CITY Issue 58 - (Page 56) CITIZENS / EVERARD FINDLAY URBANE WARRIOR Everard Findlay dismantles the luxury of ignorance By Knox Robinson I t comes as no surprise that Everard Findlay has a kickboxing sensei. Like many New o ke s, the debonai Findlay gives the imp ession he’s always on the move, always engaged, always occupied, and always busy. But in his case, a ma tial a ts egimen is less about blowing off steam than it is the study of cla ity in action and cultivating a keen sense of balance in maintaining an enviable netwo k of c eative collabo ations, lumina y elationships, and well-p oduced events. t p esent Findlay is best known fo founding SFOTE (Special F iends Of The Ea th), a combination think tank, out each mission, and communitybased o ganization with global each — to call it a social o ganization is at once unde statement and bull’s eye desc iption. SFOTE’s fi st p oject add essed inequity in T inidad, whe e some , families live packed in the impove ished a ea of Laventille. Findlay and l Go e’s economic adviso D . E ic Hansen met with Laventille esidents, and as they so ted th ough the litany of c ime, joblessness, pove ty, d ug use, and teen p egnancy in the community, they ealized that while T inidad has f ee public education, many families in Laventille lacked t anspo tation to the closest high schools. With the simple goal of physically getting young people to school via designated p ivate buses, Findlay and company staged a se ies of awa eness- aising events in T inidad and New o k (including a T ibeca G and fund aise with pe fo mances f om TV On The Radio, Santogold, and Gang Gang Dance), SFOTE to date has aised money fo six buses in Laventille. LIKE MANY NEW YORKERS, THE DEBONAIR FINDLAY GIVES THE IMPRESSION THAT HE'S ALWAYS ON THE MOVE, ALWAYS ENGAGED, ALWAYS OCCUPIED, AND ALWAYS BUSY 56 CITY TY ///// / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALIYA NAUMOFF
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