Houston, Texas – February 13, 2018 – As part of its international program theme, “Launching New Dimensions of Service,” Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated® will sponsor “29 Moments of Service” worldwide, ahead of its biennial conference in Houston where more than 25,000 members are expected to converge this summer.

“Since its founding in 1908 at Howard University, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority has been committed to providing community service and making a difference,” said International President Dorothy Buckhanan Wilson. “We intend to make an impact in Houston and communities around the world and globe.”

Led by six undergraduate and fifteen graduate host chapters in Houston metro, the Sorority kicked-off the 29 service projects during the Sorority’s recent Founders’ Day in Washington, DC. Hundreds of members from the Houston Metropolitan area descended on Washington, D.C. and Howard University to host two service projects in the city where the Sorority was founded in 1908. Members from Houston hosted the We Feed Our People service project, packaging more than 1,908 bagged meals for homeless citizens in the Washington, D.C. area. A check for $1,908 was also presented to the agency to assist with its ongoing efforts. Members also distributed 110 grocery bags of healthy food and snacks to students at Howard University. Also, in January, during the Houston Metropolitan Area Founders’ Day celebration, Houston area members collected $19,008 to purchase infant formula for L.I.F.E Houston. The fourth service project kicked off in partnership with the City of Houston – the Complete Communities Initiative, where members began work to revitalize a neighborhood under the city’s initiative.

On February 24 at 1 p.m., the Sorority will host a community garden project at The Community Garden at the Park at Palm Center (5400 Griggs @ Beekman, Houston). In addition to the dedication, there will be cooking demonstrations and garden tours. The greenhouse will be named the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated® Greenhouse.

Over the next two years, the local chapters have pledged to commit volunteer manpower to manage the community garden, sponsor a farmer’s market that will donate food to the local community and recruit students, churches, law enforcement and civic groups to work with the garden.

The community garden initiative is currently being implemented by chapters across the country through a $100,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Each of the sorority’s ten regions received a $10,000 grant to develop a community garden to provide fresh fruit and vegetables in neighborhoods that are often food deserts without access to healthy and affordable produce.

Additional service projects will be held over the next several months, concluding with the final projects in July at the conference in Houston.

Houston was selected as the host site for the conference because of its historical significance to the Sorority. The city is home to two former International Presidents, Mattelia B. Grays and Faye B. Bryant, two prominent Houstonians, and retired educators. Grays, the sorority’s 18th president, served from 1970-1974 and was the youngest person ever elected National President. She retired as District Superintendent of the Houston Independent School District (HISD).

Bryant, the sorority’s 21st president, served from 1982 to 1986. In 1998, Bryant became the first African American to serve as Deputy Superintendent for School Administration in the HISD. She retired from HISD as Executive Deputy Superintendent after 42 years of service.

In addition to service projects, members will engage in leadership training and development during the conference. Members from as far away as Germany, Japan, South Korea, Liberia, South Africa and Dubai are expected to attend what the sorority anticipates will be its largest attended conference in its 110-year history.

About Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated (AKA) is an international service organization that was founded on the campus of Howard University in Washington, D.C. in 1908. It is the oldest Greek letter organization established by African-American college-educated women. Alpha Kappa Alpha is comprised of nearly 300,000 members in 1,012 graduate and undergraduate chapters in the United States, Liberia, the Bahamas, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Germany, South Korea, Bermuda, Japan, Canada, South Africa and the Middle East. For more information on Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority and its programs, visit AKA1908.com.