Anchorage cemetery tour celebrates the contributions of past Black leaders

Cal Williams leads nan Soul successful nan Cemetery circuit done Anchorage Memorial Park Cemetery connected June 22, 2022. (Leigh Walden/Alaska Public Media)

On 1 of nan nicest Saturdays truthful acold this summer, astir 200 group competed for abstraction surrounding a tombstone astatine nan Anchorage Memorial Park Cemetery. 

Their big for nan afternoon: Cal Williams. 

For complete 2 hours, Williams led nan lively group connected a travel done nan cemetery, recounting nan lives of salient Black Alaskans who are now buried there. It was nan 2nd yearly “Soul successful nan Cemetery” Juneteenth arena — an opportunity for nan organization to not only observe Black history successful Alaska and nan lives of Black leaders, but besides to retrieve elements of alteration that residents proceed to activity toward today. 

“As I sojourn these graves,” Williams said, “it causes maine to bespeak connected really overmuch much they could person fixed if they were still present and nan awesome joyousness and wonders of what they did successful nan clip that they were here.”

Williams is simply a longtime Alaska resident who personally knew galore of nan group highlighted connected nan tour. At each sedate connected Saturday, he introduced nan individual laid to remainder location to nan crowd. 

The group’s first stop: nan tomb of Elgin Jones, who founded nan multi-cultural publication, The Anchorage Gazette. And successful his later years, he worked tirelessly pinch Kids Kitchen, a group estimated to person served complete 1 cardinal free meals to section children successful need. 

Williams past welcomed members of nan crowd who knew Jones to recount nan effect he had connected Anchorage. Several group vied for nan microphone.

“Brother Elgin…went by nan norm of, if you’re gonna do it, do it correct for nan children.” said Rev. Wilbert Mickens of New Hope Baptist Church. 

Cal Williams and Rev. Wilbert Mickens laughter together while Mickens tells a communicative astir his precocious friend, Rev. William Lyons. (Leigh Walden/Alaska Public Media)

Members of nan organization remembered Jones arsenic personification who profoundly loved helping children and who worked done each sorts of logistical challenges to do his activity successful aiding them. 

The circuit continued to nan graves of a assortment of different notable Black leaders including Richard and Anna Watts, Helen and Toby Gamble, Johnnie L. Gay, Rebecca Kinney and Rev.William B. Lyons, Sr. Their effect wrong Alaska spanned galore realms of life, from hairdressing to chairing nan Anchorage branch of nan NAACP to carpentry to serving arsenic nan President of nan Licensed Practical Colored Nurses of Louisiana. 

At nan sedate of Helen Gamble, Robin Cole Barden introduced immoderate of nan interwoven life stories of nan precocious Gamble and her family. 

“Helen Gamble sewage present by my grandfather. He drove Helen Gamble from Oakland, California,” he said. “Before it was a state, erstwhile it was a territory, it was a full different land, full different community. And they thrived present because of that. Once it became a authorities pinch national rule location were Jim Crow laws and truthful nan African Americans successful Alaska and successful Anchorage had to rebuild to thrive.”

Williams said truthful galore group don’t cognize that portion of Alaska’s history, and that’s why this circuit is truthful special.

“Oftentimes galore group person asked: I didn’t cognize that location were Black group present because astir of nan books that we’ve seen and astir of nan advertisement and PR astir Alaska did not see — not only Black people, but not Native people,” Williams said. “And truthful coming we admit that by our presence, we admit those who person called upon america to salary tribute to those who person gone earlier us.”

The sedate of Rebecca Kinney, a celebrated Anchorage cosmetologist. (Leigh Walden/Alaska Public Media)

Those honored passim nan arena were conscionable a fraction of nan Black Alaskans who did activity to build a robust Black beingness successful Alaska —  activity that arena organizers opportunity is ongoing.

It’s important work, said Ted Ellis, acting chair of nan 400 years of African American History Commission. Ellis and different members of nan group attended nan tour. This group is simply a federally appointed committee established successful 2019 pinch nan extremity of rediscovering nan 400 years of history since Africans were first brought to English colonies successful 1619. 

“It’s truthful critically important that we recognize nan bequest of those who person travel earlier us, that we sphere those memories and those stories, that we return that and we stock that and we turn and we do amended arsenic we proceed to move toward excellence,” Ellis said.

One of nan leaders that continues this activity is Williams himself. The committee recognized him during nan arena arsenic 1 of America’s 400 African American History Keepers. Williams has lived successful Alaska for decades, is simply a past president of nan NAACP Alaska section and committed activistic moving toward Black advancement nationwide.

“It is humbling and breathtaking to do this work,” Williams said. “I’m truthful happy that Darrel Hess came up pinch nan crazy thought of going and visiting graves successful this cemetery that entombed African Americans who made important strides successful improvement present successful Anchorage, Alaska.”

Williams and nan organizers of Soul astatine nan Cemetery opportunity they look guardant to galore much events to come.

Cal Williams carries his drum while stepping pinch a personnel of nan 400 Years of African American History Commission done Anchorage Memorial Park Cemetery. (Leigh Walden, Alaska Public Media)