Grab your sister friends and experience "Dada Rafiki: The Women Gather" tonight!

"Dada Rafiki: The Women Gather" presented by Annie Ruth and Cincinnati Arts Association is a multicultural and empowering celebration, sharing stories of inspirational women in our community through music, song, drumming, dance and spoken word.

This year marks the 13th anniversary of this life-affirming and inspirational event and will honor 13 extraordinary women in our community through art. Dada Rafiki means “sister friend” in Swahili.

Here are the 2018 Dada Rafiki Honorees:

• Deborah Mariner Allsop — Families Forward
• Suzy DeYoung — LaSoupe Cincinnati
• Verline Dotson — Cincinnati Hamilton County Community Action Agency
• Prerna Gandhi — student, University of Cincinnati
• Dr. Shelley Jefferson Hamler — The Cincinnati (OH) Chapter, The Links, Incorporated
• Janelle S. Hocker — Nella's Place, Inc.
• The Rev. Paula M. Jackson, Ph.D. — Church of Our Saviour/La Iglesia de Nuestro Salvador, Episcopal
• Bo-Kyung Kim Kirby — Northern Kentucky University & The Cincinnati Opera
• Barbara J. Lynch — New Jerusalem Baptist Church & First Ladies for Health
• Baba Charles Miller, Baba of Honor — Drums for Peace
• Evelyn Sears — Hamilton County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board
• Khrys Styles — K.A.S.S.I.E. Project
• Stevie Swain — Swain Consulting, LLC & CinCWN
• Carla Walker — Think Big Strategies, LLC

Founder and creator of this celebration, Annie Ruth is an internationally respected poet, visual artist, author, and arts educator right here in Cincinnati. She will also debut original interpretive poetry called "The Women Gather," which combines genres of dance, spiritual, hip-hop, African and modern dance, and spoken word. Featured artists for the event include: New York Times award-winning author and poet Sharon M. Draper; Cincinnati Opera guest soloist, Psalmist, and songwriter Andrea P. Thomas; acclaimed dancer/choreographer Jacqueline McClure; and BAOKU Moses, world-class Afro-fusion music powerhouse. Courtis Fuller, WLWT News Anchor, will be your host for the evening.

Event details: Friday, October 19 | 7 p.m. | Aronoff Center for the Arts

Click here for more information and to purchase your tickets to the event.