Quarterly free admission days and a recently established shuttle system throughout the Garden are two significant ways that invite the entire community to enjoy the local treasure that is the Fort Worth Botanic Garden.

“The significance of Juneteenth spans our nation, but we are proud to celebrate this day in Fort Worth, home of the future National Juneteenth Museum and activist, Opal Lee,” said FWBG CEO and President Patrick Newman. “Offering free admission is our way of honoring this significant holiday. We invite the community to create emotional souvenirs with their family and friends at the Garden on Juneteenth, and we thank R Bank for making it possible again this year.”

The Garden offers a 120-acre campus filled with 23 specialty gardens, including the popular Japanese Garden with koi-filled pools and dramatic waterfalls, and the iconic Rose Garden, with a terraced ramp featuring paths that wind past colorful flower beds.

“R Bank is proud to continue its sponsorship of Juneteenth at the Garden. We believe in celebrating diversity, freedom, and honoring the history that has shaped us. This is an integral part of R Bank’s commitment to being more than just a bank, but also a cornerstone of our vibrant community,” said Kent McCune, Market President for R Bank Fort Worth.

The post Juneteenth in the Garden first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.

In 2020 Lee realized a lifelong dream and collected 1.5 million signatures on a petition to create a national holiday for Juneteenth, the day the Civil War-era Emancipation Proclamation was announced in Texas. Lee’s efforts drew national attention from celebrities including  Pharrell Williams, Usher, Diddy and Lupita Nyong’o as well as media coverage from The New York Times and Associated Press. In 2021, President Joe Biden honored Lee at the White House as he signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, declaring a new national holiday.

On Saturday, June 18, Lee will embark on her annual 2.5 mile walk to recognize the 2.5 years it took for the news of freedom to reach Texas. The route this year will be from Evans Avenue Plaza to the new City Hall (formerly Pier 1 Building).

“Ms. Opal Lee has been a champion for the Fort Worth community for decades,” said Bob Jameson, president and CEO of Visit Fort Worth. “Our organization is honored to partner with her to celebrate this momentous occasion.”

The Walk for Freedom Kickoff Breakfast will feature live music performances from First Saint John Cathedral Choir, Samaria Baptist Church Choir, and SANNI.. Guest speakers scheduled to appear include FOX 4’s Dionne Anglin, Mayor Mattie Parker, Councilman Chris Nettles and an invocation from Samaria Baptist Church’s Pastor McKinley Jackson.

Attendees can enjoy breakfast tastings from local restaurants like Carpenter’s Cafe & Catering, Mama E’s BBQ & Home Cooking, reBirth of Food, Black Coffee, Creative Cuisines, Lucky G’s Bistro, Loft22 Cakes, and Chadra Mezza Grill. Breakfast tasting tickets are available for purchase in advance or on-site for $20 and include samples from each of the featured restaurants.

“We want the city to wake up celebrating freedom with Ms. Opal and enjoy the whole day commemorating the accomplishments of all who worked for freedom,” said Dione Sims, Executive Director of Unity Unlimited, Inc.

To register for the Walk For Freedom or to purchase Kickoff Breakfast tickets, visit juneteenthftw.com/opalswalkforfreedom.

There are over 20 events and things to do related to Juneteenth and African American-led events during the weekend of Juneteenth. Fort Worth Juneteenth celebrations span June 4-26 with a full calendar of events.

The post We Want the City to Wake Up Celebrating Freedom first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.

Declared a federal holiday on June 17, 2021, when President Joe Biden signed the law with Ms. Opal Lee by his side, Juneteenth, or, “the 19th of June” has sparked celebrations worldwide. The gravity of Juneteenth commemorates freedom for the enslaved via the abolition of slavery in the United States.

Opal Lee during the signing of the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, June 17, 2021.

Ms. Lee is affectionately known as the “Grandmother of Juneteenth” and has been leading the charge to see the National Juneteenth Museum become a reality. “To have lived long enough to see my walking and talking make an impact is one thing, but to know that a state-of-the-art museum that will house the actual pen that President Biden used to sign the bill and many other exhibits is coming to pass as well…I could do my holy dance again”! The National Juneteenth Museum will be erected on land that currently houses Lee’s Fort Worth Juneteenth Museum that has served the community for nearly two decades and was a production location in the feature film, Miss Juneteenth.

As the epicenter for the preservation of Juneteenth history and center for discussions about freedom, the Museum will host events and exhibits that foster continued conversation on the global significance of freedom and the celebration of Juneteenth worldwide. The Museum will also host seminars and lectures of renowned authorities on topics that uncover the truth of historical perspectives of freedom.

The Museum will be led by a collaboration of activists, researchers, historians, and everyday people that understand the influence of history on the trajectory of the human experience. Additionally, it will educate guests on the legacy and experiences of the enslaved and provide factual narratives about people that overcame the trials and hardships of oppression. Exploration of the richness of the American tapestry and global canvas is the ultimate goal of the museum’s directors.

