The Minnesota African American Heritage Museum and Gallery (MAAHMG) celebrated its one-year anniversary in grand style with its Northern Lights Gala at Westminster Hall in downtown Minneapolis.

The Sept. 27 gala, hosted by former journalist and author Roxane Battle, showcased a night full of entertainment with performances by Johnnie Brown and Ashley DuBose, and live painting by artist Kenneth Caldwell.

The museum also presented its “Shining Star” awards for service to the community to Dr. Josie Johnson, Professor Mahmoud El-Kati, James C. Burroughs II, and Leslie Redmond.

The gala was a fundraiser for the museum’s history and art exhibitions, and education programs. MAAHMG opened in September 2018 and it is the only African American museum in the state.

The Minnesota African American Heritage Museum and Gallery is located at 1256 Penn

Ave., N., Minneapolis. The museum is open Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 1-5 pm, Thursdays from 1-7 pm, and Saturdays from 9 am – 12 pm.

For more information, visit the museum’s website at www.maahmg.org.

—Information provided MAAHMG. Photos by Dallas Smith.