Owensboro Black Expo is hosting its 5th annual Juneteenth celebration on Saturday, and this year they are excited to add a gospel music factor to the events at Kendall-Perkins Park.
Dominique Maddox said that each year the Black Expo tries to do something different or bring something new to the table. When it came to planning this year’s celebration, they talked to Pastor Dean Hall from Evansville about a collaboration between the each city’s chapter.
“He has graciously organized an end-of-the-night concert type performance called Gospel Fest that will take place right before we do the fireworks,” Maddox said.
The fireworks show held at 4th Street Baptist Church has become a staple since year two, and this year’s fireworks are funded by Southern Star, one of several partners involved in the overall celebration.
Maddox said that their loyal partner Target was one of the main companies to get involved, and the Black Expo is thankful that so many other organizations still seek to be involved.
Maddox said Brescia University and a list of other vendors are all taking part in the events Saturday.
While this will be the fifth year for a local celebration, Juneteenth was not declared a federal holiday until last year. Maddox said it’s never too late to educate yourself on Juneteenth or other things.
The local celebration came about after the Black Expo did some research to understand the origins of Juneteenth.
“It was us educating ourselves and we thought, ‘We need to get this out. We need to let more people know.’ Because we knew we weren’t the only ones that had no clue what Juneteenth was even though there were other places throughout the country that were already celebrating,” Maddox said.
While the deadline formally passed Friday, Maddox said they will continue to accept sign-ups for vendors throughout this week as long as they’re able to accommodate. To sign up, click here.
