Juneteenth Celebration

Come celebrate Juneteeth with us! 

This event will feature guest speakers, live music, food and drinks, and interactive activities for all ages! 

Learn more about our guest speakers!

Kwasi Ntem-Mensah

Kwasi Ntem-Mensah is a father, a husband and a mentor. He is a Fatherhood consultant and a member of the Fatherhood Roundtable. Kwasi is currently the Fatherhood Initiative Coordinator working with ECHN-Family Development Center’s Healthy Families Healthy Babies program. He is the chair of ECHN’s Unity Collaborative where the work is focused on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Kwasi is a member of the Board of Education of Manchester. He also serves as a director of The Manchester Land Conservation Trust and is the President of The Council of Ghanaian Associations in Connecticut. He is also on the CFSP Advisory Council. Kwasi does collaborative work with the DOC and DCF. He is the creator of ReadToMe and Celebrating Our Fathers events. Kwasi facilitates 24/7 Dads and Circle of Security Parenting. He is the author of the anthology of poems and short story “A Silent Noisy Walk in My Mind” and publisher of “SilentNoises.org”. He is also a radio presenter at CMRadio, a Ghanaian radio station based in East Hartford and a member of AABAC, an advocacy association for people of color. Lastly, Kwasi is a wonderful community advocate that is eager to work with people all races, genders and socio-economic background.

Ethel Lee

Although Ethel has enjoyed singing her entire life, she did not have the opportunity or freedom to focus solely on singing until she retired from the West Springfield Police Department, after 28 years of service in 2003. Ethel has the pleasure of being the leader of her own band, as well as being asked to perform with other renown and talented musicians. She is also the vocalist for the amazing Amherst Big Band Jazz Orchestra. Some of her most memorable and prestigious engagements include singing for former Governor Deval Patrick’s inauguration, public service award for former U.S. Senator Edward Brooke, former Hampden County District Attorney William Bennett’s annual Law Day breakfast, several fund raisers for State Representative Ben Swan and was a featured singer in “Blues in the Night” a play at the Majestic Theater in West Springfield, MA. Ethel was given an award in 2003 by the Girl Scouts of Pioneer Valley for lifting people spirits. She also won the title of Ms. Senior Massachusetts in 2014. Ethel says singing is her happy place, and every event she is asked to sing at, she considers it a special honor!

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THIS EVENT, PLEASE CONTACT TERILYNN ROGERS AT TSLINGBACK8@GMAIL.COM.