ST. MARY PARISH — The Soul Food Festival returned to Franklin this weekend for its fifth year, bringing together food, music, and community for a growing Juneteenth weekend celebration.
Organized by the 100 Black Men of St. Mary Parish, the annual festival now spans three days and multiple locations. This year’s schedule included live performances, a 5K race, free health screenings, and a wide selection of local food vendors at Parc Su La Tech. The group also added a new event to the lineup: a Sunday brunch held at the newly constructed Bayou Bend Event Center.
“So here we are five years later, we’re actually having Juneteenth weekend because we’re expanding to three days now… This year we’re gonna expand to a brunch on the Sunday so we’ll have the festival for two days then we’ll have the brunch,” said J Ina, president of the 100 Black Men of St. Mary Parish.
While the festival offers plenty to enjoy, its mission goes beyond celebration. Proceeds from the event help fund scholarships for local students. On Saturday evening, ten college-bound students were awarded nearly $15,000 in total support.
“So about five o’clock you’ll have 10 students lined up on stage and we’ll present each one of them with their scholarship awards… we’ll probably be giving out close to 15 thousand on Saturday,” Ina said.
“We bless them all, all those kids that you’re gonna be seeing are college-bound kids… even if it’s just enough to help offset the cost of some books or whatever it is, every dollar helps towards tuition and we’re more than blessed to be able to provide that to them,” he added.
The 100 Black Men organization says every dollar raised from the festival goes back into its scholarship fund, thanks to support from sponsors and community partnerships.
Vendors at the festival offered everything from fried fish and mac and cheese to specialty desserts and Caribbean-style dishes. Latoya Williams, who recently returned to the area after living in Georgia, participated for the first time.
“I’m most excited to share my cheesecake and banana pudding bowls… everybody likes banana pudding a certain way so you can come here and make your own,” she said.
Raquelle Harris, a vendor from New Orleans, also joined the lineup. While her deep-fried jerk chicken drew a crowd, she said the reason she keeps coming to events like this is the sense of community.
“Without the community none of this would exist… although I’m not from here I still like coming to festivals that are community organized,” Harris said.
Church groups also participated in the weekend, including Mount Pleasant Baptist Church. Volunteer Maryean Rhine said it was about more than just serving food.
“It’s such a wonderful experience; the music—we enjoy the music so much so it’s really fun. I can’t describe it, but I enjoy it and I hope to be able to do it again,” she said.
The Soul Food Festival continues to grow year after year, not only as a celebration of Juneteenth, but as a way to support local businesses, connect residents, and help students take their next step toward college.
