Nonprofit Gives Away 100,000 Face Masks and 120,000 pounds of Food

Lane Harper is a COVID-19 hero. He is also a critically acclaimed actor in an off-Broadway stage play, and the movie “Justice on Trial” where he portrays civil rights activist, Medgar Evers.

Although he loves being an actor, his first love and main passion is giving back. After years of funding his own acts of service, Harper created the Power of Life Foundation nonprofit organization with the mission to help underserved populations empower themselves economically and socially, enhance their health and well-being, and assist them in overcoming hardships. This population includes serving women/children, veterans, transients, and at-risk youth.

Since the onset of COVID-19 virus, the Foundation’s goal has been focused on helping these populations flatten the curve of COVID-19 by providing free reusable cloth face masks, assisting with COVID-19 education, and providing nutritional food to help with food insufficiency.

Harper attended Alabama State University majoring in Criminal Justice. He holds a Black Belt in Karate. He also teaches self-defense classes and provides security training to law enforcement organizations and private entities around the country. Harper is currently a police officer and serves as an Instructor/Trainer for the Birmingham Police Department. He has served in the law enforcement field for more than 20 years. He is a member of the following organizations: • The Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) • The National Organization for Black Law Enforcement Executives (N.O.B.L.E.) • Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity The Power of Life Foundation serves citizens in Alabama, Florida and Georgia.

To date the Foundation has given away more than 100,000 free reusable cloth face masks, and over 120,000 pounds of food across the southeast United States. Most recently, the Foundation resolved to help the children of the McCall Family by providing masks and household goods for 12 children. The McCall children lost both of their parents to COVID-19 last fall, and are being raised by their aunt in Birmingham, AL.

Over the weekend, he took a break from his normal duties protecting Birmingham residents and took his mission to Florida to address the rising number of coronavirus cases. “When I’m driving, I get to meditate,” Harper said. “I get to strategically plan or picture how the event is going to go.” The event Harper hit the road for 300 miles away was helping people in Tallahassee, Florida battle coronavirus, where cases are surging again. “I want to bless that area where people know we’re effective and we can help flatten the curve in this particular area that will be in Tallahassee,” he said.

Accompanying Team Harper were volunteers like Ashley Wallace, who traveled to Florida with her sewing machine to stitch the last batch of cloth masks for his free mask giveway. “He’s definitely a helper and I guess I’m cut from the same cloth, so it was so nice to meet someone who was just as passionate about giving back,” Wallace said.

At the Leon County fairgrounds, Harper’s drive-thru mask giveaway resonated with the community. Cars showed up by the hundreds as people patiently waited in long lines to get the much-needed blessing. “We need this badly and you can tell by the number of people, they’ve been here parked since about 6:30 this morning to get in, it’s 9 o’clock now, we just opened up and the cars are wrapped around the fairgrounds here,” Leon County Sheriff Walt McNeil said. Harper partnered with Farm share that distributed 39,000 pounds of food and passed out milk, chicken, eggs and produce. “We’re reaching out to give them in a sweet way to give them a little hug that God got you, hang in there, we love you and we’re going to make it through this pandemic moment together,” Leon County Commissioner Bill Proctor said.

A total of 9,000 masks were handed out by Harper and his team in Tallahassee, leaving him with a sense of accomplishment as he returned to Birmingham. https://www.cbs42.com/good-news/birmingham-police-officer-travels-to-florida-capital-to-give-face-masks-to-those-in-need/

Photo Credit: Marvin Gentry BHam TImes.