Entrepreneur, Philanthropist Ebony Austin Donates to Metro Atlanta High School Band for Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade

Austin is a multi-millionaire entrepreneur, philanthropist, and HBCU advocate who owns five highly successful Nouveau restaurants with a Dallas location opening soon. She also launched a line of stone-ground grits available nationwide in 160 Publix grocery stores where all the proceeds go back to HBCU student scholarships. Overall, Austin has given back more than $100K in cash scholarships to HBCU students.

And she’s created more than 100 job opportunities for her community while holding an extensive real estate portfolio.

Austin recently announced the donation of $20,000 to metro Atlanta’s Jonesboro High School band to fulfill their dreams of performing at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City. The high school band will also perform at the Statue of Liberty during their trip. 

Jonesboro High School will have the opportunity to explore New York City and fulfill their dreams of performing in the Macy’s parade and also take in some NYC sights with a guided tour in Harlem. The students and their educators will have Thanksgiving dinner on the Hudson providing a rich cultural experience for the high school band members.

Last year, the Jonesboro High School band was featured in a promo video for Usher’s Super Bowl Halftime performance. 

Jonesboro High School’s band director Lynel Goodwin shared thoughts on the donation.

“For our band program travel is a major part of our educational philosophy. These experiences shape who our students become as adults. Without the generosity of people like Ms. Ebony Austin, our students wouldn’t be able to realize their dreams can really come true,” Goodwin said.