Honoring the dream

Martin Luther King Jr. Day events coming up at FVSU:

MONDAY

The Fort Valley State University community will honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s memory with a march and program Monday, Jan. 21. Marchers will gather at 9 a.m. in the Lottie B. Lyons Student Center parking lot at the end of Rayfield Wright Street, then walk to Trinity Baptist Church at 507 State University Drive.

The program begins promptly after the march. Heather Bryant, president of the Student Government Association, will host the event. The Fort Valley Area Community Choir are featured guests, joined by FVSU President Larry E. Rivers, who will present remarks. Pastors Gregory E. Moore of Trinity Baptist Church, Preston King of Antioch Baptist Church, Robert Roberson, K. Daniel Dawsey of Central Union Baptist Church and the Rev. Artha Grace, president of the Fort Valley Ministerial Alliance, will participate in the program.

“We hope students and the greater community of Fort Valley will join us to celebrate the father of the civil rights movement,” said Brian Byrd, program coordinator for the office of residential student life. “The purpose is to remember his dream and move forward – to keep striving to make that dream come to life.”

For more information, contact: Corinthia Lee at 825-6290.

TUESDAY

Civil rights leader Martin Luther King dreamed of an America in which all people could live freely regardless of race or color. The Fort Valley State University Political Science Student Association and Phi Alpha Theta History Honor Society will recognize King’s contributions during an hour-long Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Celebration at 11 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 22 in the Pettigrew Center. The tribute will be a reflection of Dr. King’s work to end racial segregation and prejudice in America.

During the program, organizers will provide an open microphone for audience members to share perspectives about how King's struggle against segregation and securing the right to vote impacted their lives.

FVSU’s Baptist Student Union Choir and the FVSU Pre-K Program will sing several selections at the memorial. Students will also read excerpts from the civil rights leader’s speeches as well as perform biographical sketches of King’s life and his wife, Coretta Scott King.

For more information about the program, contact faculty advisors Dr. Meigan Fields at (478) 825-6634 or Dr. Dawn Herd-Clark (478) 825-6657.