Genesee Country Village & Museum Raises $132,710; Announces Upcoming Events – Juneteenth

 

The Genesee Country Village & Museum issued a press release thanking its benefactors for contributing more than $65,000 – each of which was matched – for a total of $132,710.

“We take your trust in the Museum seriously and will keep working hard to be an educational resource, a place of fun and exploration, and a site for community collaboration,” museum officials said.

HERE’S WHAT’S HAPPENING ON-SITE Members Share-the-Museum Weekend! June 19-21 From Friday, June 19 until Sunday, June 21, all current GCV&M members are invited to bring up to four additional non-member guests with them to explore the Historic Village paths and Nature Center trails as part of Share-the-Museum Weekend.

In addition to walking, The Depot Restaurant and Freight House Pub will be open for food and drink and the Flint Hill Store will be open for the first time this season.

The store was renovated over the off-season and members will have the first chance to shop new Village-made pottery, Beekman 1802 products, and more.

Food and shopping are open 12-4 pm each day and walking hours are Friday from 12-6 pm and Saturday and Sunday from 10 am-4 pm.

Every year, GCV&M releases a document that summarizes the Museum’s accomplishments and your contributions for the past year. When we started putting this report together in January, we had no idea the world would look like it does today, but we hope you enjoy reflecting back on the past year and all we achieved together.

While we don’t know what our 2020 Annual Report will look like yet, we are hopeful we can all be together onsite again soon.

This report is always available on our website’s “About” page.  Read the Annual Report A MOMENT OF REFLECTION The Origins of Juneteenth

In 1865, a full two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, the approximate 250,000 slaves in Texas had no idea that they had been emancipated. On June 19th of that year, the Union troops that delivered the news of slave emancipation and the end of the Civil War to this most remote of the former Confederate states were met with shock and jubilation.

“Even with nowhere to go, many felt that leaving the plantation would be their first grasp of freedom. North was a logical destination …, while the desire to reach family members in neighboring states drove some into Louisiana, Arkansas and Oklahoma. Settling into these new areas as free men and women brought on new realities and the challenges of establishing a heretofore non-existent status for Black people in America” (wwww.juneteenth.com/history.htm).

Juneteenth is considered the oldest celebration of the end of slavery in the United States commemorated with speeches, performances, and family gatherings. Today, 47 states and the District of Columbia recognize Juneteenth as a state holiday or special day of observance and recognition.

GCV&M friend and collaborator Cheney McKnight and the New York Historical Society are hosting an online program that gives children and families an opportunity to learn more about Juneteenth and the traditions surrounding its celebration.