Juneteenth Celebrations Bring Community Together to Celebrate History and Support The Amistad Center, June 13-14

The Amistad Center for Art & Culture will present two days of celebratory activities to recognize Juneteenth and African American achievement, history and culture. The first event will be Jubilation!, The Amistad Center’s annual black-tie Juneteenth Celebration Gala on Friday, June 13, 2014 at The Society Room in Hartford.  The 2014 Spirit of Juneteenth Award recipients, to be honored during the evening’s festivities are entrepreneur, author and motivational speaker June Archer, vocal artist and producer Jolie Rocke Brown and consultant and community leader John Motley.

“Our mission is to celebrate art and culture influenced by people of African descent through education, scholarship and social experiences,” said Amistad Center Executive Director Olivia S. White. “Our Juneteenth celebration embraces all of the elements of our mission.  Our volunteer committee has worked hard to produce another jubilant celebration. We are grateful for the support we receive from the corporate community and individuals across Greater Hartford.’’

Juneteenth marks an important moment in American history, June 19, 1865, when the enslaved in Galveston, Texas first learned of their freedom, two and a half years after the enactment of the Emancipation Proclamation.   Over the years, Juneteenth commemorations across the nation have grown into broad and celebrations of achievement, community and heritage.   Proceeds from the Juneteenth Celebration Gala benefit The Amistad Center's exhibitions and culture-based education programs and enable the preservation and development of its renowned collection. 

As part of The Amistad Center’s Juneteenth weekend in Hartford, the theme “Fresh Faces of Freedom” will be featured through family-friendly activities and performances on Juneteenth Family Day on Saturday, June 14 in partnership with the Wadsworth Atheneum.  Activities are offered from 10 a.m.- 5 p.m. at the Atheneum. Admission to family day is free and full parking validation will be offered in the Front Street North Garage to family day visitors. A free shuttle bus service will also be available between the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center, Mark Twain House and Bushnell Park where various free activities will be taking place. Juneteenth Family Day is sponsored by The Hartford.

The June 13 Gala is from 8 PM to 1 AM and includes African American inspired gourmet buffet stations and a cash bar.  The reception for premier level ticketholders at 7 PM includes an opportunity to meet the honorees.  The evening continues with karaoke and dancing to music spun by Ronn P.  African and African American inspired grand buffet stations of main courses and desserts will be featured all evening.

Presenting sponsor for Jubilation! is Comcast NBC Connecticut.  The Mistress of Ceremonies will be Audrey Washington of NBC Connecticut.  The 2014 Spirit of Juneteenth Award recipients:

June Archer is President and CEO of a growing multimedia company, Eleven28 Entertainment. His name first emerged on the music scene in 1995 as a member of the Elektra Records recording group Room Service. The group achieved radio and video success with singles “Ain’t Nothing Wrong” and “Stay” which made the Billboard Top 50 Charts. That led him to pursue his dream to have his own entertainment company.  He has been the recipient of many honors recognizing his efforts in Hartford and New England. He has also earned recognition for selling works on albums by Jay Z, 50 Cent and Mario and is the author of Yes! Every Day Can Be A Good Day (The Keys To Success That Lead To An Amazing Life). 

Jolie Rocke Brown is a soprano whose talents have taken her from a Carnegie Weil Recital Hall debut to spotlight performances with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra and four Connecticut opera companies to European tours with New York Harlem Theatre, Houston Ebony Opera, and Italy's  Studio Lirico. In addition to performances that traverse Europe from France, Spain, Belgium, and Italy, to Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands and Switzerland, she is a featured favorite at several historic Connecticut churches. She attended the LaGuardia High School of Music and the Arts in New York City, followed by The Hartt School at the University of Hartford.  She describes sharing the gift of song is her destiny - whether it be through opera, spirituals, gospel, jazz, musical theater or other styles of music.  A Northeast Region Winner of the Leontyne Price Vocal Arts Competition, she was honored in 2012 by the Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame for her acclaim as a singer and music educator.  

John Motley, past president of The Amistad Center and the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, is a highly regarded and highly sought-after community leader.  He is a principal in the fundraising firm of Motley Consulting and its predecessor firms.  He was formerly the President of the Travelers Foundation, and has held senior level management positions at Hartford Public Schools, Travelers Insurance, and Chemical Bank in New York in external relations, claims, real estate finance and law.  A passionate supporter of education and children, he has received numerous awards and recognition and has served with distinction on an array of nonprofit boards in the Hartford region. 

The 2014 Juneteenth Jubilation! Committee includes Sheryl Cole, Andrea Hawkins, co-chair, Christine Jeanloui, Medina Jett, Nichole Rene, Communications & Events manager for The Amistad Center,  Tisa Rabun-Marshall, co-chair,  Rhoda Scurlock, Debra Shaw-Esteves, Carol Yvette Thorney, Clancee Victor, Paul Williams and Olivia White, Executive Director of The Amistad Center.

The Amistad Center for Art & Culture, founded in 1987, owns and exhibits a vital collection of 7,000 works of art, artifacts and popular culture objects that documents the experience, expressions and history of people of African descent in America.  The Amistad Center is an independently incorporated and managed not-for-profit 501(c)3 organization, located in the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art - a "museum within a museum," enjoying a unique institutional partnership that facilitates rich cross-cultural conversations between art and audiences. 

The Amistad Center is not related to the many other organizations in Connecticut and across the country who share the name Amistad. Amistad is a popular choice as it remembers a significant event and calls to mind African American strength and history.

To attend Jubiliation!, go to jubiliationjuneteenth2014.eventbrite.com 

For further information on The Amistad Center, call 860-838-4133 or email amistadcenter@wadsworthatheneum.org.