Clifford Brown Jazz Festival, cemetery campaign to begin
When the free, four-day Clifford Brown Jazz Festival kicks off Wednesday, the Wilmington-born jazz legend's polished legacy will be on full display.
Jazz stars of today will perform in Rodney Square to honor the renowned trumpeter just blocks from where he was raised. Big-name sponsors like DuPont, Delmarva Power and Grey Goose vodka will help foot the bill.
But a three-mile drive to where Clifford Brown is buried in Mount Zion Cemetery just outside the city limits would cause any jazz fan to hang their head for the man simply known as "Brownie."
The historic black cemetery, which is the resting place of nearly 1,000 African-Americans dating back to the Civil War, is a total mess that most would find a downright disgrace.
The grass is overgrown, with weeds sprouting next to piles of dirt and pieces of trash.
The cemetery's wooden sign is broken in pieces, half of which still hangs haphazardly on rusted chain link fence along Lancaster Pike.
And the partially paved roadway that snakes through the graveyard is cracked and breaking away alongside toppled tombstones.
It's so bad that it appears that some bring their own lawn mowers to the cemetery to cut the grass around the graves of their loved ones. Last week, a few gravesites were freshly mowed, surrounded by others that were overgrown and broken down by years of decay.
"If you go there, you'll be tearful," said Paula Hearst, who is launching a fundraising campaign to rehabilitate the cemetery, which dates to the 1800s. "It's just sad. It's total neglect."
Hearst's newly formed group, the Black Cemetery Restoration Civic Association, plans a five- to 10-year campaign to raise funds to fix up the cemetery, along with nearby Mount Olive Cemetery, another historically black cemetery in need.
The group's kickoff fundraiser will be held from 1-4 p.m. Sunday in Wilmington's only jazz club, The Nomad Bar (905 N. Orange St.). Donations will be accepted, and all tips will go to the restoration fund. Entry is free for the special jazz jam, led by Wilmington saxophonist Harry Spencer, Nomad's artistic director and leader of its weekly Wednesday night jazz jams. (Spencer will lead nightly after-party jams on festival nights at Nomad this week starting at 9 p.m.)
The fundraiser was scheduled to piggyback off of the jazz festival, which will host performances in Rodney Square Wednesday through Friday at 6 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m.
Brown, the most influential musician to ever come out of Wilmington, is considered one of the best jazz trumpeters of all time. He was mentored by greats like Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie before he was cut down at the age of 25 in a car accident. He recorded music for only four years before his death.
Hearst, 61, of Wilmington, recently retired from her job as an information technology director at AstraZeneca.
A few months ago, New Castle County Executive Tom Gordon ordered his law department to look into who is responsible for the upkeep of Mount Zion. The cemetery is located in the county, but it is not county property.
County attorney Bernard Pepukayi and assistant county attorney Brionna Denby took on the project, and their research revealed that the last group that oversaw the cemetery was the Mount Zion Cemetery Association, formed in 1903. The last member of the group passed away 15 years ago, Pepukayi says.
The association was an offshoot of the old Mt. Zion AUMP Church in Wilmington, which has since closed. Many of its members are now parishioners at Ezion-Mount Carmel United Methodist Church.
The county is looking to either revive the dormant Mount Zion Cemetery Association or help create a new nonprofit.
"We need a fund that will sustain maintaining it," Gordon said.
Pepukayi says leadership at Ezion-Mount Carmel United Methodist Church has expressed interest in being involved, and he sees them as "natural leaders" for the cause.
Harmon Carey, head of the African-American Heritage Center of Delaware and the Afro-American Historical Society of Delaware, who has organized many cleanups at the cemetery over the years, also may participate, Pepukayi says.
Linda Vandever, co-owner of The Nomad Bar and treasurer of the Black Cemetery Restoration Civic Association, said a visit to the cemetery convinced her that something had to be done.
"You almost want to move [Brown] yourself," says Vandever, a Wilmington resident. "It's deplorable – just really sad."
CLIFFORD BROWN JAZZ FESTIVAL
When: Wednesday through Saturday
Where: Rodney Square, Wilmington
Cost: Free
Information:www.cliffordbrownjazzfest.org
SCHEDULE
Wednesday: The Brownie-Roach Project and Dianne Schuur, 6 p.m.
Thursday: Lynn Riley and Latin Jazz All-Stars: A Tribute to Dave Valentin, 6 p.m.
Friday: Amel Larruiex and Mindi Abair, 6 p.m.
Saturday: Aniya Jazz, Jawanza Kobie, Habana Sax, Brian Culbertson, 2 p.m.
WHAT'S NEW AT THE FESTIVAL
On Thursday night following the main stage performances, the festival will unveil the "Sax in the City" after-party at the Wilmington Public Library (10 E. 10th St.) Two bands – Habana Sax and Johnny Graham and the Groove – will perform along with a DJ. Hors d'oeuvres will be served, and a Grey Goose vodka tasting lounge will be open. The event, which runs from 9:30 p.m. to 1 a.m., costs $25. Tickets can be purchased here. "Sax in the City" benefits CityFest, the nonprofit that contributes to arts and cultural programs in the city.
BLACK CEMETERY RESTORATION CIVIC ASSOCIATION
What: Fundraiser
When: Sunday, 1-4 p.m.
Where:The Nomad Bar, 905 N. Orange St., Wilmington
Cost: Free. Donations accepted, and all tips go to restoration fund
Information:Black Cemetery Restoration Civic Association on Facebook