Woodrow “Woody” Keown, Jr., president and chief operating officer at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center will be the featured speaker at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday as part of the “Celebrating Self” luncheon series at The Fitton Center for Creative Arts, 101 S. Monument Ave., Hamilton. For more information or tickets, go to fittoncenter.org or call 513-863-8873, ext. 110.
MIDDLETOWN
The Middletown area will kick off Black History Month with an educational program from 5:30-8 p.m. Wednesday at the Pendleton Art Center, 1105 Central Ave. Kendall Wright is the keynote speaker and Abdul Shakur Ahmad is serving as master of ceremonies and sharing the coordination duties with Pernell Huff. The event is free and open to the public. RSVP to ahmadshakur0502@gmail.com or mylegacy4llc@gmail.com.
Middletown’s own all-star athlete Butch Carter will share his story as the keynote speaker at Feed the Hungry Project’s 9th Annual All-Black Attire MLK Gala, to be held at 5 p.m. Feb. 18 at the Warehouse Hotel & Conference Center at the Spooky Nook Sport Champion Mill, Hamilton. The Feed the Hungry 2023 Honorees includes Delia A. Adams, Director of Veterans Health Administration; Kris Horlacher, RN, BSN and founder of S4TS; Dr. Quinton E. Moss, CEO and Medical Director of Modern Psychiatry and Wellness LLC; Dr. Sarah K. Nathan, Executive Director of Middletown Community Foundation; Norman Spence, Director of Strategy & Operations & Facility Administrator for Kettering Health; Minister Patricia A. Wilkinson, Esq. at Mt. Zion Baptist Church and Associate Attorney at The VanNoy Firm. Tickets may be purchase by visiting feedthehungryproject.org.
FAIRFIELD TWP.
Butler Tech will hold the Black Excellence Show at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 9 in the Butler Tech School of the Arts, Event Center, 3603 Hamilton Middletown Road, Fairfield Twp. The event is free and open to the public.
OXFORD
Miami University Office of Institutional Diversity & Inclusion will present Black Excellence Scholars Series at noon Feb. 8 virtually. Featured speaker is Rodney Coates, Ph.D. Addition speakers will be Feb. 16 with Kristian Contreras, Ed.M., Feb. 20 with Helane Androne, MAT, Ph.D., Feb. 23 with Morgan Moore, M.Div., and Feb. 28 with Lauren Brassfield.
The public launch of the “Lived Experiences: Race at Miami University” website will be at 5 p.m. Feb. 14 at 320 King Library. “Lived Experiences: Race at Miami University” tells the stories of people of color in the Miami University community during its Public Ivy period, from 1970 to the early 2000s. Funded by Miami’s Boldly Creative initiative, the interdisciplinary “Lived Experiences” team filmed oral history interviews with former students, faculty members, and staff members of color to document and spotlight their experiences and perspectives. The program will include a panel discussion. A reception will immediately follow. A documentary premiere event will also take place at 6 p.m. Feb. 21, in Shideler Hall Auditorium. For more information, go to miamioh.edu.
WEST CHESTER TWP.
The Live the Dream: Our Declaration of Unity organization celebrates Black History Month with a Lecture Series at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 27 at MidPointe Library, 9363 Centre Pointe Drive, West Chester Twp. This year’s lecture is about the life and career of former United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Dr. Ben Carson. All are invited to attend this free program.
CINCINNATI
The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center is celebrating Black History Month by celebrating the past, connecting with the present and looking to the future. Programming for February includes panel discussions, film screenings, youth programming and free admission on select days. For more information and the complete schedule of the month, go to freedomcenter.org.
About the Author