Fifth annual Halle-Bration holiday event to showcase black-owned businesses

Never underestimate the power of a conversation between two friends from church, especially when those friends are Kathye Lewis and Miriam Kinard. After talking about how the city needed a holiday showcase for businesses owned by African-Americans, they decided to create one. Called Halle-Bration, the free event started in 2013 at New Vision United Methodist Church in Bond Hill with 30 vendors and a few hundred people in attendance. The fifth-annual event will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday Dec. 9 at the church and is expected to have between 800 and 1,000 people in attendance. “We’re glad to make it to five,” Lewis said. The first 200 children at the event will get a free toy. Santa Claus will be there. Local artist Annie Ruth will be teaching kids Christmas crafts. There also will be presentations on the meaning of Christmas and the meaning of Kwanzaa. There will be several new features, too. Guests will receive a brochure listing all 70 participating vendors to make it easier to do business with them all year long. And at 1:30 p.m. Bootsy Collins will hold a listening party for his new CD called “World Wide Funk.” “We’re very excited about that because Bootsy’s in the house, and all the funkateers will be in the house, too,” Lewis said. Kelvin Washington has been part of Halle-Bration each year since it started.