Celebrating the Fisk Jubilee Singers, the Scarboro 85, and sponsors

Rose Weaver
Updated ·4 min read

A hush fell over the more than 500 people in attendance at the Historic Grove Theatre when the Fisk Jubilee Singers entered the auditorium on the evening of Good Friday evening.

“I felt as if I was in a fantasy world,” said Rose Weaver, who recalled years back “when many Blacks present may also have recalled there was a time when they could not sit in the Grove Theatre, and that there would definitely not have been a performance of a Black group in the establishment.”

Three generations attended the Fisk Jubilee Singers performance on Good Friday at the Historic Grove Theatre in Oak Ridge. From left are Ernestine Avery, on of the 85 Scarboro students that desegregated Oak Ridge schools in 1955; Cali Foster, Avery's great-grandaughter; and Ernestine Foster, Cali's mom. The performance was a benefit for the Scarboro 85 Memorial planned for A.K. Bissell Park.

Yet on March 29, about a dozen college students brought history to life in singing old Negro spirituals like “Great Day” and “Down by the Riverside.”

But though most of their songs were uplifting, songs like “And I Cry” with lyrics like “Sometimes I feel like I lost my soul again” touched the hearts of many.

“Tears ran down my face as I could imagine the injustices perpetrated on the slaves and just the sheer hopelessness of freedom. We could all sense the sadness and pain as the singers assembled themselves in a tight circle that also may have symbolized suffering, yet also depicted unity,” said Weaver, who later shared a powerful poem that she wrote for the occasion. She is Oak Ridge's new poet laureate.

She recalled the one arrangement of “In Bright Mansions,” when the choir held a seemingly endless chord, as the singers each quietly took individually spaced breaths, and the bass, the lower voice, repeated the tone. Amazing!

“They sang and harmonized and blended in ways I could not imagine a choir could,” added Weaver.

From time to time, Choir Director George P. Wilson would step to the side, providing the audience with an unobstructed view of the singers whose performance “captured every one of us throughout the evening with renditions of songs that took us back centuries.”

Among those present in the audience were a stalwart few of the remaining Scarboro 85 students, students who were the first to integrate Oak Ridge High School and Robertsville Junior High School in 1955. Others present included “Ms. Fisk University” Aaliyah Riddle, a graduate of Austin East High School in Knoxville, Tennessee. Another notable present was Jon’Nesha Stevens, an alumna of Fisk University who had also been a member of the Fisk Jubilee group.

The host of the beautifully renovated and decorated facility, Pastor David Allred of High Places Community Church, gave a warm welcome to all. Adam Velk, the Green McAdoo Cultural Center director, and vice president of the Oak Ridge/Anderson County NAACP Branch, served as the lively master of ceremonies, with humor, supporting the fund-raising effort of the evening. The opening and closing prayers were offered by Pastor Henry Watson of Mt. Zion Baptist Church.

Prior to the performance of the Fisk Jubilee Singers, delightful musical performances were provided by the Oak Ridge High School Chorus and a community group comprised of members of several churches, the Oak Ridge Chorus, directed by Amanda Ragan and Sarah Henrich.

Additional musical selections included an outstanding solo by LaShemia Pruitt. The choir of the Oak Valley Baptist Church, “Praise, Honour and Glory,” directed by Harold Wheat, was also included. Oak Ridge Mayor Warren L. Gooch provided heart-felt greetings in support of the civil rights warriors of Oak Ridge, the Scarboro 85, and expressed his whole-hearted support of the fundraising effort for the Scarboro Commemorative Monument which will be built in A.K. Bissel Park near the Community Center.

A highlight of the evening was the lovely introduction of the Fisk Jubilee Singers by a fourth grader at Glenwood Elementary, Cali Foster. She is the great-granddaughter of Ernestine Avery, one of the Scarboro 85.

Final remarks - acknowledgement for those sponsors who made the program and an appeal for donations - was led by Weaver and Vanessa Spratling.

The organizing group of the event, the Scarboro Monument Committee, thanks the following sponsors who made this successful Fisk Jubilee Singers Concert to benefit the Scarboro 85 Monument Project possible.

These include: Shining Star Contributor – Periodic Tables Oak Ridge and TNBank; Super Star-BGS and Knoxville Urban League; Silver Star – Flatwater Tales, Larry and Valeria Roberson; Omega Psi Phi, Scarboro Community Alumni Association, Team Investment Group of Oak Ridge, UT-Battelle, Y-12 Credit Union; Supporter Store - Mortgage Investors Group, NAACP, State Rep. Sam McKenzie, Charles and Charlene Webster, Spurgeon Chapel AME Zion Church, ETCH Child Advocacy Program, and CNS Y-12; Service Star- Weaver Consulting, High Places Community Church, Oak Valley Baptist Church, Mount Zion Baptist Church, Precision Printing, Food City of Oak Ridge, Mott’s Floral Designs, Totally Divine Events and Designs, and ORAU.

Paul Kwami led the Fisk Jubilee Singers from 1994 until his death on Sept. 10, 2022. A special song was dedicated in his honor. It was noted and appreciated that under his direction the group won its first Grammy and was awarded the National Medal of Arts.

Coordinating the event. Were Trina Watson, Vanessa Spratling, Pastor David Allred, John Spratling, Katy Watts, and Naomi Asher. John Spratling serves as the president of the Scarboro Monument Committee. Those who wish to contribute to the Scarboro 85 Monument Project are directed to https://scarboro85monument.com.

This article originally appeared on Oakridger: Celebrating the Fisk Jubilee Singers, the Scarboro 85, and sponsors