THE DIRECTORS

Horatio M. Bennett is a native of Jamaica, West Indies. He started his mission for the proliferation of the Caribbean culture in 1971 when he created the then-annual Detroit Caribbean Carnival. He was a radio broadcaster with National Public Radio for 12 years and a talk show host for several Michigan-area radio stations. He was inducted into the MetroTimes Music Hall of Fame in 1984 and received the ‘Spirit of Detroit’ award. In 2018 he was presented with the JUAM Legacy Award.
Horatio was blessed with other commendations, including a Commendation from a sitting governor of Michigan, Recognition Certification from the Detroit City Council, the West Indian-American Association, and the Caribbean Carnival Organization Appreciation Certification. Along with his wife, Natasha, he published the Caribbean SourceNews for 18 years, and are now both Directors of the Horatio and Natasha Bennett Foundation – a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Horatio is a Cancer and West Nile Virus survivor; thus making their humanitarian commitment even more viable.
Natasha Bearden-Bennett, a Detroit native, is an educator/interventionist with degrees in education in both Michigan and Georgia. She was co-publisher of the SourceNews, a published author, a singer/musician, and an actress- appearing on the Tyler Perry’s House of Payne. She has her own global website: (www.PleaseHelpMyGrades.com) – a FREE instructional medium for elementary and middle school students; ideal for home-schooled students (foreign & domestic), and a support for parents. Ms. Bearden was recently awarded a Certificate of Appreciation from the Jamaican United Association of Michigan (JUAM) for "…Exceptional Achievement and Outstanding Contribution to the Improvement of Relations between Caribbean and African-American nationals..."
The Bennetts have published several books including “How to be a good person without being religious" and "A Second Chance, Unleashing the Power of Good" (Perfect bound, audio CD, audio MicroSD for cellphone, and a movie script). All version available on www.BenTashBooks.Org and on Amazon.
The Bennetts are dedicated and totally committed to building the first Caribbean-American Museum and Cultural Center to serve as a testament to the achievements of Caribbean-American living in the United States. The Cultural Center will serve as a venue for clothing and feeding the homeless and destitute, and to provide 'after-school' programs for young adults seeking to prolong their academic pursuits and assist in employment upon completion.
The story which started it all
– Paying It Forward!

The idea of The Horatio and Natasha Bennett Foundation was birthed in 2010 from a single act of kindness shown to them on a lonely stretch of highway in Tennessee. One night the Bennetts were taking one of their frequent trips to Detroit from their residence in McDonough, Georgia, when their car broke down. Standing by the roadside wondering their next move and options: should they contact relatives in Detroit – over 600 miles away or call for someone in McDonough – 372 miles – to come rescue them.
Well, as they pondered in the semi-darkness of the Tennessee hills a big black Ford Explorer approached and slowed. They watched the car passed them then made a U-turn and pulled up beside them. The driver, a man, either of an American, Arab or Asian descent rolled down his window and asked if they needed help. They were at first hesitant, they told him they could use a ride to the nearest service station. The man opened the car door and when the cautious couple peeped in they saw a lady sitting on the passenger side and two young children sitting in the back seat. “Safe enough,” they thought. They drove for about three blocks when the driver asked where were they from. They told him they lived in McDonough, Georgia, and were going to Detroit, Michigan to visit family and friends. The driver told them he once lived in McDonough and did recognize the street in McDonough on which the Bennetts lived. As the conversation went, the wife asked if the couple would like to be driven home, to McDonough. To make this story short, they readily accepted and that family drove their big Ford Expedition 372 miles into Georgia and pulled into their driveway.
As the grateful couple exited they pulled out a $100-dollar bill and offered it to the man whose name they now completely forgotten. The man refused to accept the money, telling the startled couple his act of helping us was his blessing, and with that he drove off, never even looking back.
The Bennetts were still in shock but came to the realization that they had met a family of ‘angels,’ or at the least, some very good persons. It was then and there that Horatio and Natasha Bennett pledged they would never see another in need and not offer our help. That same month the ‘Good Person Network,’ started; a nonprofit organization in which people were encourage ‘to help one to help others!’
This story was included in one of the Bennett’s latest books, "How to be a Good person without being religious" (www.BenTashBooks.Org).
At any given time, in the dead of Winter or in the heat of Summer you can see the Bennetts on the streets of Detroit handing out free blankets and care packages to the homeless and destitute; a project financed from their own values.
Today the Horatio and Natasha Bennett Foundation - a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization - is wholly, totally and fully dedicated to
'… “Do all the good it can,
in all the ways it can,
to all the souls it can,
in every place it can,
at all the times it can,
with all the zeal it can,
as long as ever it can...”
(paraphrase, John Wesley 1703-1791)
The Bennetts are still trying to locate the family after all these years, and hoped someday, somehow they will see this site and contact them, not only to be properly thanked for their unselfish act of kindness but to join them in their commitment of "helping one to help others...!" - A 'movement' they invariably motivated that fateful evening on that lonely stretch of road leading to Detroit - or McDonough, Georgia.
The Bennetts are nominated to receive the SEENMagazine LifeChangers Award for their 'Civic Service, 2019' (link)
The Horatio and Natasha Bennett Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit foundation, licensed by the State of Michigan, and regularly gives free blankets and care packages to the homeless, especially women and US Veterans in the Detroit and surrounding areas. The 'Caring Project' is to distribute blankets and care packages (soap, toothbrushes, blankets) to homeless and destitute people on the streets.
The Foundation also will continue to give blankets to the Detroit Rescue Mission, Cass Community Service, and C.O.T.S, a center catering to mostly homeless and abused women and children.
The Bennetts, both seasoned public speakers, are available to speak at civic, religious and social events.
Email them at hnbfoundation@usa.com
The HNB Foundation now has a broad-based purpose and commitment -
with concentration on two principal objectives:
Changing the Face of Hopelessness.
Feeding the hungry, helping the homeless and caring for the destitute. The HNB Foundation has been distributing food, blankets and care packages for many years, and supports COTS, Detroit Rescue Mission, NSO and The Cass Community Center.
Nurturing and assisting in helping elementary students with homework,
peers and parent challenges, and creating ‘after-school’ events.
The HNB Foundation has created a free online instructional website on which elementary students from all over the world can get assistance with their school challenges, either educational or personal, or both. This website is also available to ‘home-schooled’ students and parents.
There is a HNB Foundation board director assigned to each of the two principal objectives.
The The HNB Foundation is a 501(c)3 organization and will provide a tax-exempt receipt for all contributions made.
with concentration on two principal objectives:
Changing the Face of Hopelessness.
Feeding the hungry, helping the homeless and caring for the destitute. The HNB Foundation has been distributing food, blankets and care packages for many years, and supports COTS, Detroit Rescue Mission, NSO and The Cass Community Center.
Nurturing and assisting in helping elementary students with homework,
peers and parent challenges, and creating ‘after-school’ events.
The HNB Foundation has created a free online instructional website on which elementary students from all over the world can get assistance with their school challenges, either educational or personal, or both. This website is also available to ‘home-schooled’ students and parents.
There is a HNB Foundation board director assigned to each of the two principal objectives.
The The HNB Foundation is a 501(c)3 organization and will provide a tax-exempt receipt for all contributions made.
Helping One to Help Others
VOLUNTEERISM:
hnbfoundation@usa.com