Durham’s funkiest street music festival will be back on Fayetteville Street on Saturday, Oct. 2, 2010 “bigger and badder” to celebrate the legacy of Durham’s Hayti community. From the opening parade up Fayetteville Street, to the vending bazaar to the all-day music on stage, Phoenix Fest will bring over 8,000 visitors to one of NC’s oldest African American communities.

Please visit our website at www.phoenixfestdurham.com.  Call 919-680-2878 for more info and see the attached registration form.  Thanks!

PURCHASE TICKETS

The annual Bull Durham Blues Festival celebrates Durham’s rich musical heritage as an important center of Carolina or Piedmont blues. Since 1988, St. Joseph’s Historic Foundation, Inc. has presented the festival at the historic Durham Athletic Park, past home of the Durham Bulls Baseball team and site of the hit movie “Bull Durham”. Today, the event has become North Carolina’s largest celebration of the blues attracting fans from over 175 cities throughout North Carolina, 25 different states, and 5 countries in the world.

For 23 years the St. Joseph’s Historic Foundation, Inc. (SJHF) has presented the annual Bull Durham Blues Festival to the joy and pleasure of fans from across the globe here in Durham, NC, the home of the “Piedmont Blues”. Again, on September 10 & 11, 2010, SJHF will present a stellar line up of national, regional and local blues musicians in the usual format, but in a new venue, the new Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC) and at our home base historic St. Joseph’s Performance Hall at Hayti Heritage Center. The decision to relocate the Festival was a difficult one for the Foundation, but because of production cost implications at our previous site, the current economic climate and opportunities for new and broader partnerships, now was the time.

We recognize that change is difficult and growing pains even more so. This change in venue is an opportunity for the Foundation to revamp the festivals traditional format to encompass other venues within the City of Durham, particularly our vibrant downtown area. In the years to come, we will get back to an outdoor setting, but our plans are to expand the BDBF to multiple locations, both large and small, with shows throughout the week. As we regroup and adapt to current state of affairs, we will take this opportunity to strengthen current partnerships and develop new ones.

You, our fans have trusted us over the years and we say thank you! You have shared with us, the richness of the blues heritage here in Durham for over 22 years. Join with us as we grow, expand and diversify the Bull Durham Blues Festival, something for everyone to enjoy with family, friends and other Blues Lovers!

The festival have showcased some of the finest contemporary blues artist today including Bo Diddley, Taj Mahal, Etta James, Ruth Brown, Aaron Neville and Charles Neville, Bobby Blue Bland, Denise LaSalle, Tyrone Davis, KoKo Taylor, Shemika Copeland, Buddy Guy, Dr. John, Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, Keb’ Mo, Janiva Mangus, Otis Rush, Hank Crawford, Deborah Coleman, Johnny Clyde Copeland, and Alberta Adams. In addition, the distinctive blues of the Carolinas have featured traditional artists each year such as Moses Rascoe, John D. Holeman, Etta Baker, Lightnin’ Wells, Big Boy Henry, John Jackson, Algia Mae Hinton and harmonicas/guitar duo of Phil Wiggins and the late John Cephas.

See you at the festival…

View Event Sponsor Listing

The St. Joseph’s Historic Foundation, Inc. will host the Spirit of Hayti Award Gala & Silent Auction themed “COMING HOME”, on Thursday evening February 11, 2010 at the Hayti Heritage Center. The black tie event will begin at 6:00 pm with a wine reception and the awards program starts at 7pm in the historic St. Joseph’s Performance Hall. The Hayti Heritage Center will be transformed for the fundraising event with entertainment on all levels, valet parking, featuring food stations sponsored by 15 of the best restaurants in the Triangle community. Entertainment will be provided by jazz vocalist Lenora Z. Helm, musician Bob Tapp, and harpist Winifred Starks Garrett will perform selected spiritual hymns during the awards ceremony. The event tickets are $75 per person (a portion is tax deductible) are on sale now.

PURCHASE TICKETS NOW

The event was established in 1999 to honor individuals who have made significant contributions to the arts and historic preservation, as well as those individuals and organizations that portray excellence in leadership and community service. The honorees have demonstrated a commitment to sharing and creating opportunities for others within their own communities and throughout the country. The Spirit of Hayti Award is the highest honor bestowed by the Foundation.

Honorees for 2010 are Trail Blazer Award, Mr. Ernie Barnes (posthumously); Hayti Legacy Keeper for Corporate Philanthropy, North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company; Hayti Legacy in Arts & Education, Ms Nancy Pinckney, Choreographer and Professor, North Carolina Central University; Hayti Progressive Leadership Award, Mr. Trevor Schoonmaker, Curator of Contemporary Art at Nasher Museum of Art; and Special Recognition Awards to the late Mr. Chester L. Jenkins and late Mr. James (Uncle Bubba) Fields (posthumously).

In honor of the event the Lyda Moore Merrick Gallery will host a special curated exhibition of the works of Mr. Ernie Barnes, originals and prints, which will open on February 11 and run through March 30; and works by C’Omega Barnes, the sister-in-law of Mr. Barnes in the upper gallery. For a limited time prints will be available for purchase of Mr. Barnes work with a portion of the proceeds benefiting the St. Joseph’s Historic Foundation.

