Church gives $3 million to National Juneteenth Museum as Opal Lee turns 100

Dr. Opal Lee, the Fort Worth civil rights leader known as the "Grandmother of Juneteenth," got a big gift on her 100th birthday. On Oct. 7, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced a $3 million donation to the future National Juneteenth Museum, with the money going toward construction and a genealogy center inside the building.

The announcement was part of the museum's "Clearing the Way" ceremony, which started demolition of the Southside Community Center on Rosedale Street to make room for the museum in Fort Worth's Historic Southside. More than 100 people came out to celebrate. Lee was honored with confetti and music, and she accepted a check from the church. She told the crowd, "I could do a holy dance."

The museum is planned as a $70 million, 50,000-square-foot building, and it is expected to open in 2029. The genealogy center will be powered by FamilySearch. According to the church's announcement, visitors will be able to search a large collection of African American historical records, look up ancestor profiles and view digital images of genealogical documents at no cost. Lee became interested in the idea after visiting the FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City, where she saw its oral history recording booths and asked for one at the Juneteenth museum.

"We celebrate all as brothers and sisters, sons and daughters of the living God," said Elder Michael A. Dunn, president of the church's United States Southwest Area. He also said the museum will help people everywhere understand what Lee "has represented—her tenacity, her verve."

Juneteenth marks June 19, 1865, the day news of emancipation reached enslaved people in Texas. Lee's activism helped make it a federal holiday in 2021.

This story is based on original reporting by LDS Living (from the Church Newsroom), with additional reporting from KSL, Church News, NBC 5 DFW and The Dallas Morning News.