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RED BANK: NURTURING FORTUNE’S LEGACY

T. Thomas Fortune, below, and the cultural center dedicated to him in his onetime Red Bank home, above. (Above photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

With an exhibit examining the history of America’s Black press opening October 28 at Red Bank’s T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center, redbankgreen presents this feature story, written for CivicStory, about the center’s namesake.

By DEBORAH YAFFE

When the Black newspaper editor and civil-rights activist T. Thomas Fortune moved to Red Bank in the summer of 1901, his arrival was front-page news. “Mr. Fortune is one of the most noted colored men of the country,” the Red Bank Register reported.

But a century later, the elegant Red Bank home that Fortune’s family called Maple Hall stood vandalized and derelict, its brick foundation crumbling, its windows boarded up. Still, the once-grand old place caught Gilda Rogers’ eye whenever she passed by. “That home probably was something really special in its heyday,” she would think.

She wasn’t wrong.

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October 9, 2023 - 8:00 am |

RED BANK: FAMILY-FRIENDLY DRAG EVENT SET

The Pride flag flying at Red Bank borough hall earlier this month. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

While other locales have their knickers in a twist over LGBTQ issues, Red Bank is going all-in with a “family friendly” drag queen event in celebration of Pride month.

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June 20, 2023 - 9:30 am |

RED BANK: HUNDREDS CELEBRATE JUNETEENTH

Eric Jones Jr., above, kicked off Red Bank’s third annual Juneteenth celebration with a rendition of “Lift Every Voice and Sing” in Johnny Jazz Park Sunday.

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June 19, 2023 - 7:00 am |

RED BANK: COMMEMORATING DR. KING

The Red Bank Regional High School Choir, above, and the Red Bank Charter School 2nd & 3rd Grade Choir, below, performed at the event. (Photos by Millie Jeter. Click to enlarge)

Press release from Pilgrim Baptist Church

On Monday, January 16, Pilgrim Baptist Church of Red Bank hosted the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr Commemorative Celebration. More →

January 18, 2023 - 6:10 am |

RED BANK: DEBT, COMMITTEE NAME ON AGENDA

Financing for the Broad Street sewer project completed in July is on the agenda. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

hot topic red bank njCapital financing and tweaks to the name and purposes of a committee stand out on a light agenda when the Red Bank council meets for a regular semimonthly session Wednesday night.

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October 12, 2022 - 7:45 am |

RED BANK: LBGTQ PRIDE, IN VIVID COLOR

Red Bank’s third LGBTQ Pride in the Park event drew hundreds of colorfully clothed celebrants to Riverside Gardens Park Sunday.

Organized by the borough’s Parks and Rec department, the gathering featured health information booths, juggling lessons, hula-hooping and dancing. Check out additional photos below. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

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June 27, 2022 - 4:35 am |

RED BANK: SCOTUS DECISION DRAWS PROTEST

About 150 supporters of women’s reproductive rights gathered in downtown Red Bank for a “community speak-out” on the the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade Friday evening.

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June 25, 2022 - 10:30 am |

RED BANK: SLURS HURLED AT EVENT ATTENDEES

A handful of protesters shouted “pedophile” and other slurs at Red Bank Public Library patrons as they arrived for a childrens’ “Drag Queen Story Hour” event Wednesday morning, library Director Elenyi Glykis told redbankgreen.

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June 22, 2022 - 12:59 pm |

RED BANK: FORTUNE TO HONOR PARKERS

Fortune Center Executive Director Gilda Rogers in the newly designated Parker Family Legacy Room. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

A new, permanent exhibit opening this month at the T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center in Red Bank pays tribute to three African-American men of medicine who played vital roles in the community.

The unveiling also marks another milestone for the three-year-old center, housed in the onetime home of an influential journalist and civil rights advocate.

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May 17, 2022 - 9:17 am |

RED BANK: LOCALS GATHER FOR UKRAINE

A Ukraine flag painted on the grass shone in the sun as about 150 Red Bank area residents gathered at Riverside Gardens Park Friday afternoon in support of the victims of Russia’s brutal invasion.

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March 21, 2022 - 7:00 am |

RED BANK: FORTUNE TO HOST VIEWING PARTY

Press release by the the T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center

On January 24, 2022, HBO Max will start streaming a new series,“The Gilded
Age.” The show will feature the character of T. Thomas Fortune, played by actor Sullivan Jones.

It takes place in New York in 1882 during the American Gilded Age, a time of economic change and conflict between the old world and the new world.

