Los Angeles, CA (Oct. 30, 2002) – On Thursday October 31, supermodel Tyra Banks and her Tzone camp for girls will be featured on an upcoming episode of LIFE MOMENTS, the new daily, one-hour reality series featuring relevant and inspirational stories by and about women and the pivotal moments in their lives. (LIFE MOMENTS is syndicated, check www.lifemoments.com for
listing information in your area).
The upcoming LIFE MOMENTS episode highlights the impact a weeklong stay at Tzone has on 13 year-old Shamanda Thomas, a southern California high school student who, prior to her affiliation with Tzone, was experimenting with drugs and falling behind in school.
“Tzone is really important for girls between the ages of 13 and 15 because it’s a time when there’s temptation and peer pressure,” says Banks. “So many girls feel like they’re alone, then they come here and realize they can excel.”
Founded in 2000 by The Tyra Banks Foundation to enhance independence and self-esteem among teenage girls, Tzone is free of charge and offers girls a special, one-week overnight summer camping experience. It aims to provide campers with an open forum for self-expression, to help them visualize personal goals, develop leadership skills and to motivate them to excel academically.
Emmy-Award winning network news anchor and reporter Asha Blake is the national host for LIFE MOMENTS, which is told in first-person narrative and shot on location across the country in a cinema-verite style. With stories that embody the human experience — from the miracle of birth, to the romance of weddings, to triumphs over adversity. LIFE MOMENTS debuted in September and women from around the country can submit their own life moments to the show’s website for consideration at www.LifeMoments.com.
A trailblazer for women of color in the fashion industry, Tyra Banks became the first black woman and the first model to be featured on the cover of GQ Magazine and Sports Illustrated. She has an exclusive contract with Victoria’s Secret Catalog and wrote her first book, ‘Tyra’s Beauty Inside & Out,’ published by HarperCollins in 1998. Tyra Banks film credits include, “Higher Learning,” and Jerry Bruckheimer’s “Coyote Ugly.”
One of the film’s most poignant segments features street ball legends Joe Hammond and Pee Wee Kirkland, who respectively symbolize opportunity lost and redirected potential. Both Hammond and Kirkland became famous in the renowned Harlem Rucker league. Hammond lacked the foresight to transition to a professional league and got too caught up in the street life, which hampered his ball game. However, Kirkland flipped the script when life threw him an errant bounce pass and has dedicated his time to schooling younger generations in fundamental basketball skills.