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ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The Alexandria branch of the NAACP will hold its 93rd annual Freedom Fund Dinner on Thursday, Oct. 1, honoring Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones, Mayor Alyia Gaskins and the Black and Missing Foundation.
The dinner will be held at The Satire, the hotel at 625 First St. formerly known as Hotel AKA. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and dinner begins at 7 p.m., followed by a program of awards. This year's theme is "Breaking Barriers for the Next Generation."
Jones, who was sworn in Jan. 17 as the commonwealth's 49th attorney general and its first Black attorney general, will deliver remarks.
The branch will present its Breaking Barriers Award to Gaskins, Alexandria's first Black woman to serve as mayor, and to the Black and Missing Foundation, the national organization founded by Natalie and Derrica Wilson to draw attention and resources to missing people of color.
"The Freedom Fund Dinner is more than a fundraising event, it is a celebration of our collective progress and a call to continue the work that remains before us," branch President Darrlynn Franklin said in the announcement.
Gaskins said in the same announcement that the Freedom Fund reflects the organization's mission of investing in future leaders and expanding opportunity, and described the Alexandria NAACP as a longstanding pillar of advocacy in the city.
A partnership on the venue
The branch credited Visit Alexandria with helping secure this year's location. Todd O'Leary, the organization's president and chief executive, said Visit Alexandria was proud to partner on the dinner and pointed to the community's values of inclusion and diversity.
Early sponsors include Councilwoman Sandy Marks, the law firm McDermott Will & Schulte and Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va.
Beyer, whose 8th District includes Alexandria, said in the announcement that he was glad to support a chapter he described as having advanced equality and justice both locally and nationally.
How to attend
Individual tickets are $200 and include a seated dinner, open bar and live entertainment along with the awards program. Valet parking is available on site and is not included in the ticket price. Tickets are available through the branch's ticketing page, which also offers a pay-what-you-can giving option for those who cannot attend.
The branch says seating is limited and is encouraging early purchases.
Sponsorship opportunities remain available. Freedom Fund Dinner Chair John Hopkins-Gillispie can be reached at john.heflin2012@gmail.com or 703-278-2871. More information is posted at alexandrianaacp.org.
About the branch
The NAACP's Alexandria branch, chartered as Branch 7043, has held the Freedom Fund Dinner annually for more than nine decades, making it one of the longest-running civic traditions in the city. Freedom Fund dinners are the NAACP's signature fundraising events nationally, supporting branch programs in civil rights advocacy, education and youth development.
