CRESTVIEW — The Carver-Hill May Day Festival, Friday through Sunday, annually draws attendees from across the U.S., according to organizers.
They reminisce about being Carver-Hill School students, and bond over strides made in race relations since the era of segregation ended.
This year's events include:
•Fellowship Night: a gathering of Carver-Hill alumni and their associates, hosted by the Class of 1965; 7 p.m. Friday, May 22 at the Carver-Hill School Center, 461 School Ave., Crestview.
•A best-ball format golf tournament: 8 a.m. Saturday, May 23 at Foxwood Country Club, 4927 Antioch Road, Crestview. Cost: $45 per person or $120 per four-man team, with hole and team sponsorships available. Contact Barron Evans, 368-4245, to sign up.
•May Day: 10 a.m. parade and 11 a.m. opening ceremonies, Saturday, May 23 in various locations.
The parade lines up at 9 a.m. at the Carver-Hill School Center; it proceeds from the center down to the Carver-Hill Museum and Allen Park complex, 895 McClelland St.
Opening ceremonies include prayer, gospel singing, and Crestview Mayor David Cadle presenting a May Day proclamation.
"After that, May Day officially begins," said George Stakley, Carver-Hill Memorial & Historical Society Inc. president. "Vendors will be in the park selling food and other items, and we'll have our usual schedule of events here."
That includes a horseshoe competition, basketball, softball and Little League baseball, ping pong, and plaiting of the May pole. There are dance contests, a disc jockey, a bounce house for kids of all ages, and more throughout the afternoon.
The festival ends with the annual gospel program, 3 p.m. Sunday, May 24 at New Life Missionary Baptist Church, on Duggan Street in Crestview.
So, what's the significance of each event?
"Festival activities are patterned after events that took place each year at the Carver-Hill High School’s May Day," according to the Carver-Hill Society website, http://carverhillmemorialandhistoricalsocietyinc.org.
"A segregated school for African-American children that opened in 1915, it became known as the Carver School, after George Washington Carver, and then became the Carver-Hill School after the Rev. Edward Hill, who fought for well-funded schools for African-American schoolchildren," the website states.
Email Editorial Assistant Renee Bell, follow her on Twitter or call 850-682-6524.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: May Day Festival celebrates segregated school's past traditions