The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
UNITED IN TRIUMPHS
Black History event applauds bold efforts for making the world a better place
The Elyria Unit of the NAACP, also known as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, welcomed the public Feb. 17 to Mount Zion Baptist Church in Elyria for an annual Black History Month observation. With a theme of “Celebrating Our People Every day, 365 Days a Year!” the event included people from Elyria and Oberlin.
A special service to celebrate African-American culture, history and future plans was held at the church at 632 W. River Road North in Elyria, according to event co-chairperson Mona Atley. The service began with a welcome and cultural dance by Good Shepherd Baptist Church Young People Praise Team.
“It’s worth the time to come together and just celebrate and highlight (those moments)...” — Event co-chairperson Mona Atley
Other performances by Mount Zion Baptist Church of Oberlin’s King’s Men male choir, Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church of Elyria’s youth choir and Oberlin Christian Missionary Alliance’s church choir carried on through the service to celebrate and praise African-American culture, Atley said. The Black History event has been celebrated for at least 40 years, Atley said. Other communities have joined Elyria because the NAACP’s mission is to celebrate their history, heritage, contributions and accomplishments they make 365 days a year, she said. “It’s worth the time to come together and just celebrate and highlight (those moments) and encourage other people to celebrate and celebrate us,” Atley said. “It’s celebrating all the entities and most importantly showing our children how to prepare to be public speakers, career focused, to be proud of who they are and where they come from.” Atley said the group works daily to give the younger generations an idea of how hard they have worked to come to a better future, to always be treated equally and to continue the victory they have made in doing so. “We come from Kings and Queens, we’ve owned land, so, we’re going to celebrate that,” she said.
“There’s many things we can be proud of in our culture.” She said the Elyria NAACP members push every day to be a service to all whether through their efforts or services, irregardless of their race, and provide them a fair chance to be the best they can be.