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December 20, 2021 - 3:20 pm |

RED BANK: LGBTQ+ SAFETY PLAN LAUNCHES

Mayor Pasquale Menna and Monmouth County Acting Prosecutor Lori Linskey at Red Bank’s National Night Out in August. Below, the decal to be displayed under the Safe Spaces program. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

Red Bank businesses will soon be able to proclaim their spaces as havens for individuals targeted in bias crimes.

Under a new program unveiled Wednesday by Monmouth County Acting Prosecutor Lori Linskey and local law enforcement officials, the borough will begin offering businesses and institutions decals that designate their workplaces as places of temporary refuge to anyone threatened with a hate crime.

 

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October 7, 2021 - 1:35 pm |

RED BANK: HUNDREDS RALLY FOR WOMEN

About 1,000 women, men and children marched and rallied for women’s reproductive rights in downtown Red Bank Saturday.

In conjunction with hundreds of similar events nationwide, the Red Bank gathering, organized by the Planned Parenthood Action Fund of New Jersey and the League of Women Voters of New Jersey, focused on abortion rights as the Supreme Court begins a new term Monday with pivotal cases on the docket.

Chanting “Ruth sent us” and “my body, my choice,” participants marched from the train station to Broad Street and then gathered in Riverside Gardens Park, where speakers, including borough Councilwoman Kate Triggiano, called for the election of women’s rights supporters.

Check out redbankgreen’s photos, below. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

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October 4, 2021 - 6:30 am |

RED BANK: FORTUNE TO HOST PARKER ROOM

Press release by the the T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center

On the heels of Juneteenth, the T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center announces its partnership with Monmouth Medical Center, a part of RWJ Barnabas Health, as the exclusive sponsor of the Parker Family Legacy Room – a permanent exhibit of the history of the family of prominent Red Bank black doctors, who served their community for over 80 years.

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June 23, 2021 - 9:26 am |

RED BANK: MARCH INAUGURATES JUNETEENTH

Juneteenth marchers on Shrewsbury Avenue, above, and Drs. James Parker Boulevard, below. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

Red Bankers commemorated the new federal and New Jersey state holiday of Juneteenth with a march Saturday.

The hike on a humid last day of spring was bookended by gatherings at Pilgrim Baptist Church on Shrewsbury Avenue and the T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center on Drs. James Parker Boulevard.

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June 21, 2021 - 7:30 am |

RED BANK: PARK PULSES WITH LBGTQ PRIDE

Vivid color brightened up Red Bank’s Riverside Gardens Park under gray skies for the second LGBTQ Pride event Saturday.

Organized by the borough’s Parks and Rec department, the gathering featured line dancing, hula-hooping, juggling and tons of love. Check out additional photos below. (Photos by Trish Russoniello. Click to enlarge.)

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June 14, 2021 - 7:00 am |

RED BANK: PRIDE RETURNS TO PARK

red bank, nj, pride, lgbtqFor the second time in three years, Red Bank’s Parks & Rec department hosts a free Pride event in Riverside Gardens Park Saturday, featuring a DJ, family activities and more in celebration of LGBTQ pride. Check out details here.

As in 2019, the colorful logo on the park lawn was created by the public utilities department. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

June 10, 2021 - 3:15 pm |

RED BANK: BALLARD DECRIES ‘TRAGEDY’

michael ballard 051320Councilman Michael Ballard during a council meeting in May, 2020. (Photo from Zoom. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

redbankgreen hot topicRed Bank Councilman Michael Ballard spoke with anguish Wednesday night about the police killing of a Minnesota man earlier this week.

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April 15, 2021 - 3:15 pm |

RED BANK: COUNCIL BACKS IMMIGRANT RIGHTS

Marchers took to the streets of Red Bank in June, 2018 to protest the Trump Administration’s border policies. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

hot topic red bank nj

By JOHN T. WARD

A virtual parade of speakers, some near tears, pressed the Red Bank council Wednesday night to support a host of protections for undocumented immigrants.

“It is never symbolic to acknowledge the humanity of any one person,” said a young woman who identified herself as Carla, Red Bank Regional senior and officer of the school’s Dreamers organization. “Doing so is, in fact, the most radical of acts,” she said.

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January 14, 2021 - 7:59 am |

RED BANK: REVEREND HENRY P. DAVIS DEAD

Reverend Henry P. Davis speaks at a ceremony honoring William ‘Count’ Basie at the Red Bank train station in 2009. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

Reverend Henry P. Davis, past president president of the Greater Red Bank Area NAACP, died early Monday, according to a Facebook post by Mayor Pasquale Menna.

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September 8, 2020 - 6:35 am |

RED BANK: RALLY SLAMS POSTAL CHANGES

About 30 protesters assembled at the post office on Shrewsbury Avenue in Red Bank at noon Friday to voice alarm over recent changes at the postal service.

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August 21, 2020 - 4:30 pm |
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