For the City Times 

Celebrate a soulful evening with southern food and entertainment at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, sponsored by the Black Student Union.

The 2016 Soul Food Dinner will be held Sunday, Feb. 28, from 5-10 p.m. in the Dreyfus University Laird Room, 1015 Reserve St., Stevens Point. The event’s menu will include catfish, fried chicken wings, baked macaroni and cheese, corn muffins, greens, sweet potatoes, red velvet cupcakes and peach cobbler.

Mary Shepard, known as the “Queen of Jook” for her ownership of the Club Ebony “juke joint” in Indianola, Miss., will speak at UW-Stevens Point’s Soul Food Dinner on Sunday, Feb. 28. (Contributed)

This year’s guest speaker is Mary Shepard, a native of Mississippi and the longtime owner and operator of Club Ebony in Indianola, Miss. She is credited with helping launch the annual B.B. King Homecoming Celebration and setting the stage for what now stands as the multimillion dollar B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center.

Her club also hosted music greats Ray Charles, Count Basie and Ike and Tina Turner, among others. The author of “The Life of Mary Shepard: Queen of the Legendary Club Ebony,” Shepard will share stories from her life and career.

A dance will follow led by DJ Finesser from Chicago.

Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for students. Children 12 and under are free. Tickets may be purchased at the University Information and Tickets office in the concourse of the Dreyfus University Center.