1. Vol. 40, No. 22 Section 01 Tallahassee, Florida May 29 -June 4, 2014
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“Thank You To All of Our Military Personnel! Happy Memorial Day!”
Local Trailblazers Honored at Tallahassee’s
2014 Emancipation Proclamation
By Aldranon
English II
Outlook Staff
Writer
The Negro Na-
tional Anthem “Lift
Every Voice and
Sing” resounded
throughout the gen-
eral room of the
Governor’s Club
as several individu-
als assembled for a
grand night of com-
memoration and
camaraderie for the
2014 Emancipation
Celebration pre-
sented by the Beth-
el Empowerment
Foundation Inc.
The reception
was orchestrated
to honor and rec-
ognize civil rights
trailblazers from the
Tallahassee com-
munity. Rev. R.B.
Holmes, founder of
the Bethel Empow-
erment Foundation
Inc. and pastoral
leader of Bethel
Missionary Baptist
Church, expounded
on the event.
“We join Florid-
ians this year on
May 20 to mark the
anniversary of the
day in 1865 when
Union General Ed-
ward McCook an-
nounced from the
steps of his head-
quarters in central
Tallahassee that
President Abraham
Lincoln had ended
slavery in Florida
under the terms of
the Emancipation
Proclamation,” said
Holmes.
Holmes also ex-
plained the purpose
of the reception as
it pertained to the
many guests that
were present.
“We are delighted
to recognize and
honor Bethel’s Civ-
il Rights legacy and
Tallahassee trail-
blazers. These ex-
traordinary people,
past and present,
inspire us with their
ingenuity, vision,
fortitude, integrity
and humanity. We
joyfully celebrate
their individual,
collective and his-
torical work,” said
Holmes.
Among the hon-
orees included Al-
themese Barnes,
Judge Joseph
Hatchett, Eva B.
Manning, Mayor
John Marks, City
Manager Anita B.
Favors and Eva
Wanton. Music se-
lections were pro-
vided by vocalists
Photos by Aldranon English II
Honorees gathered for a group photograph at the Emancipation Proclamation ceremony. Recipients Althemese Barnes and Judge Hatchett
spoke during the reception.
see LOCAL, page 2

2. www.capitaloutlook.com Capital Outlook May 29 - June 4, 2014 2
Arnett Ward and
Marcia Osborne. A
few of the special
guests were invited
to speak at the cer-
emony, including
Bob Gabordi, ex-
ecutive editor of the
Tallahassee Demo-
crat.
“This moment is
etched in history,”
said Gabordi. “This
tribute is a story
we will keep in our
mind and hearts for-
ever.”
“All of you being
recognized tonight
can consider your-
selves as trailblaz-
ers; a generation of
firsts,” said Bethel
E m p o w e r m e n t
Foundation’s Chair-
woman Elaine Bry-
ant. Bryant quoted
several individuals
from history and
the civil rights era
including Freder-
ick Douglass, So-
journer Truth and
Rev. Martin Luther
King Jr.
Joseph Hatchett,
the first black elect-
ed to the Florida
Supreme Court, ad-
vised every genera-
tion how imperative
it is to protect their
rights.
“We celebrate
now, but we must
remember to go
back out and partic-
ipate,” said Hatch-
ett. “What is good
now doesn’t always
stay good: be sure
to get up and vote
for your rights,
otherwise you will
wake up and won’t
have any.”
Each participant
at the ceremony
was recognized
individually for
their contributions
to history. They
were all presented
an award for their
achievements and
following the ser-
vice asked to take a
group photograph.
“We are a bet-
ter community be-
cause of you all that
we are honoring
this evening,” said
Holmes. “We thank
each and every one
of you who have
made tremendous
sacrifices for the
privileges we enjoy
today.”
LOCAL CONTI-