Celebrating 25 Years of Cultural Appreciation

Present day SAACC president Sandi Clark Kaddy standing next to African figures found at the organization.

Tucked into the left of the entrance of the Portsmouth Historical Society on Middle Street is a wealth of history of the culture of the lives and achievements of Black people, with an emphasis on the unique story of African Americans in the Seacoast region.

It all began with a dream of one woman, Vernis Jackson, who founded the Seacoast African American Cultural Center (SAACC) in 2000 with other members of Kwanza Inc., a community service organization.

Jackson came to Portsmouth in 1963 with her husband, Emerald Jackson, and two daughters when Emerald was assigned to Pease Air Force Base in Newington after several relocations since they married in Savannah, Georgia.

She was a longtime elementary school teacher in Portsmouth, and after she retired in June 2000, she turned her full attention to getting SAACC off the ground. In August of that year, Jackson formed a committee that represented nine African American organizations in Portsmouth.

These included the African American Resource Center, the Blue Bank Collective, Kwanza Inc., the Seacoast National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the New Hope Baptist Church, the Portsmouth Black Heritage Trail Inc., the Seacoast Martin Luther King Jr. Coalition, the Seacoast Men’s Friendship Group and the Triple 8 Traveler’s Lodge 32.

“We approached the town manager, and we were given a little room at City Hall for meetings,” Jackson recalled.

Commissioned artist Demarcus McGaughey created this artwork of Vernis Jackson, the beloved founder of the Seacoast African American Cultural Center who passed away in February 2025.

Shortly afterward, a room at the old Connie Bean Center on Daniel Street became available.

“We also acquired a storage room after the meter maids moved out,” Jackson told the Portsmouth Herald in 2016. “Our beginnings make me emotional.”

SAACC held its first exhibition at this location in 2001, “Quilts: The Underground Railroad Connections,” a community-engaged exhibition about African American quilting traditions as coded, fugitive artwork that enabled enslaved people to escape to freedom.

SAACC moved to its current location on Middle Street in 2010. Along with Jackson, other founding members include Kelvin Edwards, who was also a former board president, and Geraldine (Jeri) Palmer.

Jackson died on Feb. 13, 2025, at the age of 92. But her legacy carries on in the work of present board president Sandi Clark Kaddy, the board and the volunteer network.

On the main floor of SAACC’s space is a painting of Jackson titled, “Mrs. Vernis Jackson, The Divine,” by artist Demarcus McGaughey. It is a visual homage to Jackson and her invaluable contributions to Black ancestry, celebrating resilience, faith and cultural strength. The painting was commissioned by Harold Steward on behalf of the New England Foundation for the Arts and dedicated to the Seacoast African American Cultural Center on June 4, 2025.

SAACC has held numerous exhibits over the years that are described online at saaccnh.org.

In 2018, SAACC partnered with Dr. Casey Golomski, an assistant professor of anthropology at UNH, who helped catalogue and curate an exhibit, “Guinea to Great Bay: Afro-Atlantic Lives, Cultures and History,” with 50 of 267 African artifacts donated by an archaeology professor’s estate. Golomski continues to work with SAACC, creating an internship program for UNH students to do some curatorial and outreach programming with SAACC.

Vernis Jackson, center, founder and past president of SAACC, with past president Kelvin Edwards (back) and founding member Geraldine “Jeri” Palmer (front) in 2016. Suzanne Laurent photo

Since its founding, SAACC has distinguished itself as a Black arts and culture center, showcasing original and visiting exhibitions within its gallery space and hosting events, clubs and performances both there and in the wider community. Art students from Portsmouth Middle School often hold exhibits at the center.

Its board and members regularly collaborate with other area African American organizations like Black Lives Matter Seacoast, NAACP, Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire, Theater for the People, and others committed to celebrating our legacy and future through public cultural education.

“We are all volunteers,” Kaddy said. “We raise money through programming donations and are hoping to raise $25,000 for our 25th anniversary.”

Kaddy said she especially enjoys winter holiday time at the center.

“We have Black dolls, Black Pride, Black Santas and Black Angels,” she said. “And the ‘Holidays Around the World’ exhibit is very special.”

One current exhibit, “Crown,” celebrates the beauty, legacy and joy of Black hair, featuring the works of three renowned photographers – Robert Sipho Bellinger, Jordan Naheesi and Najee Brown – whose artistry highlights the depth and diversity of Black hair across generations, cultures and styles.

And in further celebration of SAACC’s 25th year, a second space, the Rowland Gallery at Strawbery Banke Museum, reflects on its role as New Hampshire’s first Black arts and cultural center.

There was an opening reception on June 19 (Juneteenth) to celebrate the exhibit that runs through Oct. 26.

“We’re honored to help celebrate SAACC’s 25 years of powerful storytelling, advocacy and cultural leadership,” said Linnea Grim, president and CEO of Strawbery Banke Museum.

A collection of African masks and statues on display at SAACC.

“As part of this partnership, we’re also proud to honor the legacy of Geraldine ‘Jeri’ Cousins Palmer, one of SAACC’s founders. Her family’s story will be featured in the Penhallow-Cousins House when it opens next spring, and we look forward to sharing that history with all who visit.”

Eleanor and Kenneth Cousins moved into the house in 1937 with their daughter, Geraldine (Jeri) Cousins Palmer, who was just 8 years old at the time. After five years, the family moved to Massachusetts.

After Palmer’s divorce, she and her daughter, Judith Baumann, returned to Portsmouth in 1970, where Palmer was a founding member of the Seacoast African American Cultural Center and a deacon of the Middle Street Baptist Church. She died in June 2020 at the age of 90.

This article was featured in 603 Diversity.

603 Diversity’s mission is to educate readers of all backgrounds about the exciting accomplishments and cultural contributions of the state’s diverse communities, as well as the challenges faced and support needed by those communities to continue to grow and thrive in the Granite State.

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