Hundreds of community members — and some that were just passing through town — came to the annual Barbecue on the Green at Sturdivant Hall Thursday evening.

Paul Di Capua and his wife Deborah have heard about Selma throughout the years, and when they were given the opportunity to visit, they couldn’t pass it up.

“We are originally from Los Angeles … and we are moving to Miami. On the way, we got to pass through Selma and Deborah’s family is here from Selma,” Paul said. “It’s just an honor to be here and get to come to this event.”

Deborah said taking the time to visit Selma was well worth it, and she was excited to be able to attend an annual event and visit some of Selma’s most historic sites.

“It’s awesome [to be in Selma],” Deborah said. “We went to the cemetery today, which was beautiful — saw really old graves which had my last name on it. It was amazing.”

Deborah’s dad, Bill Lehman, lives in Miami, but with his daughter and son-in-law stopping in Selma, he too had to make the trip and revisit some of his childhood memories.

“I grew up coming here in the summer time. My dad was from here and all of our cousins were from here,” Lehman said. “I used to come up every summer … to spend time with my grandmother and cousins.”

Lehman’s cousin, Joanie Looney, is still a resident of Selma, and he said it was great to have the chance to visit with her. With his daughter, son-in-law and cousin, it was starting to feel like a family reunion at the barbecue, and then two more tagged along.

“I happened to mention it to my sons [John and Mark] who live in New York, and they said, ‘Well we want to come to. We’ve never been to Selma either.’ So we flew up today, and we’re going to see the Selma sights,” Lehman said. “We’re having a terrific time.”

Lehman has been telling stories of his past to his sons and daughter their entire lives, and they said it was a great experience to actually step foot in the city they had heard so much about.

“He’s been talking about Selma my entire life, as far back as I can remember. So the minute there was an opportunity to come down, we had to do it,” John said. “It’s just good timing with this event.”

The barbecue drew more than 400 people Thursday, and the weather was perfect according to Sturdivant Hall board director Mary Hansell.

“There’s about 430 people here. The weather turned out good for us, and I think everybody’s having an enjoyable time,” Hansell said.

“Everybody’s out fellowshipping and just enjoying each others company, plus it’s a great way to keep this fantastic mansion going.”