The establishment of the foundation was in 2008. The type of organization is an independent foundation. The mission of the organization is to instill proper manhood principles in young men, enabling them to succeed in life, be good parents and partners, and better men that are strong emotionally, financially and politically. However, the foundation also caters to young women. The purpose for young girls is to mentor them to know the necessity of educational achievement, cultural enrichment and a positive self-image. The purpose of the organization is to ensure it provides a means to meet the needs of children through development programs and community organization that fosters health, education, diversity and social well-being (The Steve Harvey Foundation Website, 2017).
Steve Harvey is the organization’s founder. He is an actor and comedian, famous for his popular talk show, ‘The Steve Harvey Show’. He is also a host for the ‘Steve Harvey morning show’. He is also the creator of the popular TV series, ‘Family Feud’ (Steve Harvey, 2016). In addition, he is also a famous author of books such as ‘Act like a Lady, Think like a Man’, which also has a movie about it. Other famous books by the author are ‘Straight talk, no chaser’, ‘Act like a Success, Think like a success’ and ‘Jump: take a leap of faith’. The co-founder of the organization is his wife, Marjorie Harvey. The headquarters of the foundation are in Atlanta, USA. The venues for the mentorship programs events were in various regions such as Los Angeles and Houston. The presence of these locations depends on the branches of the foundation partner, Choice hotels and its subsidiaries.
The program aims to ensure that young men and women get access to education through scholarship, families with mothers as single parents get grants to support the family and youth mentorship programs that will allow the youths to have mentors that will assist them to develop better moral values and standards to become better people in the society and country. The role models will set positive examples that the youths are likely to imitate in real life. The target audience for the foundation is youths between 13-18 years. Since the opening of the foundation, the organization has assisted more than 200 households and influenced over 1,500 youths (Choice Hotels Inc., 2016).
The organization heads two programs which are ‘The Steve Harvey Mentoring Young Men Weekend’, created by Harvey and ‘Girls who Rule the World’ Mentoring Weekend, started by his wife, Marjorie. The first Young Men’s mentoring program assists them to realize their potential and plan for the future. It also equips them with skills that will allow them to be strong, productive and responsible. The program runs for four days and three nights. The Girls who Rule the World Mentoring Weekend program aims to develop young girls so that they can realize their self-worth. The program runs for three days and two nights.
The foundation also partners with other organizations to ensure that it achieves the goals of the program. For example the AT&T Aspire mentorship academy. It allows the youths to participate in quarterly skill building sessions throughout the year. It equips them with skills ranging from public speaking that encourages self-expression to technical skills such as computer use (The Steve Harvey Foundation Website, 2017).
The foundation had positively affected the youths over the years since it opened. The members of the organization have received a wide range of opportunities. For example, Girls who rule the world program develop a ‘girls going global’ travel camp that exposes the girls to different cultures in various regions. It allows them to experience adventure, attain knowledge and get transformational experiences. All the youth who participate in the activities of the foundation get a certificate when they graduate at the end of the year (The Steve Harvey Foundation Website, 2017).
The organization is an independent foundation, meaning that it relies heavily on donations to run its operations. It is where the community comes in to assist it. The foundation hosts charity events such as Charity Golf Classic in Las Vegas and the Ride for Charity benefit to get donations from businesses and supporters. In addition, the Foundation created by Harvey and his wife does have a website with a section where users can donate money online or through mobile payment. The foundation collects more than 70,000$ annually through these methods (Choice Hotels Inc., 2016).
The community also helps the foundation by volunteering. It heavily relies on volunteers to organize and handle the mentorship programs. The volunteers are also mentors for the youths. Each year the foundation introduces new mentors to the members, who will train them and guide them. Examples of such volunteers are such as officers who are in the military, leaders of the community, professional and famous athletes, and prominent businesspeople. The names of such people are like Duane Ferre and Steve Joyce.
Another important component of the community is businesses. Big firms also are major money donors for the foundation. For example, the most distinguished partner of the Steve and Marjorie Organization in the Choice hotel. It is the highest donor to the foundation giving it more than 250,000 dollars to the cause annually. The money assists the organization with expenses for program activities. They also assist to set up venues to conduct the event. Many functions of the organizations are in regions where there are Choice Hotel Branches and subsidiaries. The hotel even hosts the mother of the participants. In addition, it provides complementary services such as free Wi-Fi and breakfast to the mother and the youths for free (Choice Hotels Inc., 2016).
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There are many positive testimonies regarding the foundation. The young men state they learn how to be positive in life, to be successful and beat the odds and challenges in life. The program exposes the girls to new environments where they can learn new skills such as archery and rock climbing to build their endurance (Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation, 2013, 2015). The program creates a positive impact on children each year. For many it is an opportunity for the youths to better their lives on an educational, personal and professional level.
- Choice Hotels Inc. (2016). Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation 8th Annual Mentorship Program Draws Continued Support from Choice Hotels and Other Supporters for Fatherless Young Men.
- Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation (2013). #MentoringWorks: Steve Harvey Mentoring Mentee Testimonials.
- Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation (2015). Girls Who Rule the World Mentoring Camp 2015: Highlights.
- Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation (2017).
- Steve Harvey (2016).
- The Steve Harvey Foundation Website (2017).