Music in the garden honors Juneteenth
By Aaron Thomas
To commemorate Juneteenth, UAF Summer Sessions hosted a Music in the Garden celebration Thursday, June 18. Families across Fairbanks gathered in the Georgeson Botanical Gardens to listen to music that pays homage to Black heritage and celebrate the emancipation of enslaved African Americans. More than 900 people attended the event.
Members of the Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church Choir perform “How Great Thou Art” during Music in the Garden on June 18, 2026, at the Georgeson Botanical Gardens.
Although President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863, it took more than two years before the last enslaved people in Texas learned they were free.
The event marked the fifth Music in the Garden concert this summer. With warm temperatures and sunny skies, Fairbanksans filled the amphitheater. The event also featured games for children and booths from community organizations such as the Alaska Harvest Collaborative.
The Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church Choir opened the event with a mix of classic hymns and contemporary Christian music. Their set list included songs such as “How Great Thou Art” by Stuart K. Hine and “What a Beautiful Name” by Hillsong Worship. This was the second year that the choir performed at Music in the Garden.
“I love some old Shirley Caesar and Timothy Wright, but I really gravitate towards contemporary Christian as opposed to Southern Gospel,” said Karen Blackburn, a lead singer in the Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church Choir.
The Clarence Pate Project featuring Willie Blackburn performed a set list of funk and R&B, with classics such as “Express Yourself” by Charles Wright & the Wright Sound and “Higher Ground” by Stevie Wonder.
The Clarence Pate Project featuring Willie Blackburn plays “Express Yourself” on June 18, 2026, at the Georgeson Botanical Gardens.
During their high-energy performance, dozens of people danced in front of the stage and the crowd sang along.
Willie Blackburn, who often performs with The Clarence Pate Project, was featured earlier that week in the Tall Timbers lecture series on June 15 in the BP Design Theater. The lecture series features influential members of the Fairbanks community sharing their stories, experiences and life lessons.
The event concluded around 9 p.m. after nearly three hours of song, dance, and celebration.
“The late John Lewis, a representative of Georgia, he talks about making good trouble. Making good trouble and we at Summer Sessions, like to make lots of good trouble,” said Michelle Bartlett, director of UAF Summer Sessions and Lifelong Learning.