(Black PR Wire) WHAT: Please join Africans Rising Together 2063 for the third annual Juneteenth Caribbean Heritage Festival: Missouri Gateway to Freedom and Justice. Registration to participate in the event is $18.65 (1865 was the year when slaves were free in the rebellious states only) and covers participation in the walk, snacks, a delicious cultural meal, and a fun day with lots of activities. Juneteenth Caribbean Heritage Festival is an all-day, family-friendly event that will provide entertainment throughout the day, including:

• Commemorative Walk (1-mile and 5-mile options) – Registration begins at 7:00 a.m.; program starts at 7:30 a.m., and the Walk for Freedom and Justice at 8:00 a.m.
• Keynote Address from The Honorable Judge David Mason
• Children’s Village, featuring face painting, a bouncy house, games and activities
• Walk Through History – an open-air museum highlighting outstanding African American Missourians and Caribbean Americans through history
• Live music & entertainment throughout the day, including Contemporary performers, Gospel Choirs and Singers, African Drummers, African Dancers, Steppers, and Drama Presentations
• Noonday prayer 
• Health Information and Screenings provided by Oak St. Health
• Delicious Cultural Food & a variety of Vendors
• Live DJ playing music throughout the day
• Speeches by Community Leaders 

WHO: Honorary Chair, The Honorable Judge David Mason, will provide the keynote address and will preside over the commemorations with ART 2063, a local non-profit organization with a mission to educate people of African descent about the historical significance of our experience, culture, and contributions to the world, to celebrate the culture and history. 

WHEN: Saturday, June 17, 2023, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

WHERE: Cricket Field at Forest Park (intersection of Grand Drive & Cricket Drive)

About Judge David Mason

The Honorable Judge David C. Mason has presided over the 22nd Judicial Circuit in the State of Missouri since August 1991. His distinguished legal career spans more than 40 years of service to Missouri and the broader St. Louis community, including turns as an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Missouri, General Counsel for the Missouri Department of Correction, and serving as a longtime Adjunct Professor of Law at the Washington University School of Law. He received a B.S. from Austin Peay State University in 1980 and completed his J.D. at the Washington University School of Law in 1983. His professional memberships have included the Mound City Bar Association, the American Bar Association, and the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis. Mason has served as Commissioner of the St. Louis Affordable Housing Commission and was on the boards of the Regional Housing and Community Development Alliance (RISE), the Saint Patrick Center, and the St. Louis Public Library. He received the Legal Champion Award from the Missouri Lawyers Association earlier this year. He and his wife, Taunia, have two children and live in St. Louis. 

About Africans Rising Together 2063

Africans Rising Together 2063 is a non-profit organization with a mission to educate people of African descent about the historical significance of our experience, culture, and contributions to the world. We raise awareness of a broad range of cultural issues by leveraging education toward holistic transformation, positive actions, and strategic connections. ART 2063 provides a platform powered by partners with the shared vision of improving education, economic development, and social conditions globally for people of African descent. ART 2063's action plan includes organizing strategic initiatives to create social, economic, cultural awareness, and generational wealth. This will eradicate poverty and illiteracy and usher in the reconciliation and restoration of people of African descent. ART 2063's goal is to facilitate societal transformation through the collaboration of holistic development within 9 Mountains That Transform Society: Arts, Sports, and Entertainment; Business and Economy; Education and Reconciliation; Family; Government and International Relations; Media; Religion; Science and Technology, and Security (food and water). For more information, visit www.art2063.org.

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