The City of Winter Park will host the twentieth annual Unity Heritage Festival to commemorate the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday.
The community festival will take place on Sunday, January 16, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., and Monday, January 17, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and will promote family heritage and raise funds for the Educational Fulfillment Fund benefitting local economically disadvantaged youth.
The festival begins at Shady Park at Hannibal Square, located at 721 W New England Avenue, at the intersection of Pennsylvania and New England avenues.
Special activities will include children’s games, career booths, food and retail vendors, as well as job training/readiness and financial literacy by Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Nu Iota Omega Chapter.
Sunday’s entertainment will feature Veronica Stephens and Craig Crawford, along with mime artist Doc J and local gospel artists from community churches. Patrons are also encouraged to visit the Hannibal Square Heritage Center’s current exhibit just across the street from Shady Park. The center pays tribute to the past, present and future contributions of Winter Park’s historic African-American community.
The festival continues at Shady Park on Monday, with city officials hosting a Martin Luther King, Jr., symbolic program beginning at 12 p.m.
Events and activities will continue throughout the day including food and music by Beautiful Bobby Blackman and Jabari Clay. From 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., the city’s Urban Forestry Division will provide information about the Arbor Day Foundation’s Community Canopy initiative that promotes and assists private residents in making improvements to their property’s tree canopy.
For more information about the festival, call 407-599-3357.