individual who has taken unique approaches to engender social change in society, will be presented to Roger Taylor, the director of pretrial assessment for the Dallas County Juvenile Center.
Dr. Michael Hinojosa, former superintendent of DISD, will be honored with the Edith O’Donnell Legacy Leadership Award for his work in youth leadership.
While Smith looks forward to attending the event, and of course checking out the museums and doing some shopping at Neiman Marcus while in Dallas, she mostly hopes to see a long-term impact as a result of her work with Big Night and Big Thought.
“We’re in a really troubling time right now with young people,” says Smith. “Many of them do not feel that they have a future ahead of them. And what I’ve found is that when you give kids the opportunity to just be, to explore, to learn something new that’s not tied to a test – when they just have the opportunity to be really free and creative, then they start to see that is a whole world out there that they can tap into, that they have access to, and that gives them hope.”
