Help us open our home studio

Growing up in San Francisco, I came from a very low-income family
where me and my brother were supported by our single parent mother, who had very little education and was forced to work several 9 to 5 jobs
such as waiting tables and cleaning houses in order to survive and
provide a space for us to live.
With a lack of parental guidance due to not having a father figure and my mother always working, I was never taught the importance of an
education or thinking of my future, so I fell through the cracks of the
schooling system and never really achieved anything higher than a
6th-grade education. I managed to find a passion in the art of dance and music and through sheer determination was able to create enough of a
living from it that I never had to resort to selling drugs or end up
homeless, which is where I have seen all of my childhood friends end up. I want to provide hope for kids that are going through similar situations
and let them know that there are opportunities to make a living and
provide for themselves through their passion for arts.

All support  is special because It helps us create space that caters to
underserved youth in the Eastbay and gives them a safe place to come
after school and learn useful skills that they can carry with them into
adulthood.

I decided to start FunkRock because I've always had a passion for
educating youth in the art of dance and music. I have made it my personal mission to give kids the opportunity to develop their creative potential or help them turn their passion into a profession. The biggest challenge I
have faced is acquiring enough funding to obtain a safe location, which in turn can help me reach more students and give them a place that they
can call home and grow as artists. My future goals for FunkRock are to
have numerous studio locations that will reach students who otherwise would not have an opportunity to participate in dance or music due to a
lack of income or access to such classes in their neighborhoods.
We predominantly (but not exclusively) serve underserved urban youth
from Oakland. I'm extremely proud of the students that I have reach thus far through FunkRock, and I know, given the means, I can reach and help so many more.

The $15,000 will help us secure and renovate a space so that we can have regular hours and grow our customer base. Although we have been
doing okay, it has been difficult without the extra funds to maximize the
potential of our mission-driven enterprise. This funding will take the
pressure off my personal finances as we try to expand and scale our
company.