Denzel
Washington - left, and LeBron James,
second from right at the BGCA’s 64th
National Youth of The Year Dinner
Washington,
D.C., USA - On September 20,
Pan United Youth Movement out of
Maryland performed for the Boys &
Girls Club of America’s (BGCA) 64th
National Youth of The Year Dinner at
Hyatt Regency Washington,
Washington, D.C. In attendance
was the national spokesman for the Boys & Girls
Club of America, Denzel Washington, who
- for
their contributions to and support
of the organization - honored basketball star LeBron James,
fellow BGCA alum and Grammy
Award-winning recording artist
Ashanti, and former Happy Days’ star
and Academy Award-winning director
and producer Ron Howard.
Pan United Youth Movement (PUYM)
partnered with
the Boys and Girls Club of the Blue
Ridge last September and has
already made a huge impact for the
youth of Martinsville, Virginia.
Pan
United Youth Movement
performs
at BGCA Dinner Gala |
|
PUYM's
founder and director Shawn
Thwaites
with the group |
PUYM
provided dinner music for the
patrons and had the celebs grooving
to the sounds of the steel orchestra. Ashanti came up to
take a lesson on the double second
played by Khadim Mbake.
PUYM’s
Khadim Mbake gives Ashanti a
quick lesson on the double
second steelpan instrument; PUYM Director
Shawn Thwaites looks on in
background
Founder and director of PUYM
Shawn
Thwaites was very proud of the
group’s accomplishments, and honored
to have been a part of the event as
ambassadors for Pan.
Members of
Pan United Youth Movement at the
BGCA’s 64th
National Youth of The Year Dinner
Thwaites traveled out the next day
to join D.C.-based Muslim Hip Hip group
Native Deen on a Middle Eastern and
African tour. Equally
versatile and well-known sibling, musician
Sherwin
Thwaites - who is also instrumental
in PUYM - departed the day before
with Native Deen. The two talented
Thwaites return to US shores on
October 3.
All images provided by Shawn
Thwaites
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