WACO, Texas — Waco and surrounding Central Texas residents will have the opportunity to meet the "Grandmother of Juneteenth" this week.
Through a Facebook post, St. Alban's Episcopal Church, announced it would be hosting "An Evening With The Real Opal Lee presented by the Community Race Relations Coalition of Waco, Zeta Phi Beta, and Delta Upsilon Zeta."
The event is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Thursday at St. Alban’s Parish Hall.
Known as the "Grandmother of Juneteenth," the 96-year-old retired educator was active in making the now federal holiday recognized throughout the country.
Lee promoted the idea by leading annual walks totaling 2.5 miles each, representing the two-and-a-half years it took for news of the Emancipation Proclamation to reach Texas.
She has not only marched in Texas, but several states throughout the country. From September 2016 to January 2017, she conducted a walk from Fort Worth to Washington, D.C. — which totals 1,404.7 miles for the symbolic effort.
Through Change.org, she created a petition that garner 1.6 million signatures. She once said, "It's going to be a national holiday, I have no doubt about it. My point is let's make it a holiday in my lifetime."
Her decades-long efforts worked, when in June 2021, President Joe Biden signed Senate Bill S. 475, making Juneteenth the eleventh federal holiday.
Last month, Lee received an honorary doctorate degree from the University of North Texas.
Lee is also a member of the Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated.
This event is free, but please RSVP to crrcwaco@gmail.com or 254-717-7903. Refreshments will be served, and donations are encouraged.
