More than Baseball: How the Negro Leagues Advanced America
Schedule
Thu, 26 Feb, 2026 at 07:00 pm
UTC-05:00Location
1 Discovery Way, Toledo, OH, United States, Ohio 43604 | Toledo, OH
Advertisement
More than Baseball: How the Negro Leagues Advanced AmericaCommunity Conversation
đź“… February 26, 2026
đź•– 7:00 PM
🚪 Doors open at 6:00 PM
Negro League Baseball is more than a chapter in sports history. It is a powerful reflection of Black America’s journey toward equality, resilience and recognition.
Long before integration, African American athletes played baseball at the highest level, forming their own teams and leagues in the face of segregation, Jim Crow laws and a 60 year color barrier imposed by Major League Baseball. From the founding of the Negro National League in 1920 to barnstorming teams that traveled the country, these players refused to accept exclusion from America’s pastime.
Join us for a compelling Community Conversation featuring:
• Joyce Stearnes Thompson, daughter of legendary player “Turkey” Stearnes
• Tom Runnells, former Major League Baseball manager turned artist
• Bob Kendrick, President of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum
• John Husman, Toledo Mud Hens Historian
• Gary Gillette, Detroit Stars historian
This conversation brings to life a powerful story of perseverance that not only changed the game of baseball, but helped shape the nation itself.
🎟 RSVP Required
đź’˛ Free to attend
Advertisement
Where is it happening?
1 Discovery Way, Toledo, OH, United States, Ohio 43604Event Location & Nearby Stays:
Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.
