{"id":15224,"date":"2025-10-22T06:13:07","date_gmt":"2025-10-22T06:13:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/15224\/"},"modified":"2025-10-22T06:13:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T06:13:07","slug":"aarlcc-to-celebrate-23-years-of-culture-community-and-legacy-in-fort-lauderdale","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/15224\/","title":{"rendered":"AARLCC to celebrate 23 years of culture, community, and legacy in Fort Lauderdale"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Friends of the African-American Research Library and Cultural Center (AARLCC) will host a grand celebration marking the 23rd anniversary of the landmark institution on Saturday, October 25, 2025, at 4:30 p.m. at the AARLCC in Fort Lauderdale. Tickets are available online here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

For more than two decades, AARLCC has served as a cornerstone of cultural preservation, education, and inspiration\u2014uplifting stories of African and African-American achievement while fostering a deeper sense of community. The anniversary event will highlight that enduring legacy through music, storytelling, and recognition of those who continue to shape its mission.<\/p>\n

Guests can look forward to a soulful evening of live jazz by the Randy Corinthian Music Group, with radio personality Tamara G, co-host of Lite 101.5 FM\u2019s \u201cThose 2 Girls in the Morning\u201d, serving as the evening\u2019s emcee.<\/p>\n

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This year\u2019s celebration will also spotlight a distinguished lineup of 2025 honorees for their contributions to heritage, community service, and the arts:<\/p>\n

Jemilah Jones \u2013 Heritage and Distinguished Achievement<\/p>\n

Kandyss Torrence \u2013 Heritage and Distinguished Achievement<\/p>\n

Darius Daughtry \u2013 Community Service and Distinguished Achievement<\/p>\n

Sheri Brown Grosvenor \u2013 Lifetime Achievement and Community Service<\/p>\n

Karen Smith \u2013 Community Service and Distinguished Achievement<\/p>\n

\u201cThis 23rd anniversary is not just a celebration of years\u2014it\u2019s a celebration of impact,\u201d said Luwando Wright, President of the Broward County African-American Research Library and Cultural Center. \u201cThe African-American Research Library and Cultural Center is a living testament to what can be achieved through vision, partnership, and community love. We honor the past while inspiring future generations to dream, learn, and lead.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dr. Tameka Bradley Hobbs, historian and library manager, echoed that sentiment, describing AARLCC as \u201cone of the great cultural treasures of Broward County and the nation.\u201d She added, \u201cFor 23 years, we have worked to preserve the stories, art, and legacies of people of African descent\u2014ensuring that future generations understand their history, take pride in their heritage, and see themselves reflected in the narrative of our collective American story.\u201d<\/p>\n

Founded with the help of the Friends of AARLCC, the nonprofit group continues to play a pivotal role in sustaining the library\u2019s mission through programs like Soulful Christmas, Black History Saturday School, and youth-focused STEM and literacy initiatives. The Friends also advocate for public library resources and work closely with elected officials to ensure AARLCC remains a vital hub for education and cultural engagement.<\/p>\n

Since opening its doors, AARLCC has grown into one of the nation\u2019s leading institutions devoted to African and African-American heritage, housing rare collections, archives, and exhibitions that celebrate Black history, culture, and creativity.<\/p>\n

The 23rd anniversary celebration promises to be a night of reflection, recognition, and rhythm\u2014honoring the visionaries who built AARLCC and those who continue to carry its legacy forward.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Friends of the African-American Research Library and Cultural Center (AARLCC) will host a grand celebration marking the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":15225,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[249,251,250],"class_list":["post-15224","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fort-lauderdale","tag-fort-lauderdale","tag-fort-lauderdale-headlines","tag-fort-lauderdale-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15224","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15224"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15224\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15225"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}