VYT Benefit Concert--Jordin Sparks and Chelsea Staub

"American Idol" winner Jordin Sparks headlined a lineup of Valley Youth Theatre alumni at a benefit concert for the company that helped them ease on down the road toward stardom.

Also appearing at the May 31 show was Emma Stone, who starred in the films "Superbad" and "The House Bunny"; Max Crumm, whose road to Broadway went through the TV show "Grease: You're the One That I Want!"; and Disney Channel actress Chelsea Staub ("Jonas," "Bratz: The Movie").The four young celebs will be reuniting after performing together in Valley Youth Theatre's production of "The Wiz" in 2003. The concert also will mark the company's 20th anniversary.

Picture of Jordin Sparks getting ready for benefit, she posted on her twitter page. Still looking for a picture of Chelsea Staub.

Letter from the Editor-December 1, 2008---Selections for the month

Hello V.I.T.s,

Welcome back from Thanksgiving. We hope you had a great Thanksgiving. Ours was great except we all got sick. It is not fun being sick, but it was great to take some time off and spend it with our friends and families and overeat. We are still eating turkey left-overs, when will it end? Soon-or we will get sick again.

We would like to announce our selections for the month of December. Our Tween/Teen for the month of December is Lindsay Giambattista from Taylor's Closet. This seventeen year old started a boutique for foster girls where they could select high end fashionable clothing for free. She is amazing and what a great role model. We love her. Our Celebrity of the month is Jordin Sparks, she is an amazing singer and she has done some incredible things at such a young age. Our Charity of the month is 10,000 Girls. We selected 10,000 Girls because Viola Vaughn the founder was one of the CNN Heroes for 2008 and her organization is awesome. She is helping girls succeed in school in Kaolack, Senegal. What an inspiration Viola is!

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dekoposh, Inc. Team

Jordan Sparks helps in Fighting Malaria in Africa

Jordin “Sparks” an Interest in Fighting Malaria in Africa
American Idol Winner Travels to Ghana during the President and First Lady’s Trip to Africa

Accra, GHANA—American Idol Winner Jordin Sparks will make an appearance during the President and Mrs. Bush’s trip to Ghana tomorrow, in an effort to highlight malaria’s devastating effect on mothers and children throughout Africa. Last year’s Idol Gives Back charity special educated tens of millions of Americans about the malaria crisis in Africa and raised more than $17 million to fight malaria in Africa.

19 Entertainment/Jive Records artist Jordin Sparks will visit Ghana during the President and Mrs. Bush’s five-nation trip to Africa to observe the progress of the United States’ programs fighting HIV/AIDS, malaria and other treatable diseases. Jordin will witness firsthand the importance of mosquito nets in preventing malaria deaths when she and Mrs. Bush visit a health clinic and women’s nutrition center Wednesday afternoon and visit malaria programs funded by the U.S. President’s Malaria Initiative Thursday.

“Traveling to Ghana with Malaria No More gives me the incredible opportunity to see for myself what a difference a simple mosquito net can make in the life of a child,” said Sparks. “I’m so proud of the millions of American Idol fans who helped save lives through last year’s Idol Gives Back. I hope that my own fans will learn along with me as I discover more about this devastating disease and the simple steps we can all take to make malaria no more.”

Malaria kills more African children than any other disease: 3,000 each day and more than 1 million people each year. Yet recent studies in Ethiopia and Rwanda have shown that malaria deaths can be reduced by more than half through widespread use of mosquito nets and access to medicine. Thanks to private donations and corporate funds raised from Idol Gives Back, Malaria No More has protected more than two million mothers and children in five African countries with long-lasting insecticide treated mosquito nets this year.

“Jordin is an invaluable ally in the fight against malaria. She was first introduced to the malaria crisis while fulfilling her dream of becoming an American Idol,” said Martin Edlund, spokesperson for Malaria No More. “We hope that the millions of fans who are touched by her music will also be touched by her commitment to fighting this treatable and preventable disease so that countless African children will have the chance to grow up and make their own dreams come true.”

About Malaria No More
Malaria No More's mission is simple: to end deaths due to malaria. Malaria No More works to raise the profile of the disease among the public, policymakers, and businesses, while engaging the private sector to provide life-saving mosquito nets and other critical interventions to families in Africa. For more information please visit http://www.malarianomore.org/.

Source: Malaria No More