PITTSBURGH PARKS CONSERVANCY ANNOUNCES JUNETEENTH CONCERT AT FRICK ENVIRONMENTAL CENTER
PITTSBURGH – JUNE 9, 2021 – The Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy has announced a full schedule of Juneteenth events, culminating in a concert at the Frick Environmental Center in Frick Park on June 19.
The Juneteenth concert will showcase local Black artists and will be free to the public and family friendly. Guests are encouraged to bring a picnic and blanket to the Frick Environmental Center lawn and enjoy live music performances. Tours of the Frick Environmental Center’s ‘Slavery to Freedom Garden’ will be offered after the concert. This event will run on renewable energy via ZeroFossil's Solar Powered Stage, and interactive energy activities for kids will also be on site.
Guests are asked to pre-register online, physically distance and wear masks. Information about all of the non-profit’s Juneteenth events is available at pittsburghparks.org/juneteenth.
“We’re excited to build upon our Juneteenth programming from last year and offer the community a complete lineup of events this year,” said Catherine Qureshi, president and chief executive officer, Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy. “The Parks Conservancy believes in a diverse, equitable, and inclusive park system. We also have a responsibility to represent the neighborhoods and the communities we serve — from the projects we support to the programs and activities we offer.”
In August 2020, the city of Pittsburgh announced that Juneteenth would become a City holiday in 2021.
The Parks Conservancy’s Juneteenth concert is one of several events being held by the non-profit in the weeks leading up to the holiday. In addition to the post-concert tour, Parks Conservancy naturalist educators will also provide tours of the ‘From Slavery to Freedom Garden’ on June 13 and June 16. The garden teaches visitors about the importance of plants and nature in the lives of Freedom Seekers and is an outdoor extension of the Heinz History Center's ‘From Slavery to Freedom’ exhibit. A reflective poetry exercise, plant identification, and short hike will be a part
of the experience.
“Coming from Africa to the United States, the enslaved were unfamiliar with their new environment,” said Camila Rivera-Tinsley, director of education, who will lead the tours. “However, accumulated knowledge from their homelands gleaned from previous generations, as well as new knowledge of the new land, proven essential to their survival and journey to eventual freedom.”
Other Juneteenth activities include a June 14 presentation of ‘13th’ at the Heinz History Center and ‘The Black Market,’ a June 26 celebration of Black-owned businesses held in partnership with the Black Environmental Collective at Robert E. Williams Park in the Hill District.
For the Parks Conservancy’s full schedule of Juneteenth lineup, including event details and registration, visit pittsburghparks.org/juneteenth.
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Alana Wenk
Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy
412.527.0020
awenk@pittsburghparks.org
About Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy:
Now celebrating its 25th year, the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy was founded in December 1996 by a group of citizens concerned with the deteriorating conditions of Pittsburgh’s historic city parks. A non-profit organization, the Parks Conservancy works closely with the City of Pittsburgh under an official public-private partnership agreement to restore and improve the city’s park system to its full potential. To date, the Parks Conservancy has raised more than $130 million and completed 22 major park improvement projects. The Parks Conservancy works with thousands of volunteers, hosts hundreds of events, and provides programming for more than 7,500 children annually.