Juneteenth: Organizers Excited About Combined Festivals in Bridgeton
BY CLYDE HUGHES | AC JosepH Media
BRIDGETON — What started off as two Juneteenth festivals on the opposite ends of the city is now one big celebration at Bridgeton’s riverside park on Saturday, June 21, organizers told FrontRunnerNewJersey.com this week.
The Juneteenth event put on by Tri-City H.O.P.E. will be joining a new event sponsored by the City of Bridgeton. Jerry Young, of Tri-City H.O.P.E., has one of the most established Juneteenth events in South Jersey, celebrating the holiday since 2015 before it became a state and national holiday.
This year, the City of Bridgeton also planned on holding a Juneteenth event at the city’s riverside park downtown, sponsored by the Urban Enterprise Zone, led by Stephanie Gonzalez. Young said the union just made sense.
“It’s best that we do,” Young told Front Runner New Jersey. “We have hosted six celebrations in Bridgeton and three in Vineland. For all of those years, we have never really had collaborators at the level we would like.
“This year, Bridgeton’s UEZ and K.Y.M.O. (Keeping Young Minds Occupied) have a Juneteenth Celebration scheduled on the third Saturday of this month. It has been Tri City H.O.P.E.’s tradition to host ours on the third Saturday of June, so when Miss Gonzalez, the City of Bridgeton’s UEZ coordinator, called us into her office and offered us a chance to collaborate, we accepted.”
Young said all three organizations “bring something different to the table,” but the bottom line was that the Bridgeton area residents will get to enjoy their combined efforts instead of competing against each other.
“The main thing is that each of us wants to see this be the awesome event that it can and should be,” Young said. “We spent almost two hours discussing Juneteenth, not only for this year, but for future years, too. We also agreed to work together on other events. Having said all of that, I look forward to talking with you on Saturday, June 21st on the Bridgeton Riverfront.”
Gonzalez, Bridgeton’s UEZ coordinator, said Bridgeton’s combined Juneteenth celebration will take place from noon-7 p.m. at 2 East Commerce Street. She promised a full day of music, food, art, and fun activities that uplift and empower.
The day will include live Gospel, Jazz, R&B, Hip-Hop & Afrobeat performances, African drumming and dance, historical reenactments and spoken word, Soul Food, art exhibits featuring a community mural, Black-owned vendor market, children zone games, wellness and education resources, and live interviews.
Gonzalez said the organizations are still accepting vendors and nonprofits. They can be contacted by calling 856-484-1465.
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