Toyota Celebrates Minnie's Food Pantry And Gives YOU The Gift Of FREE Tickets To See The Texas Legends Play On March 9th

I love bringing you a good, wholesome, family outing. The only thing I love more is a FREE wholesome family outing! North Texas families are invited to join Minnie's Food Pantry for a night of fun and philanthropy on March 9th when the Texas Legends take on the Northern Arizona Suns. In celebration of the 9th anniversary of Minnie's Food Pantry, Toyota is generously sponsoring the evening so that families can enjoy this exciting evening at NO CHARGE. Attendees will have the chance to hear the dynamic founder of Minnie's Food Pantry, Dr. Cheryl "Action" Jackson, speak during the game's halftime show about the growing epidemic of hunger that affects hundreds of North Texas citizens on a daily basis and the work that Minnie’s Food Pantry does to provide food assistance to children and families in need. 

Toyota supports Minnie's Food Pantry. You should too! 

Over the past 9 years, Minnie's Food Pantry has served over 6 million meals and with your help they will be able to feed many more! Texas Legends will "pass-the-bucket" around the arena during halftime to help fund the their mission to eradicate hunger in North Texas. Every dollar donated will provide three meals through Minnie's Food Pantry!

The Texas Legends are an NBA Development League team based in Frisco, Texas and the minor league affiliate of the Dallas Mavericks. Discover the NBA stars of tomorrow and support the work of Minnie's Food Pantry on this special night!

Tickets are available by visiting texas.dleague.nba.com/minnies-food-pantry-night-driven-by-toyota/

Cookie Johnson Brings Her Brand of Magic To Dallas With New Book

Photos c/o Jai Carol & Co.


Cookie Johnson and Pat Smith have much in common: they are both married to high-profile athletes (Earvin "Magic" Johnson and Emmitt Smith respectively), they are both deeply connected to their Christianity, they are both Mothers who dote on their children and as of this year... they are both book authors. Cookie and Magic hosted a book party in Los Angeles for Pat earlier this year when she was on tour for her debut tome Second Chances, so when Cookie's book Believing in Magic was recently released Pat couldn't wait to return the favor. In her new memoir, Cookie shares details of her marriage, motherhood, faith, and how an HIV diagnosis twenty-five years ago changed the course of their lives forever. On November 7, 1991, basketball icon Earvin “Magic” Johnson stunned the world with the news that he was HIV-positive. For the millions who watched, his announcement became a pivotal moment not only for the nation, but his family and wife. Twenty-five years later, Cookie Johnson shares her story and the emotional journey that started on that day—from life as a pregnant and joyous newlywed to one filled with the fear that her husband would die, she and her baby would be infected with the virus, and their family would be shunned. Believing in Magic is the story of her marriage to Earvin nearly four decades of loving each other, losing their way, and eventually finding a path they never imagined. November 7, 2016 will mark a quarter-century since the announcement and Cookie is now finally ready to share her full account of the reasons that she stayed and her life with Earvin “Magic” Johnson.

Why Was Ellen DeGeneres Knocking On Cheryl "Action" Jackson's Door?

This is exactly how I answer the door when the Girl Scouts come by.

A video posted by Ellen (@theellenshow) on May 10, 2016 at 7:38pm PDT

Two of my favorite people on the planet are in this clip: Ellen DeGeneres and Cheryl "Action" Jackson. Both are amazing women who inspire others, both give endlessly of themselves to others, both have a wicked sense of humor and both have hearts the size of Texas. Ellen DeGeneres you already know all about: TV talk show host, actress, humanitarian, spokesperson. If you don't know Cheryl, let me introduce you.

The Cheryl "Action" Jackson Show Debuts Saturday, February 6

Cynthia Smoot with Dr. Cheryl Jackson

Dr. Cheryl "Action" Jackson is not just a woman. She is an author, philanthropist, TV host, emcee, ambassador for Oprah's OWN community - a super human force of nature disguised as a mere mortal. You can get to know her through a new weekly TV show called (shocker) the Cheryl "Action" Jackson Show which will air on Verizon or you watch live online at the UA Network every Saturday at 7:30AM. "This platform will allow me to show viewers the faces and tell the stories of the people who are hungry in our community and the people who care about this community and are making a difference," says Jackson. In addition to the TV show, Jackson will be writing a regular feature for the Huffington Post called "People of Action" and integrating them into the show. I will be joining her every week for a feature called "Discover Dallas" where I bring you the hippest and hottest events, exhibits and shows coming up for the following week. On tomorrow's first episode, Cheryl introduces me to viewers and we chat about Decadence: Fashions of the 1920s at the Galleria.

