Photo by Beth Chafetz
Third Baptist Men’s Choir never disappoints!
On Saturday, June 27 a celebration of Juneteenth was held at the Third Baptist Church in Suffield. On June 19, 1865, Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to ensure all enslaved people were finally told they were free, two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation. Juneteenth, commemorating the end of slavery, has been a federal holiday since 2021.
In Texas, Juneteenth has been recognized as a state holiday since 1980, but Black families have been celebrating it since 1866. It has always been important to the former enslaved people and their descendants.
The celebration at Third Baptist included a program filled with thoughtful speakers. The congregation was welcomed by Sonia Hill Przybylek, Third Baptist Deacon, followed by the poem “Precious” read by Sonai Cruz McCluster. The Rev. Gina Burke spoke animatedly about how freedom has a sound and Bill Sullivan from Suffield Academy spoke about the Witness Stone Project that his students had researched, highlighting four enslaved people who lived in Suffield. Their Witness Stones can be seen in the ground near the S. Kent Legare Library (Titus Kent), Kent Memorial Library (Tamer), and the Phelps Hatheway House (Lewis Butler and Barbara Nichols Butler).
Music was a highlight as well, with a solo by Sonia Hill Przybylek, a gospel song sung by the Interfaith Choir, led by Amy Potts, a rousing chorus by the Third Baptist Men’s Choir and a special tribute to the enslaved Suffield people by the Youth Choir and Aamahir “Mars” Nicholson.
After the service the congregation was invited for a lovely feast out on the back lawn. The perfect end to a special day.