There are certain events your Newton County Historical Society hosts every year and one of them is coming up in a couple of weeks.
“It’s a Celebration” — a recognition of Black History Month — is slated for 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 21, in the little one-room schoolhouse at the Newton County Historical Park. The guest speaker this year is Paxton Williams, executive director of the George Washington Carver Birthplace Association. I’ve heard Paxton speak I don’t know how many times and on each occasion he never fails to hold my attention.
There will also be poetry recitations and special singing from the Neosho Second Baptist Church choir, which if you’ve never heard before I encourage you to now. I don’t know if they sing like that EVERY Sunday, but if so they really ought to record an album and sell it for donations to the church. Actually, at last year’s celebration event, my brother did record about a minute or so of one of their numbers on his cell phone. That’s how good this choir sounds.
There will also be refreshments on hand, courtesy of the Newton County Historical Society.
When I said the historical society hosts the “It’s a Celebration” event, that’s literally what I mean — we simply provide a place for it to take place. Other than offer refreshments, that’s pretty much the extent of our involvement.
No, credit for organizing this affair year after year goes to Ida Smiles, who works at the museum and whom many of you probably know. She is the one who puts it together. And if anyone ever asks her why, she’s always ready with the same answer: She is standing on the shoulders of others. It’s the struggle for equality others have taken up that allows her to live as she does today. I’ve heard her say that time and again. And it’s true.
Whenever I talk about historical society events I always say that “Celebration” is probably the most unique. And that’s true too.
We hope to see you there. As always, everyone in the community is not only welcome but also encouraged to join us.