Fort Worth Mayor, Mattie Parker, is excited to add this concept to an already-renowned collection of world class museums housed in the city. “For decades, Juneteenth has been part of the fabric of our city, and this museum is a welcome addition to its incredible legacy”.

Commemorative plaque at corner of Strand Street and 22nd Street in Galveston, Texas where General Order No. 3 was issued from Union Army headquarters at the since demolished Osterman building on Monday, June 19, 1865.

The post National Juneteenth Museum to Be Built in Fort Worth first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.

On July 4, 1776, what ultimately became the United States of America declared her independence from England. While America was free, there were countless Blacks in America who remained enslaved. In the depths of the Civil War, fought over the right to own another human, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring an end to slavery. Eighty-seven years after the Founding Fathers held “these truths to be self-evident, that all men were created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness…” enslaved Black Americans were finally free.  

First page of the Emancipation Proclamation

If a tree falls in the forest, and there’s no one there to hear it, does it make a sound? If enslaved people were free, and no one told them, were they really free? President Lincoln’s Emancipation proclamation was issued on January 1, 1863. However, slaves in Texas were not made aware of their freedom until more than two years later on June 19, 1865.  

Welcome to Juneteenth – a day of remembrance and celebration. For many Blacks in Texas, it’s as important, if not more so, as the Fourth of July. Like the Fourth of July, Juneteenth a day of barbecues, parades, songs, and picnics. Unlike the Fourth of July, Juneteenth is not recognized as a federal holiday.  

Juneteenth Celebration at Houston’s Emancipation Park, 1880

Fort Worth’s own Opal Lee wants to change that.  

For the past 40 years, Ms. Lee and her family have celebrated Juneteenth just like they celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas. In 2016, at 89 years old, she drew national attention when she walked from her home in Fort Worth to Washington, D.C., to bring awareness to the holiday and advocate for Juneteenth to be recognized as a federal holiday. Her passion for Juneteenth hasn’t subsided, and the now–94–year-old activist’s efforts have not gone unnoticed. Ms. Lee’s online petition to get Juneteenth recognized as a federal holiday has received over a million signatures to date. 

The recognition of Juneteenth as a federal holiday is a national movement, but Ms. Lee works just as hard here in Fort Worth to ensure that all Fort Worthians recognize, honor, and celebrate Juneteenth. Every year, she marshals “Opal’s Walk,” an annual Juneteenth caravan and parade where she leads parade goers and participants in a 2.5 mile walk to commemorate her 2016 walk to our nation’s capital.  

Opal Lee is not the only Fort Worthian putting Juneteenth on the map, though. Channing Godfrey Peoples, another Fort Worth native, is the writer and director of the critically acclaimed Miss Juneteenth, a coming-of-age story about Kai, a teenage girl from the southside of Fort Worth, competing to win the coveted “Miss Juneteenth” pageant title and crown.  

As a child, Ms. Godfrey Peoples also regularly celebrated Juneteenth and, through her film, hopes to amplify the meaning of the holiday as well as its historical and current significance to the Black community. 

Miss Juneteenth

Toni Harrison-Kelly, a Sherman, Texas native, says of Juneteenth: “Juneteenth was my absolute favorite holiday growing up. I got a new outfit every year. My entire family walked in the parade. There was music and dancing and so many people just having a great time celebrating freedom. It seemed like every Black person in our town came out to the Juneteenth celebration. It was always so vibrant and so inspiring. I remember looking forward to it every single year.”  

So how do we celebrate Juneteenth in Texas? Well, in short, we celebrate big. Really big. In addition to the annual Opal’s Walk caravan and parade here in Fort Worth, there are numerous events on and around June 19 across the state marked by eating and drinking, singing and dancing, reflecting and remembering. It’s a time for families and neighborhoods to gather and celebrate their heritage and continued community. Opal Lee calls Juneteenth a “unifier” and believes that it is a holiday that all Americans – not just African Americans – should celebrate. And she’s right. 

So, how will you celebrate Juneteenth this year? 

• Annual Juneteenth Flag Raising to honor and remember past and present Black military personnel 
• Annual Opal’s Walk Caravan and Parade 
• Annual Juneteenth Prayer Breakfast and Ecumenical Service 
• Annual Miss Juneteenth Fort Worth Scholarship Pageant  
• Annual Erma Johnson Hadley Juneteenth Honors Banquet 

For more formation on how to celebrate Juneteenth, go to www.juneteenthftw.com 

Dr. Sharla Horton-Williams has a 20-year career in early childhood and pre-kindergarten through 12th grade education. She is committed to achieving educational excellence and equity for all students – especially Black and Hispanic students who have historically been underserved in education. She has served as a teacher, assistant principal, and principal in private, public charter, and traditional public schools. Sharla earned a doctorate in curriculum and instruction from Texas A&M University, where her research focused on the role of school leadership in closing the opportunity-achievement gap.

The post A Celebration So Vibrant, So Inspiring first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.