Annual MLK Celebration: “Building a Beloved Community”

The annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration, hosted by Neighbors United – Undoing Racism along with the Civic and Community Engagement Committee at East Central College, will be held on Sunday, Jan. 19, at 3 p.m. at East Central College in Union, Mo. The event will be in the John Edson Anglin Performing Arts Center.

All are invited to the celebration, which will feature keynote speaker Donell Woodson. An Atlanta-based community developer, Woodson has used Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s philosophy of “Beloved Community” as a guiding principle in his work. His roots are in the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic District of Atlanta (in Historic Sweet Auburn). He is the lead Community Development Consultant and Trainer with the Lupton Center, which helps organizations understand the hidden forces that prevent lasting change in their communities. He also serves on the board of the Sweet Auburn-based Historic District Development Corporation, which was co-founded by Coretta Scott King, and also serves on the board of the Center for Christian Study at the University of Virginia. While at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, he became the first African American to pastor a collegiate fellowship at the university through InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA.

Musical performances will also be featured, and light refreshments will follow.

Neighbors United – Undoing Racism has been an active group in the Franklin County area, well-known for their Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebrations that bring together church and social groups to celebrate and work toward King’s legacy of equality and community. Church groups and individuals from across the area have come together to strive to expand their reach into building relationships in the community. The Civic and Community Engagement Committee at East Central College co-hosts the event.

The event is free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Aimee Appell (Neighbors United chairperson and pastor of Peace Lutheran Church in Washington) at pastoraimee@gmail.com or contact Leigh Kellmann Kolb at leigh.kolb@eastcentral.edu.