Minnesotans celebrate Juneteenth through food, music and history lessons
Across Minnesota, communities came together to celebrate a day that's more than a holiday, but the heartbeat of freedom.
Juneteenth, now recognized as a federal holiday, is more than a day off; it's an important reminder of freedom delayed but never denied. It marks the day in 1865 when enslaved African Americans in Texas learned they were free.
In south Minneapolis, people gathered for food and music as children jumped Double Dutch. In north Minneapolis, there was a parade full of excitement.
But at Historic Fort Snelling, people took a different approach. More than 400 people took a guided tour on the grounds where slavery once existed.
Dred and Harriet Scott lived and labored there in the 1830s. A man whose fight for freedom was one of the most infamous Supreme Court decisions, where the courts denied Black people freedom.
For Loretta Kennedy and her family, it was crucial to book the tour.
"Everybody needs to know their name and who they were," Kennedy said. "If it wasn't for them, we wouldn't be here."
It's a day filled with love and rooted in history and hope.
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Indianapolis Star
21 minutes ago
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INdulge: Traditional Nigerian stew with rich history is best thing I ate in Indy this week
Juneteenth, which commemorates the day the last slaves of the Confederacy were freed in 1865, has come and gone. However — if you'll allow me a brief moment on my radical, extremist soapbox — one could argue you don't need a federal holiday to support Black-owned businesses in your community. Among those businesses are Indianapolis' various West African restaurants. For this week's INdulge, I sampled a sliver of that robust culinary tradition with: If you're unfamiliar with Nigerian food, I suspect you could wander up to just about any restaurant that serves it, order a dish completely at random and end up with a memorably flavorful surprise. For an idea of where to start, consider the ayamase at Jollof Buka on the Near Westside. Black-owned restaurants: 40 to check out in the Indianapolis area Ayamase (aye-ah-mah-shay) is a thick sauce made with a blend of green peppers (usually bell peppers and/or unripe chilies), aromatic vegetables, hard-boiled egg and irú, fermented African locust beans. Various cuts of meat are also a common ingredient; Jollof Buka prepares its ayamase ($16.95) with shreds of turkey and chicken. These components are cooked in bleached palm oil, which has a distinct yet hard-to-place flavor I can best describe as hardy. The ayamase has a semi-dry, fibrous consistency similar to other spice pastes like Mexican salsa macha or Indonesian sambal. It packs a slight vegetal sweetness thanks to the peppers, while the meat and egg make it a well-rounded, savory meal. Though the stew is not especially spicy, an overly ambitious spoonful won't go unnoticed on the way down your throat. While not as well-known as jollof, Nigeria's national dish of spiced rice from which Jollof Buka gets its name (buka is a term for a casual restaurant in Yoruba, one of three major languages spoken in Nigeria), ayamase is extremely popular in the West African country. Unlike centuries-old jollof, ayamase has likely only been around for about a hundred years. The most popular origin story for ayamase tells of a woman living in the small Nigerian town of Ikenne named Felicia Ajibabi Adesina, who in the 1920s developed a sauce of peppers and palm oil to serve at her food stand with Ofada rice (ayamase is often referred to as Ofada stew). Supposedly, Adesina's short-tempered husband would often get into scraps with neighbors, prompting concerned friends and family members to call him Mase, a Yoruba word that means 'don't' — as in, come on, man, don't hit him. In turn, Adesina's wildly popular sauce became known as obe aya Mase, meaning 'Mase's wife's sauce,' and eventually just ayamase. Previously in INdulge: Why do dads love to grill? This BBQ dish was best thing I ate in Indy this week While the fun stories behind our favorite foods typically fall apart under scrutiny, the legend of Felicia Adesina actually seems to hold up. It's the only historical explanation for ayamase I can find, including in one of Nigeria's oldest independent newspapers, The Guardian. Amid a lack of contrary evidence, I'm content to believe the tale of Adesina's fiery entrepreneurial spirit and similarly combustible husband. Whoever its inventor, ayamase remains a strong representative of Nigerian cuisine. Though summer generally doesn't stir cravings of hot, spiced stew, I'd say a visit Jollof Buka is worth the sweat. What: Ayamase, $16.95 Where: Jollof Buka, 2501 W. Washington St., (317) 384-1575, In case that's not your thing: Jollof Buka's menu caters to diners of widely varying curiosity levels, so it's OK if you're totally new to Nigerian food. The jollof with jerk chicken ($18), fried spiced chicken wings ($9) or vegetarian okra soup ($16.49) should all ring reasonably familiar to the Western palate. Meanwhile, more adventurous eaters can swing for peppered ponmo (cow skin cooked in chili paste, $16) or the spicy goat stir fry called asun ($16, weekends only).
