Juneteenth 50th Anniversary Gala: A Great Success

The Buffalo Criterion recognized among local media

The 50th Anniversary of the Juneteenth Festival got off to a grand start on Friday, June 5th at the Classics V Banquet at 2425 Niagara Falls Blvd. It was a star-studded event with area politicians, religious leaders, community members, and media personalities. The Keynote was given by New York Attorney General Letitia James, and I had a chance to speak briefly with her. Her message to the audience was to keep on marching forward. The theme of the Gala program was “Celebrating with Style and Purpose Past, Present, and Future.”

The President of the Juneteenth Board is Carrone Evon Crump, a longtime community worker. The event Chair was former Erie County Legislator Betty Jean Grant. Former. Special guest was Majority Leader of the New York state Assembly Crystal People – Stokes. Remarks were from former Council member and business leader Clifford Bell.

Invocation was given by Pastor Mark Blue, President of the NAACP. The history of Juneteenth was presented by Doug Ruffin. There were also spoken words by Sister Vonetta T. Rhodes and Wayne Rhodes Carter and Karla Thomas. Special recognition was paid to the Honorable Deacon from Shiloh Baptist Church Judson Price who has been a part of Juneteenth for many years he is now 96 years old. The drums of Freedom were led by Ras Jomo. Others who played significant roles include filmmaker Sandy White, Sherry Sherrill and Stacy Grant, and Vicki Grant.

The following received the Juneteenth History Keeper Awards: Buffalo Criterion (Frank Merriweather), Community Challenger (Al-Nisa Banks) Eye on History (Dr. Eva M. Doyle), and The Buffalo History Channel (Doug Ruffin). Pease Note there were too many features to list in this article. Please come out and celebrate Juneteenth Festival this weekend, on June 13th and June 14th, 2026, at Dr. Martin Luther King Park. For more information, please visit www. buffalojuneteenth.com HAPPY JUNETEENTH!!!!