The 8th Annual Cultural Arts Event was held on Saturday, June 30, 2017 at the Tillery Community Center, 321 Community Center Road, Tillery, N.C. The event, presented in two parts. Part I began at 10am, featuring Tillery’s own Evangeline Grant Briley. Part Two began at 1pm, offering a variety of talent.
Briley presented on “Meet The Extraordinary Women of Historic Tillery." Evangeline has led an extraordinary life as a social change advocate and in breaking racial barriers in the media.
In January, 1969, after several years as a social worker for the Halifax County School System, on her own initiative she became the first African American in North Carolina to produce and host a television show. Together with Evangeline was a must see weekly media event featuring local and state wide African American guests in politics, education, religion, food service and community service. It was seen over WNCT-TV, Greenville, N.C.
In 1971, Evangeline became the first woman and the first African American to produce/host for North Carolina public television. She traveled the state with a television crew interviewing students, educators, parents, and school officials on the problems and solutions of school integration. Thursday’s Child (has far to go) was an award-winning 10-program series viewed statewide.
She later established her own production/publishing company, EVAN-REDD PRODUCTIONS, INC, under which she and her brother, Gary Grant, produced Heritage of Hope, financed by a first-time grant from UNC-TV, and viewed state wide. Grant-Briley published two books, nothing: the mentality of the black woman and Anthony Debro: Something Special.
Her outstanding work has also included Cultural Arts Director for the new town, Soul City, founded by the late Attorney Floyd McKissick, Sr. Her activism with international causes célèbres include The Wilmington Ten, the Joanne Little Case, Freedom for Mandela, and her controversial marriage to death row inmate, James Briley, in a failed attempt to stop his execution. She succeeded in bringing world-wide attention to the racism and unfairness of America’s death penalty jurisprudence.
For several years forward she was in great demand for television death penalty interviews across the nation including, Donahue, Oprah, and Sally Jessey Raphael television shows.
In ten subsequent years she was the primary care-giver for her aging parents, the late Matthew and Florenza Moore Grant, and at age 77 years, Evangeline continues to be an active and adoring parent of four children and five grandchildren, a sweetheart to her former high school “boo”, and to be a helpful and inspiring sister, friend and neighbor.
Evangeline was introduced by her only son, Gary R. Redding, CCT Board Chair, and a professor of English at Halifax Community College, Weldon.
Performing in Part II of the afternoon ARTS SECTION was youth performer Spoken Word artist Joshua Godwin, a rising 2nd year student at St. Andrews University. Godwin performed under the name of “Duece the Poet” and hails from Scotland Neck. Other performers included international recording and performing artist Connie Harvey of Tillery; Nicole Boone (“Gospel Jim, Jr.”of WYAL Radio), hailing from Northampton County; and famed recording jazz artist Ermitt Williams, “Mr. Blues” of St. Johns Island, SC. This annual major program continues to seek performers for the ARTS SECTION of the program. Singers, dancers, instrumentalists, spoken word enthusiasts, and crafters are also welcome to display and sell crafts. The event highlights talents of persons in the five counties along the Roanoke River.
It was an exciting occasion and was open to the public at no charge. The event was supported in part by the NC Arts Council, "a division of the Department of Cultural Resources, with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts.”
Briley presented on “Meet The Extraordinary Women of Historic Tillery." Evangeline has led an extraordinary life as a social change advocate and in breaking racial barriers in the media.
In January, 1969, after several years as a social worker for the Halifax County School System, on her own initiative she became the first African American in North Carolina to produce and host a television show. Together with Evangeline was a must see weekly media event featuring local and state wide African American guests in politics, education, religion, food service and community service. It was seen over WNCT-TV, Greenville, N.C.
In 1971, Evangeline became the first woman and the first African American to produce/host for North Carolina public television. She traveled the state with a television crew interviewing students, educators, parents, and school officials on the problems and solutions of school integration. Thursday’s Child (has far to go) was an award-winning 10-program series viewed statewide.
She later established her own production/publishing company, EVAN-REDD PRODUCTIONS, INC, under which she and her brother, Gary Grant, produced Heritage of Hope, financed by a first-time grant from UNC-TV, and viewed state wide. Grant-Briley published two books, nothing: the mentality of the black woman and Anthony Debro: Something Special.
Her outstanding work has also included Cultural Arts Director for the new town, Soul City, founded by the late Attorney Floyd McKissick, Sr. Her activism with international causes célèbres include The Wilmington Ten, the Joanne Little Case, Freedom for Mandela, and her controversial marriage to death row inmate, James Briley, in a failed attempt to stop his execution. She succeeded in bringing world-wide attention to the racism and unfairness of America’s death penalty jurisprudence.
For several years forward she was in great demand for television death penalty interviews across the nation including, Donahue, Oprah, and Sally Jessey Raphael television shows.
In ten subsequent years she was the primary care-giver for her aging parents, the late Matthew and Florenza Moore Grant, and at age 77 years, Evangeline continues to be an active and adoring parent of four children and five grandchildren, a sweetheart to her former high school “boo”, and to be a helpful and inspiring sister, friend and neighbor.
Evangeline was introduced by her only son, Gary R. Redding, CCT Board Chair, and a professor of English at Halifax Community College, Weldon.
Performing in Part II of the afternoon ARTS SECTION was youth performer Spoken Word artist Joshua Godwin, a rising 2nd year student at St. Andrews University. Godwin performed under the name of “Duece the Poet” and hails from Scotland Neck. Other performers included international recording and performing artist Connie Harvey of Tillery; Nicole Boone (“Gospel Jim, Jr.”of WYAL Radio), hailing from Northampton County; and famed recording jazz artist Ermitt Williams, “Mr. Blues” of St. Johns Island, SC. This annual major program continues to seek performers for the ARTS SECTION of the program. Singers, dancers, instrumentalists, spoken word enthusiasts, and crafters are also welcome to display and sell crafts. The event highlights talents of persons in the five counties along the Roanoke River.
It was an exciting occasion and was open to the public at no charge. The event was supported in part by the NC Arts Council, "a division of the Department of Cultural Resources, with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts.”
During the program, Gary R. Grant and Connie Harvey led the special tribute to Tillery’s own “Lady Day”, the late Theresa Harvey who passed on February 26, 2018. Mrs. Harvey had been performing in all of the Cultural Events since its founding in 2011. Later in the program, her daughter Connie Harvey and her cousin “Mr. Blues” sang several songs in remembrance of her.
Cultural Arts Performers for this show were (L-R) Duece the Poet; Ermitt Williams - “Mr. Blues”: Grover Rook, Denise Boone, ----- and Connie Harvey.
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