Yahoo
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Tuscarawas YMCA scholarships help students pursue college dreams
DOVER — Eight students have been awarded scholarships from the Tuscarawas County YMCA for the 2025-26 school year, totaling $13,250. The first-year recipients are Jaycie Baker, Leah Hamilton, Katelynn Markle, Sierra Minard, Madeline Smith and Jonathan Snyder, according to an announcement. Baker is a graduate of New Philadelphia High School and will attend Ohio University, majoring in social work. Hamilton graduated from Tuscarawas Valley High School and will attend the University of Findlay, majoring in animal sciences/pre-vet. Markle, also a Tuscarawas Valley graduate, will attend Walsh University, majoring in exercise science. Minard graduated from Strasburg High School and will attend National Beauty College, majoring in cosmetology. Smith is a Garaway High School graduate and will attend Miami University, majoring in biology/pre-med. Snyder graduated from Dover High School and will attend Kent State University-Tuscarawas, majoring in early childhood education. Audrey Kinsey and Nathan Pugh were awarded second-year scholarships. Kinsey, a student at Kent State University-Tuscarawas, is majoring in integrated social studies. Pugh, also a Kent State University-Tuscarawas student, is majoring in marketing/business. The Thomas J. Patton Scholarship Fund was established in 1989 by Robert "Fizz" Miller to honor Patton's more than 40 years of service to the community through his work and leadership at the YMCA. Since its inception, 120 local students have received the scholarship. This story was created by Jane Imbody, jimbody@ with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Journalists were involved in every step of the information gathering, review, editing and publishing process. Learn more at or share your thoughts at with our News Automation and AI team. This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: Tuscarawas County YMCA awards $13K in scholarships to 8 local students
Washington Post
an hour ago
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Early American property blends history, whimsy in Old Town Alexandria
Before one of the designers of the Metro system bought the historical brick house a block from Alexandria's waterfront, and before an early 19th-century trunk maker used the building for a workshop, and before a friend of George Washington's bought the land, an 18th-century oyster shack stood just beyond what today is the Duke Street house's backyard. Fast-forward to the 21st century, when the backyard was dug up for a small heated pool and patio, unearthing oyster shells, likely discarded from the oyster shop in the 1770s. Homeowner Martha Peterson bleached and painted the shells, hanging them in a frames above the quartz countertop in a kitchen where custom pocket doors conceal Miele appliances, a built-in coffee maker, wine cooler and other equipment not dreamed of when the house was built in 1800. 'The ground was just full of oyster shells, and my mom had the idea to keep some as a kind of tribute to the history of the place,' said Peterson's son Chase Whitely, who lives in the house and has helped renovate it with her. They are both interior designers. The house was originally about half its current size. Transportation engineer Alan Voorhees, whose work helped shape both Washington's subway and the U.S. interstate highway system, bought an empty lot next door in the 1980s and expanded the house to cover both properties. Three years ago, Peterson built another addition, which includes a second living room, a back staircase, guest bedroom with balcony, and front and back porches. In all, the house has five bedrooms, four bathrooms and five fireplaces. 'Every corner, every inch they touched, but they were amazing at keeping the charm of house, including some original floors and fireplaces, keeping the historic look and adding modern touches,' Compass real estate agent Stefanie Hurley said of Peterson's and Whitely's work on the house. One of Whitley's favorite renovations is the first-floor powder room where swans swim on bright pink Gucci wallpaper and are reflected in the ornate mirror above a custom curved marble vanity. Gold leaf covers the ceiling. Another gem for Whitley is the transformation of the soaring entry way. 'What sold us on the house was the foyer. When we bought it, it was just a wood floor and painted walls, so we added a heated marble floor, redid the stairs and put in paneling. We really wanted the space to be like 'wow' when people walk in,' he said. Whitley and Peterson added a hand-painted mural by artist Suzanne Harter of a pastoral scene that wraps around an arched doorway in the main-level hallway. They converted an upstairs bedroom to a dressing room off the primary bedroom. Both rooms have fireplaces. The home's crawl space has been converted to finished storage space that spans the entire house. 'It had been just a pile of dirt. In a lot of historic homes, you don't get a lot of storage space, so this is a huge perk of the house,' Hurley said. Many historical elements remain. In addition to the fireplaces and some of the wood floors, the exposed brick in the kitchen marks where the original house ended. The original front door to the house built by trunk maker Ephraim Mills in 1800 still faces the street. When the house was expanded another front door was added as the main entryway, but because it has two doors, the house appears as if it's two separate residences. Outside, the pool's temperature can be controlled by an app, and residents have even used it when it's snowing, Hurley said. A narrow putting green abuts what had been Whitley's stepfather's office with a door to the outside. Whitley recalls him taking phone calls while putting. 'The house has been evolving since we bought it about 10 years ago,' Whitley said. 'As an interior designer, you're often giving clients things you might not necessarily do in your home. So, this has been fun for us and it's made us happy.' $5.8 million 109 Duke St., Alexandria, Va.
