One hundred years ago in 1926, Dr. Carter G. Woodson would create a weeks-long observance of Black history. That week would eventually evolve into Black History Month, becoming a nationally recognized month in 1976.

One hundred years later, Black History Month Columbus is taking part in national celebrations of this milestone with their fourth year of community-wide Black History Month events, titled “From Then to Now: 100 Years of Celebrating Black History Month.”

Everyone in the community is invited to take part in these events, hosted by community partner organizations, to learn, reflect, celebrate and build deeper connections together, according to organizers.

“I think it’s a great accomplishment for us as a city,” founder and project manager of Black History Month Columbus Whittney Wood-Gaines said. “I love that we get to be a part of something bigger than us which is the national celebration and so I’m really excited that we get to be a part of it and kind of put our little morph on it.”

A collaborative initiative, Black History Month Columbus began as a coalition effort between local Black-led organizations and leaders. It was created to celebrate Black culture, share the true stories of Black history and honor the legacy and accomplishments of the Black community, according to a press release.

“… I think it’s so important for us to understand that Black history is just part of American history, the good and the bad,” Wood-Gaines said. “It makes us who we are and so Black history is American history, we’re so much better as a community when we can work together and life’s best defense for hate is always love. And that’s our pillars and we stand by that and we believe that the community is better off because of Black History Month Columbus and what we do.”

The initiative has continued to evolve with more community partnerships and extending what this community approach looks like beyond just February, as with their first Juneteenth celebration last year. Even beyond Black History Month, Wood-Gaines said they continue to partner with and support their collaborators, which is one of the ways they keep those partnerships strong.

“All throughout the year, we’ll be doing different events supporting whether it’s Landmark or the library or United Way or Bespoke or Stunna’s or any of that, so we’re always trying to continue that relationship and make it a really transferable relationship, like we support each other,” Wood-Gaines said.

There’s something for everyone this Black History Month with several events being held throughout February, from events for kids and musical concerts to community celebrations and conversations. Wood-Gaines said they are very intentional in making sure every event is a different experience, and when people come to Black History Month Columbus events, she said they’ll see more than just Black people in attendance.

“You’ll see people of all different races, genders, ethnicities and you’ll see love,” Wood-Gaines said. “You’ll see love, you’ll see togetherness, you’ll see community, you’ll see people supporting people and that’s what it should be, especially on the heels of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. That’s what our community should be.”

Wood-Gaines believes in starting and ending the month with Jesus, so the month will kick off with the Community Church Service, hosted by the African American Pastor’s Alliance and the African American Foundation, at The Commons on Feb. 1 at 11 a.m.

Several pastors within the community will bring their congregations to create this one unified service. Following the service, the Black History Month Columbus Ribbon Cutting Ceremony will also be held at The Commons at 1 p.m. Then, kidscommons, one of their new partners, will have a Black History Month kick off of their own across the street at 2 p.m.

The month will also end with an interactive musical concert titled “Singing Our Story – Community Sing with Musician and Historian Bruce Henry” at Calvary Community Church on Feb. 28. This concert is hosted by the Bartholomew County Public Library.

One of Black History Month Columbus’ most popular events Taste of Soul will also be returning on Feb. 28 from 2 to 5 p.m. at Stunna’s. Local community cooks will bring different kinds of food synonymous with Black culture for attendees to try. This year will also feature a mac and cheese cook off.

“We say in our culture that’s probably one of the biggest debates is who makes the best mac and cheese, and so we’re super excited to have not only Homeboyz participating, Stunna’s, but several other local cooks as well that will all be participating in who makes the best mac and cheese,” Wood-Gaines said.

Black History Month Columbus is also trying something different this year with an event titled “AI and You in the Age of Accelerated Transformation,” to be held on Feb. 11 at 6:30 p.m. in the library’s red room. Dr. Kevin Jones will facilitate this event and dive into what AI is, how it can be beneficial and what people need to be aware of with it.

These events just scratch the surface of what Black History Month Columbus has in store for February. A full list of events can be found at blackhistorymonthcolumbus.com/events.

A limited edition 100th Anniversary Commemorative Magazine celebrating the legacy of Black History Month and uplifting local stories reflecting the Black experience in Columbus will also be published by Black History Month Columbus and Good Creatives. Copies will be printed in limited quantities as a special centennial keepsake for the community and given out at Black History Month Columbus’ events.

The magazine will include a centennial overview of Black History Month, community partnership gratitude and reflection and the story of Black History Month Columbus. It will also highlight local accomplishments, stories and community contributions from individuals who fit into different decades.

“And so our elder decade was Miss Paulette Roberts and then our next set of decades was Marja Harmon, and then after that is Kyle Inskeep who will actually be present to give remarks at our ribbon cutting and then our youngest generation was the Lemonade Bros,” Wood-Gaines said. “We’re super excited to be able to highlight each of those individuals and just their impact that they have had as people being from our community.”