What happens to a holiday when its most beloved champion cannot join the celebration? On Thursday, hundreds still showed up for Opal’s Walk for Freedom, a 2.5-mile trek to celebrate Juneteenth. Sims, who led the walk, called herself the “granddaughter of Juneteenth.”

Roderick Miles Jr., the Tarrant County Commissioner of Precinct 1, hugs Dione Sims, the granddaughter of Opal Lee, following the Opal Lee Walk for Freedom at Farrington Field in Fort Worth on Thursday, June 19, 2025. Lee was not able to participate in this years walk due to health concerns.

Opal Lee, known to many as "The Grandmother of Juneteenth," will not participate in this year’s Walk for Freedom march due to a recent hospitalization.