Norman “Turkey” Stearnes played for the Detroit Stars in 11 of his 18 professional seasons in the Negro Leagues.

This Juneteenth, a group of high schoolers is paying homage to a particular part of Metro Detroit’s history.

This Sunday is Juneteenth and there will be celebrations across our community and the country. And because the federal holiday falls on a Sunday, it will also be observed nationally on Monday. And on that day, you are invited to the long-anticipated rededication of Hamtramck Stadium, which includes a Negro Leagues tribute game followed by a special homage to a prominent former negro-league player.

Major League Baseball (MLB) is finally recognizing the historic Negro Leagues as part of its own history -- counting the statistics and records of thousands of Black baseball players. The MLB is now recognizing more than 3,400 players as “Major League” players for the first time in history. “It’s overdue, but it’s a bittersweet moment because most of the guys are gone,” said Negro League historian Louis Manley Jr. Between 1920 and 1948, four major Negro League teams played in Detroit. He could do it all,” Rosilyn Stearnes said of her father Turkey Stearns.