Witness Stones Ceremony

The Witness Stones Project seeks to restore the history and honor the humanity of the enslaved
individuals who helped build our local communities. This year, our Timberlane faculty have taken the
lead in bringing this mission to life. Through extensive independent research, curriculum development,
and dedicated mentorship, our teachers have empowered their students to uncover the specific history of
slavery within our own neighborhoods.
At our ceremony, students, faculty, historians, and public officials join the larger community to honor the
forgotten through music, oration, and reflection. The depth of this program is a testament to the rigorous
academic work and empathy fostered by our educators. It is our collective hope that the students’ original
research and these public memorials will inspire our community to acknowledge its true history,
dismantle current inequities, and build a more just future. This project is organized in proud partnership
with the Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum and its founders, Elaine Buck and Beverly
Mills.