The Mossville History Committee and the Imperial Calcasieu Museum will honor 20 locals as “Mossville Heroes” 4:30-6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 14, at the Jacob Rigmaiden Center in Westlake. Free and open to the public, the event will recognize deceased and living members of the community who made a “significant contribution to its society,” said Susan Reed of the Imperial Calcasieu Museum.

“One of the pieces of the museum’s mission is to preserve the unique culture and history of this region. Certainly, this over 200-yearold totally African American community was a significant part of the history of this area,” she said.

“There are other communities in the U.S. that have disappeared through similar things and nobody knows anything about them,” she said.

To combat such a fate, and in conjunction with the Mossville History Project, Thursday’s event will recognize the pioneers, citizens and “trendsetters” who made life in the community valuable and memorable.

Among those honored will be teachers, musicians, athletes, ministers and civic leaders, said Vera Payne, Mossville History Committee member and native of the community.

“There are a lot of unique things we experienced in the Mossville community and we’d like to pass those things down,” Payne said.

Like the residents who have passed away or moved due to relocation from industrial buyouts, she said Thursday’s event is an effort to ensure “the history doesn’t slip away, too.”

For more information on Mossville Heroes or the Mossville History Project, call 439-3797 .