Phenomenal She and Game of Life host Juneteenth celebration

Vendors, music, speeches and performances were part of a steady flow of events in Federal Way to celebrate Juneteenth, which marked the liberation of all enslaved people in the United States.

On June 15, Phenomenal She and Game of Life Mentoring put on their fourth annual Juneteenth celebration. Juneteenth, now a national holiday, celebrates the emancipation of enslaved people in the U.S. following the Civil War. The first Juneteenth was on June 19, 1965, when in Galveston, Texas, the last enslaved people heard the news that slavery was abolished.

The event kicked off with a prayer from Joseph Bowman, Pastor at Integrity Life Church. Following the prayer, Federal Way Mayor Jim Ferrell gave a speech about Juneteenth and reminded attendees about the Juneteenth flag raising at City Hall.

“If you really think about that on June 19, 1865, two months after the Civil War ended, you know, just think about the lack of communication, the lack of ease of communication at the time, it was really a historic moment. It had been two years since the Emancipation Proclamation, so it really was a situation in which a whole new reality set in,” Ferrell said. “And I can tell you, ever since, I think, a couple of years ago, a whole new reality has set in about making sure that we bring our whole community together, that we celebrate Juneteenth, that we come together as a community, as a state, as a nation.”

Five performances followed the mayor’s speech. There were three songs: one rapped by C-Stutta, the second sung by Nevaeh Wright, and the fourth rapped by Psstal. There were two dance routines: the first performed by Daughters of Royalty Drill and Dance Ensemble and the second by the Phenomenal She Dance Team. The last performance was a kickboxing demo from The Trap Lab Studio.

“I think this is the only actual celebration in the city. I know that the actual city of Federal Way, they do the flag raising,” said Carlecia Bell, president of Phenomenal She. “But I thought it was important that we actually had a celebration in Federal Way. We wanted to make sure it was accessible to everyone. So those that live in our Federal Way community, we didn’t want them to have to go to neighboring communities to actually celebrate.”

Bell said that although the weather was not great, the turnout was good, and the event went well. Overall, she said the community came out and had a great time. Despite the somewhat rainy weather, Bell was grateful for the change in the forecast during the performances and speeches.

“I don’t know. God blessed us for that one hour because now the rain is coming down, but for that one hour, we got cloudy skies and sunny weather for those performances,” Bell said.

Bell said she would like to have a contingency plan in the following years, citing that the rain can be unpredictable. Additionally, she said she would like to partner with other individuals to continue growing the Juneteenth event.

Phenomenal She is a community based nonprofit organization that has a mission to provide mentorship, encouragement, and empowerment to young women of color. Game of Life’s mission is to provide necessary life skills and mentoring to young men of color.