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Key Points
- Apopka will hold a Juneteenth parade and festival on Saturday from 2 to 7 p.m. at Alonzo Williams Park, expecting about 500 attendees.
- The parade route starts at Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 10147 and ends at Alonzo Williams Park with road closures requested from 1 p.m.
- Mayor Nick Nesta will present a proclamation at the June 17 City Commission meeting to officially recognize June 19 as Juneteenth in Apopka.
Apopka residents will gather Saturday to celebrate Juneteenth with a community parade and festival honoring the anniversary of the end of slavery in the United States.
Organized by Transform Outreach Inc., the event is scheduled from 2 to 7 p.m. at Alonzo Williams Park. The organization expects about 500 people to attend, according to a special permit application included in the agenda packet. The celebration will include a parade, food vendors, tents and community activities.
According to the event application submitted to the city, the parade will begin at Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 10147 and travel south on Central Avenue before turning west onto 10th Street, north onto Marvin Zanders Avenue and west onto M A Board Street, ending at Alonzo Williams Park. Organizers have requested road closures beginning at 1 p.m. to accommodate the procession.
The City Commission is scheduled to consider approval of the road closure request during its June 17 meeting.
Also during the same meeting, Mayor Nick Nesta is expected to present a proclamation recognizing June 19 as Juneteenth in Apopka and encouraging residents to observe the day through “appropriate programs, activities, and reflections.”
Beyond the parade and festival, organizers say the event is intended to celebrate freedom while fostering community engagement and education.
Othellus Swift will receive the event’s Pillar Award, organizers announced on the Apopka Juneteenth Facebook page.
According to the Apopka Juneteenth website, the Apopka Juneteenth Freedom Day Celebration will feature a kid’s corner, music, live performances, educational opportunities, food, art, cultural activities and historical displays highlighting Apopka’s history.
Organizers say the event is also intended to support community causes and provide networking opportunities for small and startup businesses.
The event website says, “On Juneteenth, we recommit ourselves to the work of equity, equality, and justice” while celebrating “the centuries of struggle, courage, and hope” that helped advance civil rights and opportunity.
The city proclamation notes that Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, when Union Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and announced the end of slavery more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation.