Two individuals joined together for a greater cause. Both from Hampton University, located in Virginia; Tina Fernandez – Class of 1989, and Les Allen, Jr. – Class of 1990, came together and formed The Eleven13 Foundation. The mission of the foundation is to uplift young blacks by providing scholarships for HBCU students, providing leadership development training, financial literacy training, and entrepreneurship training. They seek to help the youth obtain a mindset of living for God and their fellowman. Since 2019, the foundation has been hosting the “HBCU Friends and Family Pre-Holiday Mixer” in December and the “HBCU Friends in Family Weekend'' in April (the next one is on April 15, 2023). These events/fundraisers bring together members of Divine 9 organizations and supporters of Historically Black Colleges and Universities. The events have been supported by the local alumni of universities such as Bethune Cookman, FAMU, Hampton, Howard, Spelman, Morehouse, Tuskegee, BCU, and Xavier. Les is a life member of The Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Inc. and Tina is a life member of The Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. Both were initiated at Hampton University. You can find out about the foundation, its events, and how you can support it at www.theeleven13foundation.org.
