Juneteenth jubilee brings Weston’s Black history to life
By Megan Jantos·Community·Friday, June 26, 2026
The lives of two Black Westonians whose work helped shape the St. George Hotel and Holladay Distillery took center stage June 13 as residents and visitors gathered at Red Barn Farm to celebrate Juneteenth.
The Black Ancestors Awareness Campaign organized the sixth annual jubilee. More than two dozen volunteers supported the event, which featured first-person portrayals of people connected to Weston’s Black history, along with music, dance, family activities and a community lunch.
Juneteenth, observed annually on June 19, commemorates the day in 1865 when enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, learned of their freedom more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued.
Gena Bardwell, a Kansas City native who has previously performed at BAAC events, portrayed Margerine Dydell Anderson, whom organizers describe as Weston’s last known Black resident.
“She was such an extraordinary sort of ordinary woman who lived in a town where she believed in service,” Bardwell said.
Anderson was born and raised in Weston and was known in the community for her reliability and strong work ethic. She was married to Omega Anderson for 42 years before his death in 1982.
Omega Anderson worked as a handyman and night watchman, and the couple worked together at the St. George Hotel. Margerine Anderson died in 1992 at age 86.
Bardwell’s portrayal resonated with Madhav Gupta, a first-time attendee originally from India. Gupta said Anderson’s perseverance gave him hope and confidence as he considered challenges in his own life and future.
William McQueen portrayed Frank Kelly, a former owner of the St. George Hotel, where Margerine and Omega Anderson worked.
Br. John Anderson portrayed Aaron Busey, a Black Weston resident whose labor became part of the early history of Holladay Distillery.
Busey was born into slavery in 1809 and later purchased his freedom. He worked for David Holladay and, according to BAAC research, took pride in laying the first pipe for the limestone spring around 1856. Water from the spring was used to produce the distillery’s first whiskey and remains part of its operations today.
Busey later purchased 1.5 acres on the distillery property, where he lived and worked until his mid-90s. He died in 1904 and was buried in an unmarked grave at Laurel Hill Cemetery.
Jennifer Lowman gave a brief history of The Holladay Distillery.
Dr. N.M. Shabazz delivered the keynote address, tracing Black history from precolonial African civilizations through slavery, Reconstruction, the Great Migration and the civil rights movement.
“Though it seems as if African Americans are always taking two steps forward and two steps back, they were and they did make progress,” he said. “Despite what we are going through now, I have hope for America.”
Arts in Motion performed African dance and drumming during the program.
The program was followed by lunch and family activities. The Weston Rotary Club served complimentary barbecue, and activities included airbrush tattoos, face painting and tie-dyeing.
Charles Pridgen, who has volunteered with the event for three years, encouraged the community to support BAAC’s work to preserve Weston’s history.