My Day With Rihanna and Jim Parsons benefiting Minnie's Food Pantry

Jim Parsons and Rihanna at the red carpet premiere of HOME in Plano  |  Photo by Thomas Garza for OhSoCynthia.com

My head is still reeling from the craziness of the last 24 hours.  On Monday, I published a post about Cheryl "Action" Jackson - the angel behind Minnie’s Food Pantry (MFP), a family-run nonprofit that has fed 4 million meals to the Plano community. She found out last week that she had won the "Good Morning America Brings 'Home' to Your Hometown" contest. The prize? A red carpet premiere of the new animated film HOME and a visit from two of the films stars. On March 17, Rihanna and Jim Parsons flew into town and spent the afternoon at MFP with Jackson before heading over to the movie premiere. So, where do I fit into all of this? I got a frantic call from one of Cheryl's friends on Monday night asking if I would be willing to spend the day with Cheryl and help her with her social media for the day. Obviously, she was going to be busy being the star of the show and wouldn't be able to post things for herself, but wanted Minnie's Food Pantry to benefit from the live tweeting/posting. I thought about it for a mili-second and said, "Duh! I am so in!".

Rihanna pledges funds to Minnie's Food Pantry

Every news station in town was camped outside of Minnie's Food Pantry to film the stars arrival but no one was allowed inside the facility for their visit, so I had exclusive access to not only these two mega-stars but was privy to their emotional tour of the place. It was so chaotic and crazy that I will just share some of the highlights with you:

After seeing Cheryl on GMA, an anonymous donor had made a very generous donation to MFP. Cheryl was so excited to show Rihanna and Jim how they had used the funds to stock the pantry with fresh fruits and veggies, milk and cheese and real bacon for their families. Turns out that "anonymous" donor was Rihanna and towards the end of their tour of the facility she was so impressed that she pledged even more money to continue to support their work to feel the hungry of North Texas.

Rihanna and Jim Parsons bring red carpet premiere of "Home" to Plano on March 17

Cheryl "Action" Jackson is the angel behind Minnie’s Food Pantry, a family-run nonprofit that has fed 4 million meals to the Plano community. On March 13, Rihanna, Steve Martin and Jim Parsons appeared on “Good Morning America” and informed her that she would get a red carpet premiere of their new animated movie “Home” in her hometown of Plano, Texas. Not surprisingly, Jackson screamed, cried and fanned her face at the news she won the "'GMA' Brings 'Home' to Your Hometown" contest. You can click here to see the whole hilarious ugly cry. LOL. “I just want to say that we are so amazed by the work that you've been doing in your community," Rihanna said. "We are inspired and we're so proud of you." Jackson started the food pantry in Plano in 2008. She named the pantry after her mother, Minnie, and, in the early days, when she donated her own food, had the mission to just serve as many people as she could. “If you can’t feed a hundred people, feed just one,” Jackson said.

DreamWorks Animation and 20th Century Fox in partnership with Good Morning America invite the public to attend the red carpet event on Tuesday, March 17 at the Cinemark West Plano. The red carpet will open at 4pm and the event will begin at 5pm. While some tickets will be given away, the public at large will primarily be there to cheer on the stars as they walk the red carpet into the theater. It may be the closest you ever get to Rihanna...

WHAT:   "HOME" Red Carpet Premier
WHEN:   March 17, red carpet opens at 4pm, festivities start at 5pm
WHO:     Rhianna, Jim Parsons and contest winner Cheryl "Action" Jackson will make a public red carpet appearance prior to a private screening of the film
WHERE:  Cinemark West Plano, 3800 Dallas Parkway, Plano, TX.

Source: GMA on Yahoo

If You Can't Feed 100, Feed Just ONE! Was The War Cry At The 6th AnnualMinnie’s Food Pantry Gala

DeVon Franklin and Meagan Good Franklin, Emmitt and Pat Smith, Kirk and Tammy Franklin, Cheryl and Artis Jackson (Photo: Pat Smith)

"If you can't feed a hundred... Feed just one." This is the motto of Minnie's Food Pantry under the guidance of founder Cheryl "Action" Jackson. Like her mentor, Oprah Winfrey, Jackson prides herself on being someone who doesn't just motivate but who moves people to activate so like a preacher ministering to her congregation, Jackson had attendees to her annual gala repeat that phrase throughout the night at the 6th Annual Charity Gala held on Monday, November 3, 2014 at the Westin Stonebriar Resort Hotel in Frisco.  As a little girl, her mother, Minnie Ewing, often wondered if and when she would receive her next meal. She painted the picture to Jackson of her grandmother walking for miles to work two jobs to provide food and shelter for their family. Jackson’s parents raised seven children. It seemed as though the doors to her home revolved like a store as she watched her parents distribute food, clothes, and most importantly their time and prayers to the community and members of their congregation.