×

Juneteenth celebration set for this weekend

OBSERVER File Photo Juneteenth 2019 will take place this weekend at Memorial Park.

The Juneteenth 2019 Celebration Committee will be sponsoring the 24th annual Juneteenth Celebration to be held in the city of Dunkirk. Celebration days for this year will be Saturday, June 15 through Sunday, June 16, at Memorial Park, Lake Shore Drive West, Dunkirk. The theme for Juneteenth 2019 is “Celebrating A Life of Service.”

Juneteenth will kick off with Opening Ceremonies at noon at the park. During opening ceremonies there will be a special Remembrance Celebration honoring all community members who have passed away. This year the committee will once again dedicate the two days to the family with a reminder of how important it is to spend time with family members in fun activities. In keeping with this theme, there will be many games for adults and children to enjoy including an ice cream eating contest, hula hoop contest; face painting, balloons and sand art. Other activities will include party bouncers and a crafts corner with activities for children. Everyone is invited to spend time at The Family Tent where families can enjoy old-time favorite board games such as Trouble, Sorry, Jenga, Checkers, Kerplunk, Connect 4 and many more.

There will also be a Juneteenth basket raffle with many exciting items on display. Returning this year will be the corn hole tournament that will begin at 2 p.m. Teams will compete for first- and second-prize trophies. Interested participants can register by calling Carmen or Frank at 467-0824.

The Education Fair and Health Fair will begin at 2 p.m. Organizations in attendance include, among others, Upward Bound Program, Literacy Volunteers, Chautauqua Opportunities, Inc., New York State Troopers, Chautauqua Alcohol & Substance Abuse Council (CASAC), Dunkirk School District Pre-K Program, Hospice, Job Corps, League of Women Voters and United States Army.

Dance troupe, SheWorks, from Erie, Pennsylvania, will perform as well as Pure Ink Poetry Slam from Buffalo, founder, Brandon Williamson.

Music will be rendered by R&B band, Rock the Cradle, from Dunkirk and Familiar Spirit from Erie, Pennsylvania. There will also be a Pound class led by Tamara Racino and a ZUMBA class led by Treasure Thomas.

At dusk the movie “Black Panther” will be shown.

The Gospel Service will be held on Sunday, June 16, at noon. Congregations from the local churches will come together to worship the Lord in a gospel service at 1 p.m. All denominations, pastors, congregations and members of the community are invited to attend this service. Guest speaker is Evangelist Minnie DeBose, from Apostolic House of Prayer No. 2, Dunkirk.

There will also be Father’s Day competitions for fathers and children to participate in for many prizes.

The Gospel Fest will begin at 2 p.m. with performances by musical group Reign, out of Dunkirk and Brothers in Christ, also from Dunkirk.

Vendors selling food, clothes, jewelry, hair and hair products, Tupperware, crafts and much more will be present both days. There will be something for the entire family to enjoy and participate in.

The public is invited to attend. For more information, call 363-1102.

SATURDAY, JUNE 15, 2019

Noon: Opening Ceremonies — A Tribute to Loved Ones

12:30 p.m.: Juneteenth Basket Raffle — Games of Chance, New York State Troopers and Pound by Tamara Racino

1 p.m.: Party Bouncers — Children’s Crafts; Animal Masks, Sand Jewelry and Magic Color Scratch; Children’s Game Tent; SheWorks, Erie, Pennsylvania

2 p.m.: Face Painting; Corn Hole Tournament; Pure Ink Poetry Slam, Buffalo; Founder, Brandon Williamson; Health and Education Fair; CASAC; Chautauqua Opportunities, Inc.; Dunkirk City School District Pre-K Program; Chautauqua Opportunities, Inc.; Hospice; Job Corps; League of Women Voters; Literacy Volunteers; Upward Bound Program; United States Army Climbing Wall.

3 p.m.: Ice Cream Eating Contest; Hula Hoop Contest Ages: 4-10, 11-14 and 15-Adult; ZUMBA by Treasure Thomas.

4 p.m.: Band — Rock the Cradle, Dunkirk.

5 p.m.: Band — Familiar Spirit, Erie, Pennsylvania

7:30 p.m.: Juneteenth Basket Raffle Drawing

Dusk: Movie showing — “Black Panther”

SUNDAY, JUNE 16, 2019

Noon: Juneteenth Basket Raffle and vendors; Games of Chance — Party Bouncers

1 p.m.: Worship Service — Guest Speaker os Evangelist Minnie DeBose from Apostolic House of Prayer No. 2, Dunkirk.

2 p.m.: Father’s Day Competitions; Face Painting; Gospel Fest; Reign, Dunkirk, New York; Brothers in Christ, Dunkirk.

5:30 p.m.: Juneteenth Basket Raffle Drawings; crafts, foods and vendors.

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

COMMENTS

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today