Harriet Hike

West Atlanta Watershed Alliance (WAWA) is excited to share the scientific knowledge base of Harriet Tubman and other enslaved people that navigated North American forests for survival and fugivity. We will also discuss nature-reliant techniques used by enslaved people, including some examples that can be observed in the old-growth forest at the Outdoor Activity Center.

We are excited to host FOUR HARRIET HIKES this year in honor of Harriet Tubman.

February 11, 2023

11a-1p and 2p-4p

The hike will feature special guest Tricia Hersey, founder of the Nap Ministry. Tricia will share an excerpt from her New York Times bestselling book Rest is Resistance: A Manifesto, which highlights Harriet Tubman and maroon communities that rejected their involuntary and oppressive contribution to the colonial world.

February 25, 2023

11a-1p and 2p-4p

the hike will feature special guest Gwendolyn Napier, a veteran storyteller, who will portray Harriet Tubman in an inspiring performance.

Tricia Hersey is a Chicago native living in Atlanta with over 20 years of experience as a multidisciplinary artist, writer, theologian and community organizer. She is the founder of The Nap Ministry, an organization that examines rest as a form of resistance and reparations by curating spaces for the community to rest via community rest activations, immersive workshops, performance art installations, and social media. Her research interests include Black liberation theology, womanism, somatic, and cultural trauma. She is the author of the New York Times bestselling book . You can learn more about her work at thenapministry.com

GWENDOLYN J. NAPIER – aka “Miss LuvDrop”. Native of Atlanta, Georgia. Retired Educator from Fulton County Schools. Founder of LuvDrop Productions - The “Heart of Storytelling” sharing One Story at Time. Fun Educational Entertainer, Storyteller, Singer, Poet, Drummer, Workshop Facilitator and more.

She has been performing as a Storytelling Artist for over 15 years. Performing and Teaching Artist for the Georgia Council of the Arts Registry. Performing Year-Round Storytelling Artist for the Wrens Nest House Museum in Atlanta, and an Atlanta Ambassador for the Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Children.

She has participated in many Venues celebrating Juneteenth as the Historic Portrayal of Harriet Ross Tubman in “The Annual Atlanta Parade” for the last 8 years, Clarkston Georgia Juneteenth Events including Schools, Churches, Libraries, Performing Arts Theatre and more.

Miss Napier has portrayed many other historical Women in History as Bessie Coleman, Mahalia Jackson, Fannie Lou Hamer, Rosa Parks, Shirley Chisholm and others.

Member of Kuumba Storytellers of Georgia, National Associations of BlackStorytellers, Inc., Southern Order of Storytellers, Storytelling Arts of Minnesota, and the Northlands Storytellers.

Be sure to check out the full line-up of Black History Month programming brought to you by West Atlanta Watershed Alliance.

Host or Publisher West Atlanta Watershed Alliance