Black History Month parade, festival to feature local physicians
A quartet of Victoria-based African-American doctors will be honored guests during this year’s Black History Month activities, which include a parade, festival, poster contest and public reception beginning Friday.
Cardiologists Dr. Tywaun Tillman and Dr. Chelif Junor, who work at Citizens Medical Center, as well as obstetrician and gynecologist Dr. Yvette Westford of Victoria Women's Clinic, will be grand marshals in The Black History Month Parade Saturday morning. Ophthalmologist and pediatrician Dr. Deborah Eezzudehmoi, who works at Victoria Eye Center, also will be a guest of honor.
The four will give brief talks at the Black History Month Festival following the Saturday parade and will be at a festival booth from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. to visit with the public.
“We are proud of these doctors who are dedicated to improving the public health of everyone in Victoria,” said Margie Montgomery, Black History Month committee spokesperson.
The parade will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday at Patti Welder Magnet Middle School, 1500 E. North St., and end at the Victoria Community Center, 2905 E. North St.
The Black History Month Festival will immediately follow the parade and will last until 4 p.m. at the community center. The festival will include food, entertainment and the announcement of the winners of the People’s Choice Award in the poster contest.
The public also is invited to attend the annual Black History Month Poster Contest Reception at 5:30 p.m. Friday in the Multi-Purpose Room of the UHV University Center, 3007 N. Ben Wilson St. Winners of the Fifth-Grade Poster Contest will be announced. The first- through third-place winners will receive different levels of scholarships to both UHV and Victoria College. Honorable mention awards also will be given.
All posters submitted are on display for the public to view throughout the UHV University Center during regular business hours in February. Visitors are invited to cast their vote for the People’s Choice Award at the first-floor information kiosk. All votes must be submitted by 5 p.m. Wednesday.
UHV helps organize Black History Month events annually along with Victoria College, the Cultural Council of Victoria and the Black History Month Steering Committee. Grocer H-E-B is a corporate sponsor.
For more information about participating in the parade, contact Earnel Lee or Annie Hill at 361-576-5650. For more information about participating in the festival’s entertainment, contact Sherilyn Shelton at 361-433-6038.
The University of Houston-Victoria, located in the heart of the Coastal Bend region since 1973 in Victoria, Texas, offers courses leading to more than 80 academic programs in the schools of Arts & Sciences; Business Administration; and Education, Health Professions & Human Development. UHV provides face-to-face classes at its Victoria campus, as well as an instructional site in Katy, Texas, and online classes that students can take from anywhere. UHV supports the American Association of State Colleges and Universities Opportunities for All initiative to increase awareness about state colleges and universities and the important role they have in providing a high-quality and accessible education to an increasingly diverse student population, as well as contributing to regional and state economic development.
