Growing up in Oberlin, it is safe to say that I was exposed to A LOT of things that I would have missed out on had my family had settled in Elyria, Wellington or any other town just a few miles away. Now Oberlin is not perfect (despite what we might have thought about our small town growing up), but it did have a lot of things that were special, and that many of us carried with us when we crossed the borders of our utopia to enter the real world.
One tradition that has steadily grown in my hometown is the celebration of Juneteenth -
courtesy of Juneteenth Oberlin
https://www.juneteenthoberlin.org
And this year we have a LOT to celebrate, as it seems that Congress finally got the memo, and Juneteenth is now an official federal holiday here in the US!
For those of you tuning in from further away and not familiar with it, per Wikipedia:
"Juneteenth is a federal holiday in the United States celebrating the emancipation of African Americans who had been enslaved. Originating in Galveston, Texas, in 1866, it has been celebrated annually on June 19 throughout the United States."
And for more information on how it all began -
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juneteenth
And sadly, as much as I would love to be there to celebrate, with the uncertainties brought about by COVID it was too late to head over this year, but the Oberlin Watch Company is wishing everyone in my hometown, and around the world - a VERY HAPPY JUNETEENTH!