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Kent celebrates Juneteenth at Morrill Meadows Park

Published 11:42 am Tuesday, June 23, 2026

By Reporter Staff

Buffalo Soldiers during the opening of the Juneteenth celebration June 20 at Morrill Meadows Park in Kent. COURTESY PHOTO, Kent Black Action Commission
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Buffalo Soldiers during the opening of the Juneteenth celebration June 20 at Morrill Meadows Park in Kent. COURTESY PHOTO, Kent Black Action Commission

Buffalo Soldiers during the opening of the Juneteenth celebration June 20 at Morrill Meadows Park in Kent. COURTESY PHOTO, Kent Black Action Commission
People gather at the Juneteenth event in Kent. COURTESY PHOTO, Kent Black Action Commission
A duo sings “Lift Every Voice” to open the Juneteenth celebration. COURTESY PHOTO, Kent Black Action Commission
Keynote speaker King County Executive Girmay Zahilay. COURTESY PHOTO, Kent Black Action Commission

Residents and elected officials gathered for the Kent Black Action Commission’s (KBAC) 15th annual Linda Sweezer Memorial Juneteenth celebration June 20 at Morrill Meadows Park.

Buffalo Solidiers paraded on horses to open the ceremony as a duo sang “Lift Every Voice.”

King County Executive Girmay Zahilay was the keynote speaker.

“Thank you Girmay for celebrating with us and we look forward to supporting your upcoming endeavors in the community,” according to a KBAC Facebook post.

Kent Mayor Dana Ralph also spoke.

“Thank you, Dana Ralph, for always showing up to support us during our KBAC Juneteenth Celebration over the years,” according to KBAC. “We appreciate you.”

King County Councilmember Steffanie Fain, whose District 5 includes part of Kent, received KBAC’s Juneteenth Community Service Award for 2026.

The celebration featured music, cultural performances, vendors, youth activities and a voter registration booth. The event was at Morrill Meadows Park, 10600 SE 248th St., next to the Kent YMCA.

Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, when enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas, finally received word that they were free. This monumental news arrived more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation and two months after the Civil War ended.

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