Fostoria prepping for Juneteenth Jamboree

FOSTORIA — Many are the ideas for community functions anywhere that either die on the vine or turn out to be one-offs.The idea of Fostoria resident Davon Cousin to have a Juneteenth celebration in his hometown, however, has bloomed greatly, garnering interest and investment within Fostoria and from surrounding communities.The third annual Juneteenth Jamboree of Greater Fostoria is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., June 13, at Foundation Park, 1225 S. Union St., rain or shine. Attendees will find a variety of options for eating, enjoying music and artwork, learning and just plain having fun. Admission is free and open to the public."Celebrating Juneteenth and having a public recognition, prior to 2024, is something that we never had in a public space," Cousin said. "I felt that that was very important because it's important to honor history and history is important to us, but, also, what you can learn connects some of the missing pieces, connects some of the dots. Some of those questions that we had pertaining to how emancipation truly happened, that's very interesting and profound."Juneteenth, officially called Juneteenth National Independence Day and recognized on June 19th, has been a national holiday since 2021. It commemorates the effective end of slavery in the United States and specifically recognizes the day in 1865 when enslaved African-Americans in Galveston, Texas, were informed of their freedom, more than two years after the issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation."We definitely have a diverse community," Cousin said of Fostoria. "I'm a lifetime resident of Fostoria, and that's something that we value. ... The goal was to represent African-American history and culture, and we do that through music and food and art. We're adding more art to the celebration this year, and we're happy about that"It's important to promote progress and change — how things had looked compared to what we could do, and that was important to a lot of people, apparently, because people come out and support what we're doing, so that always makes us feel good."Food trucks will be on hand, and meals may also be purchased from the seven contestants in the rib-preparation event. Other vendors will have goods and information available, including free children's books. Young children may enjoy themselves on inflatables, and other activities will include a cornhole tournament scheduled to begin at noon.The Wainwright Amphitheatre stage will be the site of presentations and musical entertainment, beginning with the honoring of Arthur D. "Darnell" Cousin and Kim C. Fant-Cousin as the event's "Champions for Change." Davon Cousin said his research shows Darnell Cousin, Davon's uncle, to have been Fostoria's first and, to date, only African-American insurance agent. Darnell Cousin in recent years as worked as an attendance liaison at Fostoria Junior/Senior High School.Davon Cousin said research indicates that Kim Fant-Cousin, Darnell's wife, is the longest-serving African-American educator in the Fostoria district. She has also coached volleyball, cross country and track and field since the 1980s."What two better people to honor — people who made a conscious decision to serve in our community," Davon Cousin said.Fostoria resident Justin Williams will provide a musical performance as the festivities begin at 11 a.m. Big Lou The Mayor, a Toledo radio personality and disc jockey, will provide music from noon onward. Toledo's Djobi Ensemble, a West African drumming group, will take the stage from 4-5 p.m. After the announcement of the rib-preparation winner, a band from Zo Keys Music, based in LaPorte, Indiana, will perform rhythm and blues and other styles of music until 7 p.m.Libra Tedrow, executive director of the United Way of Fostoria, will deliver the event's keynote speech at 2 p.m.Also on hand will be Chudney Patterson, a sketch artist from the Toledo Museum of Art, who will draw alongside the amphitheater stage from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m., as well as interactive art activities directed by museum of art staffers and a virtual history museum developed by Nichole Griffin, a professor of education at Heidelberg University in Tiffin.Davon Cousin said volunteers help mightily in helping the jamboree take place. Also, much does have a price tag attached, and Cousin said he's grateful to the individuals, organizations and businesses who have helped with funding, from both within and outside of the city."That has grown, and the heartwarming part is people call us now sometimes (wanting to donate), and that wasn't always the case," he said. "Those connections, those partnerships that we've gained, are invaluable. People often call this my Juneteenth or my celebration. No. This belongs to the community and the partnerships that we've built because without those, we wouldn't be able to do things to the scale that we do them."That's a testament to those individuals, those organizations that stand by us and believe in our work and our mission, and that makes us feel good. It makes us feel appreciated that we're doing good work."