NAACP Hosts Juneteenth Celebration Saturday At McVicker Canyon Park

The end of slavery in this country will be reflected upon at McVicker Canyon Park in Lake Elsinore this weekend as the annual Juneteenth celebration gets underway.

From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, the Southwest Riverside NAACP branch #1034 will host the annual celebration with food, entertainment, vendors, activities, as well as a tribute to longtime Lake Elsinore Unified School District board member Sonja Wilson, who retired last year.

This year’s celebration marks the first time in eight years the event has been held at McVicker. More recently, the celebration’s venue has been Lake Elsinore’s Yarborough Park.

“We’re back at McVicker and we have high hopes,” said Mary Venerable, president of the NAACP’s Southwest Riverside branch. She explained that the additional space at McVicker provides more room for vendors, entertainers, and attractions, like a bounce house for kids, and her special request: a catfish lunch.

Juneteenth celebrates an important moment in American history. It commemorates emancipation -- the end of slavery. From its Galveston, Texas, origin in 1865, the observance of June 19th as the African American Emancipation Day has spread across the country, with Juneteenth often celebrated on a weekend closest to the actual date.

“Juneteenth emphasizes African American education and achievement. It is observed with celebrations, guest speakers, picnics and family gatherings. It is a time for reflection and rejoicing,” according to literature provided by Venerable.

But Venerable reminds that the NAACP and the Juneteenth celebration are open to people of all colors.

“Many people think the NAACP is for African Americans. It’s for everyone,” she said, and highlighted the need for her organization to reach out to local communities.

Currently, the NAACP Southwest Riverside branch serves nine cities: Lake Elsinore, Wildomar, Canyon Lake, Menifee, Perris, Corona, Sun City, Murrieta and Temecula.

“We want to make the communities aware of what we’re doing, by having members go out and speak at events like City Council meetings,” Venerable said.

Lake Elsinore resident and NAACP member Chris Hyland was at Tuesday night’s Lake Elsinore City Council meeting to promote the upcoming Juneteenth celebration.

Hyland said she believes in supporting the NAACP because of “all the good they do in the community,” especially programs that foster and promote responsibility in young people.

“I do it for the kids,” she said.

For more information about Saturday’s Juneteenth celebration at McVicker Canyon Park, click on the attached PDF file. The event is free to attend.