About the Event
·
Lip Sync Plus is a two part lip-syncing
extravaganza benefitting the MIFA/MLGW Plus-1 Program which provides utilities
assistance for families in crisis.
·
LipSync Plus Online – Online competition where
anyone 21 and over can upload a video to lipsyncplus.com, and where the
community will vote for their favorite contestant to compete at Lipsync Plus Grand
Championship.
·
Four online winners will compete with local
celebrities for the title of Grand Champion.
·
Celebrities lipsyncers are: Mayor Jim Strickland; Musician Al Kapone;
Food Network Star Gina Neely; Talkshow Host Bev Johnson and Mark “It’s All
Good” Goodfellow.
·
The live event is scheduled for Thursday, April
14 from 7-10 pm at Hard Rock Café
·
Community champion prize is a downtown Memphis
“Staycation”
·
Tickets are $50
About Plus-1
· Created in 1982,
the Plus-1 program is a partnership between MIFA and MLGW that provides utility
assistance for families in crisis.
·
Memphis Light, Gas and Water customers fund the
program through one-time donations or by adding a dollar or more to their
utility bill each month.
· Funds are
administered by the Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association (MIFA) to pay utility services for people in need due to temporary,
unavoidable loss of income.
·
Customers living in Shelby County are eligible
for assistance once every two years after documenting crisis such as
debilitating illness or recent unemployment occurred within last 90 days.
·
Eligibility is not based on income. Top reasons
for assistance requests include: Loss of income due to employment and medical
crisis. The most requested reason for seniors is medication expenses.
·
Plus-1 raised over $370,000 in FY15.
Approximately 13,000 customers—or roughly 2.5% of the total population MLGW
serves.
·
Last fiscal year, MIFA received almost 17,000
requests for financial assistance, but because of the program's limited funds,
less than 3,000 of these families received Plus-1 assistance.
·
Often loss of utilities is the first step to
homelessness
·
If each MLGW customer contributes $1 over 20,000
families could be assisted.
·
Last year, 90% of the 2,409 families helped by
Plus-1 were still connected to their utilities after 90 days, and 80% were
connected after 180 days.
How Does Plus-1 Work
·
MLGW acts as a collection agency for Plus-1, and
forwards all money received directly to MIFA each month. In turn, MIFA
administers the funds and cooperates with other agencies to see that assistance
reaches those with the greatest need.
·
The Plus-1 program offers one-time assistance.
It serves as a "stop gap" measure to those in need, not an on-going
source of assistance.
About the Partners
·
MIFA (Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association) was
created in 1968 by church and community leaders in the wake of Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr.’s assassination, to confront issues of poverty, hunger, and
social division in Memphis.
·
MLGW is the nation's largest three-service
municipal utility, serving nearly 421,000 customers. Since 1939, MLGW has met
the utility needs of Memphis and Shelby County residents by delivering safe, reliable
and affordable electricity, natural gas and water service.
·
Since 1997, Hard Rock Cafe Memphis has been
located on Beale Street – the heart of our nation’s music capital where it is a
haven for fans of music, food, and great times. Since the company’s founding
1971, it has been committed to a wide range of philanthropic causes and
activities around the World and is guided by their goal to make the Earth a
safer, healthier and better place for all.
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