The Bryan County NAACP will host a prayer breakfast to commemorate Juneteenth on Saturday, June 21st at the Wetlands Center at 9 a.m.

A federal holiday since 2021, Juneteenth commemorates the day of June 19, 1865 when 2,000 Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas to announce the freedom of enslaved African-Americans, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation.  

This will be the second-annual prayer breakfast after the success of last year’s breakfast hosted in Pembroke, says Luella Sanders, president of the Bryan County NAACP. 

“With so many other Juneteenth events happening in the county, the prayer breakfast seems to be our niche, our place to be,” explained Sanders. “We had about 50 or 60 people who attended last year, and of course we’re hoping for more.”

The event is free and open to the public. Various community leaders, including government officials and religious clergy, will be in attendance. 

According to Sanders, Bryan County NAACP aims to both educate the public on the importance of Juneteenth and build community with all Bryan County residents, especially newcomers.

“We want everybody to come in, because we are all in this together. So it's just a good opportunity for people to come out and, you know, network and get to know your neighbors, get to know people in your community,” said Sanders.  

“We’re welcoming everybody in the county to come out and just be a part of it.”