On March 18, the African American Resources Cultural and Heritage Society (AARCH) hosted their groundbreaking ceremony. This event was used to celebrate the future home of the AARCH Center in Downtown Frederick. This ceremony was the culmination of years of collaboration, vision and unconditional support from the community.
A groundbreaking ceremony is a symbolic event that marks the official commencement of a construction project. AARCH plans for the Heritage Center to serve as a primary source for information, knowledge and research about African-Americans in Frederick County.
The African American Resources Cultural and Heritage Society aims to identify, preserve, and broadcast the history and stories of African-American people in Frederick County. The society itself was founded in 2001 and incorporated in 2009 as a non-profit organization. The Heritage Center is open to all residents of Frederick, as well as visitors.
The purpose of the groundbreaking ceremony was to bring together members of the community who invested into the Heritage Center. There were over 100 people who attended the event to celebrate the beginning of the first museum dedicated to African-American history and culture in Frederick.
The event was held on a warm spring day, and everyone was singing and dancing to “Celebration” by Kool & The Gang to celebrate the new building for AARCH.
Several speakers commemorated the day, including Frederick City Mayor, Michael O’Connor and multiple AARCH executive board members.
There were multiple connections to the Linganore High School (LHS) community, including the The board president of AARCH, Protean Gibril, who is the parent of LHS Class of 2024 alumni Leila Gibril and LHS assistant principal Marcus Allen.
Gibril gave a speech about her visions for the Heritage Center which included honoring the stories that are going to be incorporated into the Heritage Center and the stories of triumph that led to the opening of this museum.
Allen serves on the board of directors for AARCH and attended the event in that capacity. He believes that this event allowed community members to come together and celebrate AARCH as a whole. He explained that the new Heritage Center gives opportunities for anyone to come and learn about the history of Frederick County.
“This is the first time we’re going to have our own building where visitors from all over the country, even all over the world, can come and see and learn about the history of Frederick County,” said Allen.
Allen explained that before the Heritage Center was constructed, artifacts and memorabilia were often kept in storage facilities or some of the members’ houses, so the Heritage Center serves as a home for these artifacts to stay on display and give others the opportunity to learn about their history.
Overall, the African American Resources Cultural and Heritage Society’s new building will provide a place for anyone and everyone to learn about the history of African Americans in Frederick County.
As the AARCH promotional flyer states, “Together, we are building a vibrant space where history, culture, and education will thrive for generations to come,”
