Emancipation Park Rededication Celebration and Juneteenth Celebration
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner speaks at the podium
The Emancipation Park Rededication Celebration and Juneteenth Celebration were held respectively on Saturday, June 17, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. and Monday, June 19, 2017, at Emancipation Park, 3018 Emancipation Avenue, Houston, Texas. Emancipation Park was established in 1872 by previously enslaved African Americans. The core leadership included Rev. Jack Yates (1828-1897) of Antioch Missionary Baptist Church, Rev. Elias Dibble (1811-1885) of Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church and St. Paul A.M.E. Church to raise money for this project. The whole village and other area churches organized their business acumen and political involvement.
The groundbreaking for the park renovation was in October 2013, and the $33.6 million renovation funding came from the OST/Almeda Redevelopment Corridors-Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone, Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, Houston Endowment, Kinder Foundation, Timken Foundation of Canton and the City of Houston.
Ramon Manning, Emancipation Park Conservancy Chairman said, “This rededication ceremony has been a long time coming and we can’t be more thrilled to finally be making this historic park and green space destination available for all to enjoy.” The Houston Parks and Recreation Department entered into an agreement with Emancipation Park Conservancy, established in 2016, authorizing the joint operations, maintenance with programming of Emancipation Park.
A special thanks goes out to many people and organizations including:
The Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee (US House of Representatives), the Honorable Greg Abbott (Governor of the State of Texas), the Honorable Dan Patrick (Lieutenant Governor of the State of Texas), the Honorable Joseph Straus (Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives), the Honorable Borris L. Miles (Texas Senate, 13th District), the Honorable Garnett Coleman (Texas House of Representatives, District 147), the Honorable Sylvester Turner (Mayor of the City of Houston), and the City of Houston Council Members, and many others.
Dr. Robert S. Muhammad
Algenita Scott Davis and Judge Zinetta Burney
Rev. William Lawson and Roxanne Lawson
Members of the Media
Tennessee State University Golf Tournament
Dr. Tobe Johnson receives award from the Morehouse Alumni Association
Houston Morehouse Alumni Association presented the 6th Annual “Honoring Our Fathers” Father’s Day Brunch promoting fatherhood, leadership, service and mentorship on June 17, 2017, at 11:00 a.m. After the American Civil War ended, Morehouse College is now the nation’s largest liberal arts college for men. The keynote speaker was Dr. Tobe Johnson who has been associated with Morehouse College for more than 70 years. Honorees include: Pastor Rudy Rasmus, Judson W. Robinson III, Dr. George Wright, Dr. Floyd Atkins, and Dr. Myron E. Cloyd. Historically, Morehouse has conferred bachelor’s degrees on more African American men than any other college or university in the United States. Morehouse College is located in Atlanta, Georgia and the college boasts notable graduates who include Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Louis Sullivan, former U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher, former U.S. Congressmen Sanford Bishop and Major Owens, former Mayor of Atlanta Maynard Jackson, Olympic Gold Medalist Edwin Moses, film director Spike Lee, actor Samuel L. Jackson and U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson.
Pastor Rudy Rasmus receives award from the Morehouse Alumni Association
Judson W. Robinson III receives award from the Morehouse Alumni Association