CORPUS CHRISTI, Tx — The president of the Texas Association of Black Personnel in Higher Education says Juneteenth is more than a day on the calendar — it is an opportunity for the community to reconnect and reflect on how far it has come.
Simone Sanders has helped organize the Coastal Bend Juneteenth Festival, now in its ninth year. She said her favorite part of the event is seeing the community come together.
"We started out with just 500 people in a park, and last year more than 20,000 people attended from across the region," Sanders said.
What began as a small gathering has grown into a community tradition — one Sanders said is deeply connected to Corpus Christi's Juneteenth history.
"When Juneteenth became a national holiday, the NFL ran ads that appeared to feature images from Corpus Christi because the celebrations here were so significant. If you look through local archives, you'll find parades and pageants that were part of those early celebrations," Sanders said.
Sanders said she takes pride in the memories and history the festival continues to create, especially in a community where African Americans make up about 4% of the population.
"I feel proud that we're creating memories people can look back on and remember. I'm glad we're a part of history now," Sanders said.
The Texas Association of Black Personnel in Higher Education begins planning the event each October, spending months preparing for the annual celebration. Sanders said the scale of the festival remains remarkable.
"I don't think there's any other celebration quite like it, where you get to see thousands upon thousands of people come together," Sanders said.
She also reflected on the personal connections the festival has fostered over the years, including watching former participants grow up.
"That little girl is a young woman now. She's a high stepper at Miller. I looked at an old photo of her from our poster contest and thought, 'Oh my goodness,'" Sanders said.
