It really is about peace and love.
The Kinston-Lenoir County and La Grange NAACP branches sponsor their annual celebrations of the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. this weekend, with two events on Sunday and a parade on Monday in La Grange.
The Kinston-Lenoir County branch kicks off its event at 2 p.m. Sunday with a ceremony at the Lenoir County Courthouse. From there, attendees will walk to the United American Free Will Baptist Tabernacle for a service centered on King’s life and legacy.
“The music and the message always focus on things that Dr. King himself — that his whole life and teachings — were about. Justice and love, those things that he thought were necessary for what he called the ‘love community’,” said the Rev. Veronica Jackson, religious affairs director for the Kinston-Lenoir County NAACP. “It’s a regular worship service, and it’s sponsored by the NAACP — that’s our mission, to fight for justice and equality. That’s what it’s all about.”
She added, “Even though we’ve come a long way, we know that the struggle’s still there, so we have to try to keep his dream alive — we have come a long way, but there’s still much to be done.”
Another part of the service is to encourage people to live a life of service to the community.
Speaking at the tabernacle are Elder William Hudson of Mt. Calvary Free Will Baptist Church in La Grange, Dr. Jan Laughinghouse of Bennett College in Greensboro and others. Music is provided by the Dorothy C. Pitt Chancel Choir of Emmanuel Hill Memorial Free Will Baptist Church and Ecumenical Friends.
At 6 p.m. Sunday in La Grange, “A National Birthday Celebration” for King gets underway at the St. Matthew Free Will Baptist Church.
“We’re going to have a speaker and a little bit of history,” Charmaine Morgan Sutton, secretary of the La Grange branch, said.
The speaker will be Elder Charles Kittrell.
Monday, “A National Birthday Parade Celebration” for King starts in downtown La Grange. The event is sponsored by the La Grange Youth Council of the NAACP. Line-up starts at 2 p.m. on Charles Street, and there is no entry fee.
Wes Wolfe can be reached at 252-559-1075 or wes.wolfe@kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter at WolfeReports.
Breakout Box:
Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebrations
Kinston
Sunday, 2 p.m.
Ceremony at the Lenoir County Courthouse, followed by a walk to United American Free Will Baptist Tabernacle, with a program celebrating the life and legacy of King at 3 p.m.
La Grange
Sunday, 6:30 p.m.
“A National Birthday Celebration,” St. Matthew Free Will Baptist Church
Monday, 3 p.m.
“A National Birthday Parade Celebration,” downtown La Grange