Royal Hill Jr. to present Juneteenth program at Co-Lin Natchez Campus

 

Royal Hill Jr.

NATCHEZ, Miss. -- Copiah-Lincoln Community College is hosting a Juneteenth program at 10 a.m. Thursday, June 19, at the Willie Mae Dunn Library in the Tom Reed Academic Building at 11 Co-Lin Circle, Natchez.
 
Local historian Royal Hill Jr., the guest speaker, will discuss “The History of Juneteenth.” The event is free and open to the public. It is organized by Library Director Victoria Williams, who will serve as the master of ceremony.
 
Other participants in the program will include Robin Grenell, senior aide, who will present the invocation, and Corey Ellis Jr., who will introduce the speaker.
 
Hill is a graduate of Alcorn State University. In addition to being a co-owner of Open Arms Tours and Receptive Services with his wife, Lavada, Royal Hill is the center manager for Mississippi Action for Progress at the Thompson Head Start Center.
 
“I believe that servitude and giving back to the community are essential components of being  ‘part of the problem or part of the solution,’” Royal Hill said. It was this conviction, he noted, that led him to co-chair the Natchez Juneteenth Committee of 1990.
 
Over the years, Royal Hill has served on multiple committees in the Miss-Lou area.
 
"As we honor Juneteenth, we must also honor and invest in the institutions that continue to uplift the values it represents," said Dr. Pernell Goodwin, vice president of Co-Lin’s Natchez Campus.
 
Thursday’s program is expected to last for one hour. Refreshments will be served. The program is designed for the students and the general public, said Williams.
 
For more information, call 601-446-1107.