Expect music, storytelling, Creole food at Puyallup’s first Black History Month celebration
The city of Puyallup has recognized February as Black History Month for the first time, and some residents have prepared a two-day celebration in honor of that.
The City Council passed a proclamation on Feb. 1 during the council meeting, during which Ronelle McGraw Jr. from Praise Chapel Church Of God In Christ accepted the proclamation. This marked the first time the city recognized February as Black History Month.
Community members are hosting Puyallup’s first Black History Month Celebration on Feb. 25 and Feb. 26 at the Puyallup Nazarene Church at 1026 Seventh Ave. SW. Friday’s event runs from 6-9 p.m. and Saturday’s event runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
“We are creating a blueprint for all other cultures in the city of Puyallup,” Puyallup resident Shellie Willis said. “To use this blueprint as an opportunity to … change the narrative and flip the script of what our holidays are meant for.”
Friday’s lineup includes a COVID-19 presentation from the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department and a panel about mental health in the Black community from Dr. J. L. Casteele of Casteele Williams & Associates Comprehensive Behavioral Health.
“One of our goals and our efforts is to break the conspiracy of silence to mental health issues regarding African Americans,” Casteele said.
On Saturday, attendees can expect to see Black-owned businesses and smell Creole cuisine from food vendors such as Velvet’s Big Easy. African drumming and storytelling from the Adefua Cultural Education Workshop will also be present.
The Adefua Cultural Education Workshop is a nonprofit organization based in the Seattle area. Their mission is to “offer options for youth to enhance growth, personal development, and academic success through the study of African culture, music and dance,” according to the organization’s website.
Puyallup resident Debbie Yoder said attendees can expect a “walkthrough experience” on Saturday as there will also be art, films and presentations about Black history showcased at the event.
“It’s not you just walking through like you’re walking through a museum,” Willis said. “The goal is that you walk through, you embrace, you absorb, you learn, you gather information, and it gives you some thought.”
Puyallup resident JMarie Johnson-Kola did not organize the celebration on her own. Help from other community members such as Yoder, Willis and Linda Saarela paved the way for this event.
Johnson-Kola is a 10-year Marine Corps veteran who moved to Puyallup with her family in 2016. She is a small business owner of Diverse Community Connectors and is working to get her doctorate in transformative social change, focusing on marginalized and underrepresented communities.
Johnson-Kola said the idea to have the celebration started in October 2021 when she and other community members established the Puyallup Community Foundation.
The foundation is a group of volunteers that works with community leaders, stakeholders and residents in Puyallup to create “a culture where people are working together for the common good,” according to the organization’s Facebook page.
“February was coming up soon, so we said ‘Let’s do it,’” Johnson-Kola said.
Pain was what pushed Johnson-Kola to make the celebration happen, she said.
When Johnson-Kola watched Rev. Al Sharpton speak at George Floyd’s funeral two years ago, she realized that she needed to be surrounded by people who looked like her and understood what she was going through, she said.
“At that moment, I just thought I’ve got to begin those relationships personally,” Johnson-Kola said. “I began through the Community Foundation.”
Johnson-Kola said in addition to other residents in the area, several community leaders and stakeholders have also shown support in the celebration. This includes people from the local school district, city staff and the Washington State Fair.
Saarela hopes that attendees will become more educated, aware and move forward differently in life after attending the celebration.
“It takes all of us,” Johnson-Kola said. “We need everybody.”
The event is free and more information can be found on Eventbrite at: eventbrite.com/e/celebrating-our-community-experiencing-black-puyallup-tickets-243110388717
This story was originally published February 20, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