A silent auction will be held on the evening of the gala and will feature works from artists across the county including a piece donated by the late Mr. Ernie Barnes.

The Spirit of Hayti Awards Ceremony & Gala is the Foundation’s largest annual fundraising event. It was established to honor individuals and organizations with strong roots in the Durham community that have made significant contributions to the arts, historic preservation, education, and exemplify outstanding leadership qualities. Some of our past award recipients have included: the late Dr. John Hope Franklin, Honorable H. M. Michaux, Pastor Shirley Caesar, Benjamin Ruffin, GlaxoSmithKline, Wendell Tabb, Dr. Linda Kerr Norflett, Anheuser Busch/ Harris Incorporated, WTVD-ABC11, Dr. Charles D. Watts, M & F Bank, as well as Dr. Charles “Chuck” Davis.

For tickets call (919) 683-1709 ext. 28. If you are interested in sponsorship or donating an item for the silent auction contact Janella Sellars, Development Director at jsellars@hayti.org.

Saturday January 16 – 12 noon
Fayetteville Street – Durham

NOT TOO LATE TO ENTER!!!

The 8th Annual Durham Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) Holiday Parade kicks off on Saturday, January 16, 2010 at 12:00 pm. Marching bands, floats, school and church groups, step and dance teams, horses, cars, motorcycles, unique vehicles, clowns and more will make Fayetteville Street a festive place to be.

This year’s theme is Yesterday’s Dream, Tomorrow’s Reality. The Grand Marshal of the Parade is NCCU Chancellor Dr. Charlie Nelms.
Entry forms available at http://www.spectacularmag.com

***Trophies will be presented for: Best in Parade, Best Theme Application, Best Marching Band. Ribbons will be awarded for: Schools with Most Participants, Non-school group with Most Participants, Best Drum Line, Best Drum Major, Best Mounted Group (Horses), Best Individual Vehicle, Best Commercial Vehicle, and Best Vehicle Club (includes motorcycles).
Entry forms available at http://www.spectacularmag.com

SPONSORS:

ABC-11, CIAA, St. Joseph’s Historic Foundation, Inc/Hayti Heritage Center, Spectacular Magazine, NCCU Athletics Department, NC Mutual Life Insurance Company, Del Mattioli & Associates, Y-Rag Entertainment, C.A.A.R.E., Inc., Another Coley Event, MTF Photography

Saturday, January 16, 2010, 12 Noon – 3PM.
At Hayti Heritage Center

The annual Raise A Reader Bookfair and Youth Talent Showcase will be held on Saturday, January 16th from 12 noon – 3 PM at the Hayti Heritage Center. The day long program is filled with educational and entertaining events for families to enjoy together, while emphasizing Dr. King’s legacy of the power of education and spiritual enrichment. The event is designed to promote literacy. It provides parents with training and resources to instill a love of reading in their children as well as an appreciation of the written and spoken word.

This year’s special program will feature actor and playwright Mike Wiley in his one man show BROWN V. THE BOARD OF EDUCATION at 2:00 PM in the St. Joseph’s Performance Hall. In 1952, the Supreme Court heard a number of school-segregation cases, including Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. It decided unanimously in 1954 that segregation was unconstitutional; overthrowing the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson ruling that had set the “separate but equal” precedent. Whether in the classroom, a black history celebration, or as part of a civil rights forum, this entertaining and explaining tour de force encapsulates the high impact ruling for desegregating schools. This presentation is free and open to the public and groups are welcome.

Mama & Baba Shabu will conduct The Kpawo Workshop at 1:00 PM. The Kpawo is a preparatory step for anyone considering traveling to the Continent of Africa. The workshop is designed to complement the concepts illustrated in the book, Kpawo, The Bridge: Finding Your Ancestral Connection in Africa. Both a travel and self-development guide, Kpawo, The Bridge is also a workbook laden with experiences and tips from authors Mama and Baba Shabu’s 40 years building, maintaining, and crossing the bridge between Africa and the Diaspora.

In the workshop, participants will:

• Explore their previous experiences, preconceptions, fears and desires related to travel in Africa.
• Forge a strong connection to the continent through guided imagery, musical instruments, and other tools.
• Practice exercises from the book such as, “slowing down” and “finding your rhythm” with Baba’s and Mama’s guidance.
• Complete “My Personal Connection Profile”, a worksheet from the book, crucial to the re-connection process.
• Tune-in rhythmically through a live cultural arts segment: music, oral literature, and visual arts.

For more information on the workshop contact: Maisha Shabu, Email: shabu@nc.rr.com, Website: www.tmoar.com, www.kpawo.com. This workshop is for the entire family. Registrations suggested because space is limited.

Book give -a-ways will take place throughout the afternoon. Book vendors from across the Triangle area will be on hand to provide you the opportunity to purchase the latest reading materials for your children.

For more information on this program go to www.hayti.org or call (919) 683-1709.