St. Mary's celebration of MLK Day emphasizes community

St. Mary's Hospital hosted A Celebration of the Life and Works of Martin Luther King Jr. during which the Second Baptist Church Praise Dancers performed for those in attendance. The dancers are directed by Theressa Ferguson and were invited back after last year's performance.
St. Mary's Hospital hosted A Celebration of the Life and Works of Martin Luther King Jr. during which the Second Baptist Church Praise Dancers performed for those in attendance. The dancers are directed by Theressa Ferguson and were invited back after last year's performance.

During St. Mary's 13th annual Martin Luther King Jr. celebration, community members commemorated King's legacy with song and dance of praise accompanied by African drums, and with a message emphasizing the importance of the community sticking together.

This year's theme was "Am I my brother's keeper." It was the core message of all of the performances throughout the program and community members from all walks came out to enjoy it.

"We wanted to give hope to the teens, the young and the middle-aged community members and with that. we came up with the theme 'Am I my brother's keeper?'" said Carolyn Jackson, patient access supervisor and chairwoman of this year's MLK celebration. "Every year there's energy and a different flavor, but the same mission. Our president owns this and the planning committee is awesome."

Lincoln University president and keynote speaker Kevin Rome asked the audience to continue to uphold the work to equal opportunities by educating and uplifting those in poverty.

Rome told the News Tribune it's always important to remember and acknowledge the past and realize the Jefferson City community has a great amount of work to do, while recognizing it's everybody's responsibility.

"We need to continue to focus on education and poverty," Rome said. "If we want crime, unemployment, less dependence on social and governmental programs, the only way that those things will go away is to make sure that everyone has the resources that they need to be productive citizens and take care of their families."

Dr. Arnold Parks, LU professor of emeritus in sociology, told the News Tribune he hoped everyone in the crowd listened intently to the message.

"The program was very good and very encouraging," Parks said. "Dr. Rome made some important points about how it is our responsibility to speak up and out for another."

In addition to the keynote speaker, LU sophomore Brandon Birch opened with a remarkable solo of "The Impossible Dream," accompanied on the piano by Michelle Green, director of choral activities. The solo was followed by LU's choir own rendition of "Ogo Ni Fun Oluwa," meaning "Glory to God in the highest." King's "I Have a Dream" speech was recited by Joe Jimmerson, saecurity guard at St. Mary's. The program
concluded with a performance by youth praise dancers from the Second Baptist Church.

Jackson has been on St. Mary's MLK planning committee for four years, and said every year she has seen growth. Community members who have attended previous events said they enjoyed yesterday's event.

"This was an excellent showcase of the talents Jefferson City has to offer," longtime Jefferson City resident Ashley Kaufman said.

Nathan Cook, retired LU professor of biology, called it "wonderful and very diverse."

Brent VanConia, SSM president of Mid-Missouri Region, said this is his favorite event of the year.

"While we honor Dr. King's work with songs, dance and words of his and a message from our distinguished speaker, it is also important to honor him in the values he represented in our everyday lives," VanConia said.

"We cannot afford to ignore each other. It is our responsibility socially and individually to respect and care for one another."