Hundreds of judges, lawyers, court officers and personnel and community members joined together at the Nassau County Courts' Black History program on Friday in Nassau County Supreme Court. "Honoring Freedom Fighters" was the theme of the 30^th Annual Black History Month Celebration, which was held in the ceremonial courtroom in Mineola, New York. Judges Thomas Adams and Norman St. George presided over the lunchtime program. Awards were presented to New York State Supreme Court Justice Sharon Gianelli, Senior Court Clerk Barbara Mitchell, and former deputy county executive Robert Olden, Sr. There was a special tribute to retired Judge Jerald Carter, who was surprised by the presentation of a photographic portrait, which will hang in the Nassau County Courthouse. The ceremony featured the Hempstead A Capella Choir, an artwork display by the painters, photographers and sketch artists of the Long Island Black Artist Association and paintings by aspiring Long Island fashion designer Stanley Covington. The celebration was sponsored by the Nassau County Courts Black History Month Committee, the Amistad Long Island Black Bar Association, the Nassau County Bar Association, the Nassau County Women's Bar Association and the Long Island Hispanic Bar Association.