DECATUR-The nonprofit CEOTA (Celebrating Early Old Town with Art) will host its annual Fundraising Gala Dinner on Thursday, November 13, 2025, from 5-8 p.m. at Ingalls Harbor Pavilion in Decatur, Alabama.
The evening will benefit both the Decatur Scottsboro Boys Civil Rights Museum and the Judge James E. Horton Jr. Legal Learning Center—two cornerstone projects preserving Alabama’s history of justice, moral courage, and community resilience. The Gala will open with a cocktail reception and live jazz performance by Cashmere Williams, recently voted Best Male Jazz Artist by the Alabama Music Awards Committee. Williams, a Berklee College of Music alumnus and former guitarist for American Idol Winner Ruben Studdard, has performed on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Late Show with David Letterman, The View, and The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
During the reception, guests will also enjoy an autograph signing and meet-and-greet with Dr. Tommie “Tonea” Stewart — 2015 White House Champion of Change recipient, acclaimed actress, and distinguished professor known for her roles in A Time to Kill, Mississippi Burning, Mama Flora’s Family, In the Heat of the Night, Touched by an Angel, and Matlock.
Following the reception, dinner will be served, featuring a keynote address by Dr. Stewart celebrating the power of preservation, the promise of education, and the potential of the Museum and Legal Learning Center to serve as a gateway to Alabama’s Civil Rights Trail and a national model for courage and community.
“This event is about more than an elegant dinner—it’s about preserving history and creating pathways for future generations to learn, lead, and stand for justice,” said Dr. Brandon A. Owens, Sr., Executive Director of the Museum and Legal Learning Center.
CEOTA’s leadership has been instrumental in advancing the restoration of the historic boarding house that will serve as home of the Decatur Scottsboro Boys Civil Rights Museum—the very structure that once sheltered Ruby Bates, one of the young women central to the Scottsboro Boys case. Exterior rehabilitation of the building has been completed, and current efforts are focused on finishing the museum’s interior restoration and interpretive design, which will house powerful exhibits dedicated to telling the story of the Scottsboro Boys case and trial, its impact on Decatur’s early Old Town community, and the broader struggle for racial justice in Alabama and across the nation.
The Judge James E. Horton Jr. Legal Learning Center, now in its expansion phase, will include a mock courtroom, classroom spaces, and community meeting rooms, as well as a museum portion highlighting Alabama’s legal history and Judge Horton’s courageous decision during the Scottsboro Boys trials. Together, these spaces will promote civic engagement, legal literacy, and dialogue on justice and equality.
Proceeds from the Gala will help bring both the Museum and Legal Learning Center near completion, supporting final construction, exhibit development, and educational programming—including mock trials, legal literacy workshops, and the annual Judge Horton Day of Courage commemoration.
Tickets are available now on Eventbrite: http://www.
For more information: www.sbcmuseum.org
All donations are tax-deductible.
Event Details:
Date: Thursday, November 13, 2025
Time: 5:00 p.m.. – 8:00 p.m..
Location: Ingalls Harbor Pavilion, 802-A Wilson Street NW, Decatur, AL 35601
Media Release/Brandon A. Owens, Sr., Ph.D.
Executive Director, Decatur Scottsboro Boys Civil Rights Museum
and Judge James E. Horton Jr. Legal Learning Center
