By Jon Schuppe
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN — For months after Cynthia Kirkpatrick's death in November 2008, the future didn’t look good for the Sister Power Resource Center for Girls in East Harlem.
Kirkpatrick, who founded Sister Power in 1999 as a mentoring program for disadvantaged girls, was its heart and soul. And, suddenly, at 42, she was gone after developing complications from an illness.
“People thought the music stopped,” recalled Beverly Bradley, a martial arts instructor and the group's program director.
But eventually her staff and protégés found new motivation: to make her spirit last.
That’s why they named their upcoming fundraiser, “The Dream is Still Alive.” The wine-and-cheese reception will be held Thursday evening at the organization’s Fifth Avenue headquarters. The event will include testimonials from young women who went through the Sister Power program, and the dedication of the group’s library in Kirkpatrick's name.
Reservations cost $50 and will be available until noon Wednesday through the Sister Power Web site, www.sisterpower.org. Those unable to attend but who still wish to support the group may donate through the site as well.
The $50 tickets will go toward the group’s current schedule of after-school empowerment programs, which helps 31 girls from the ages of 8 to 18.
So far, Sister Power is less than a third of the way toward meeting its fundraising goal of $10,000.
