AUBURN #- Martin Luther King, Jr. was - and still remains - one of the most important figures in American history.
His efforts for equal rights, unity and understanding between people of all colors and creeds will echo through the ages.
Saturday, the spirit of what King struggled for and ultimately gave his life for was alive and well at the Booker T. Washington Center's annual luncheon in his honor.
Merritt Fletcher, program consultant at the center, said that this is the eighth year in a row that the center has hosted this luncheon, welcoming everyone in the community.
“We do this every weekend of Martin Luther King's Day weekend,” Fletcher said. “We try to share with people what we are doing here (at the center) and also share with people a little about the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. and what he stood for, and at the same time do something to make this a special day for everyone here.”
Fletcher said that year after year, the luncheon has continued to grow.
“This has been huge,” Fletcher said. “We get people from all backgrounds here for this. His day is a national holiday, and this is a way to celebrate that and pay tribute to his life and what he done in a few different ways.”
Children from the Booker T. Washington Center's Explorers and Tweens performed songs and readings. They were joined by performances by the Roosevelt Dancers, as well as a reading of various sections of King's “I Have A Dream Speech.”
The performers were joined by various community leaders, such as Auburn Mayor Michael Quill, who recalled growing up just around the corner from the center on Fitch Avenue.
“Where I'm standing now there was a swimming pool,” Quill said. “I grew up in this community and I spent a lot of my life in the park that was here. Thinking about Martin Luther King, I also think of two other men, John and Robert Kennedy. I wonder what would've happened if all three of these great men had lived and where our country would be with them. I think we can do what they did and help make Auburn a great place to live.”
Quill was joined by county Legislature members Roger Mills and George Fearon, who reflected on the meaning of what King stood for.
“Freedom will not ring if there is still discrimination because of the color or body people are born with,” Fearon said. “Freedom will not ring if every man, woman and child does not have the same opportunities as any other. But we can walk hand in hand and make a pledge to make sure that freedom rings.”
The luncheon also recognized the winners of the center's coloring and I Have A Dream Speech contest winners.
Kaitlyn White, 15, won first prize in the speech contest with her poem “Hope One Day,” expressing about her feelings about what King's famous speech means to her.
“I feel proud of myself,” White said. “I just put his speech in my own words. I don't know why there has to be discrimination, I really don't understand that and I don't know why he (King) had to be shot for saying that just like I did. I hope people can learn that it isn't about the color of your skin, but it is about the person you are on the inside.”
It is this message above all others that the luncheon most tried to communicate.
“This is a special time of year,” Gwen Webber-McLeod, president of the board of the center, said. “This is an opportunity to celebrate Martin Luther King and all he did for all of us and all he did to help make this world a better place for all of us. This gives all the people in our community the chance to celebrate that.”
Saturday, the spirit of what King struggled for and ultimately gave his life for was alive and well at the Booker T. Washington Center's annual luncheon in his honor.
Merritt Fletcher, program consultant at the center, said that this is the eighth year in a row that the center has hosted this luncheon, welcoming everyone in the community.
“We do this every weekend of Martin Luther King's Day weekend,” Fletcher said. “We try to share with people what we are doing here (at the center) and also share with people a little about the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. and what he stood for, and at the same time do something to make this a special day for everyone here.”
Fletcher said that year after year, the luncheon has continued to grow.
“This has been huge,” Fletcher said. “We get people from all backgrounds here for this. His day is a national holiday, and this is a way to celebrate that and pay tribute to his life and what he done in a few different ways.”
Children from the Booker T. Washington Center's Explorers and Tweens performed songs and readings. They were joined by performances by the Roosevelt Dancers, as well as a reading of various sections of King's “I Have A Dream Speech.”
The performers were joined by various community leaders, such as Auburn Mayor Michael Quill, who recalled growing up just around the corner from the center on Fitch Avenue.
“Where I'm standing now there was a swimming pool,” Quill said. “I grew up in this community and I spent a lot of my life in the park that was here. Thinking about Martin Luther King, I also think of two other men, John and Robert Kennedy. I wonder what would've happened if all three of these great men had lived and where our country would be with them. I think we can do what they did and help make Auburn a great place to live.”
Quill was joined by county Legislature members Roger Mills and George Fearon, who reflected on the meaning of what King stood for.
“Freedom will not ring if there is still discrimination because of the color or body people are born with,” Fearon said. “Freedom will not ring if every man, woman and child does not have the same opportunities as any other. But we can walk hand in hand and make a pledge to make sure that freedom rings.”
The luncheon also recognized the winners of the center's coloring and I Have A Dream Speech contest winners.
Kaitlyn White, 15, won first prize in the speech contest with her poem “Hope One Day,” expressing about her feelings about what King's famous speech means to her.
“I feel proud of myself,” White said. “I just put his speech in my own words. I don't know why there has to be discrimination, I really don't understand that and I don't know why he (King) had to be shot for saying that just like I did. I hope people can learn that it isn't about the color of your skin, but it is about the person you are on the inside.”
It is this message above all others that the luncheon most tried to communicate.
“This is a special time of year,” Gwen Webber-McLeod, president of the board of the center, said. “This is an opportunity to celebrate Martin Luther King and all he did for all of us and all he did to help make this world a better place for all of us. This gives all the people in our community the chance to celebrate that.”
