(SKILLMAN, NJ) -- The Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum (SSAAM) will ring in the new year with Lord, Write My Name – The Gospel and African American Experience in Spirituals, featuring acclaimed baritone Keith Spencer and award-winning composer Peter Hilliard on Saturday, January 18, 2025 at Unitarian Universalist Church at Washington Crossing.

This soul-stirring concert will weave together iconic African American spirituals and powerful narratives, poetry, and letters written by enslaved and free Black historical figures.. Doors open at 2:30pm, and the performance begins at 3:00pm.

SSAAM is Central New Jersey's only museum telling the rich local and regional stories of African Americans from the time of the transatlantic slave trade to the present day. With the support of the Preserving Black Churches grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation we are honored to continue this important work with our first special  event of 2025.

In this masterful collection of song and word, baritone Keith Spencer, accompanied by Peter Hilliard on the piano, will perform well-known spirituals such as “Go Down, Moses”, “Walk Together Children,” and others exploring themes of mourning, social justice, identity, and the hope that connects us all.

The “powerful, provocative, often-painful historic narrative offered by Mr. Spencer set the stage for each of the spirituals he performed, all with beauty, depth, and pathos,” says Reverend William H. Stokes, 12th Bishop of New Jersey. The SSAAM community is confident that this presentation will leave concert-goers feeling uplifted and empowered for the year ahead.

Tickets are $25 and available for purchase online. The event runs from 2:30pm to 5:00pm. The Unitarian Universalist Church at Washington Crossing is located at 268 Washington Crossing PE Road in Titusville, New Jersey.

This event is made possible by a grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation's Preserving Black Churches.

The Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum was founded in 2016, born from decades’ worth of research conducted by its co-founders Beverly Mills and Elaine Buck. SSAAM is located in Skillman, NJ at Mt. Zion AME Church and The Reasoner/True House, two historically African American-owned properties in Skillman, New Jersey.