The 2020 observance of the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday marks the 25th anniversary of the day of service that celebrates the civil rights leader’s life and legacy.

Observed each year on the third Monday in January, MLK Day is celebrated as “a day on, not a day off.” It is recognized as the only federal holiday designated as a national day of service to encourage all Americans to volunteer to improve their communities.

Besides Monday’s holiday, events are planned both before and after.

Meridian Community College hosted the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Celebration at the school’s McCain Theater on Wednesday. 

Here are some other planned activities:

Friday: Community Service Project

Six of the Lauderdale County Foster Grandparent Program volunteers will be delivering hot meals to clients of the Meals on Wheels Program. The FGP monthly in-service meeting is 9 a.m. Thursday and this community service activity is Friday. Meals on Wheels is sponsored by Multi-County Community Service Agency.

Saturday: Salute to Greatness Banquet

For three decades, a Salute to Greatness Banquet celebrating the achievements of MLK has been presented by the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Committee of the Pine Belt and The Anti-Justice Center LLC of Laurel. The annual event is held at various locales throughout the state and this year’s banquet will be held in Quitman on Jan. 18 at Your Meeting Place, 1845 Highway 18 West. A meet-and-greet will begin at 6:30 p.m., followed by the banquet at 7 p.m. “Criminal Justice Reform” is the theme for this year’s banquet.

Guest speaker will be Col. (Ret.) Jennifer Riley-Collins, a Meridian native who was a 2019 candidate for attorney general for Mississippi.

Riley-Collins served as the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi before recently stepping down amid her run for attorney general. She received a bachelor’s degree from Alcorn State University in 1987, a master’s degree in criminal justice administration in 1993 from the University of Central Texas, and Juris Doctor in 1999 from Mississippi College School of Law.

The program will also informational speakers who will reflect on the theme.

Proceeds from the banquet go toward scholarships and community projects, including a Vietnam Era Cemetery located in Ellisville.

Tickets are $25, advance, $30, at the door. For more information, call 601-498-9621 or 601-651-6003.

Sunday: Candlelight Vigil and Celebration 

At 5:30 p.m. a commemorative march will take place starting at Baptist Seminary on 16th St. and Martin Luther King Ave. and will end at the historic First Union Missionary Baptist Church on 38th Ave. aka Dr. Charles Johnson Drive.

The theme this year is “A Drummajor for justice.”

“This is a walk of remembrance and is over 50 years old,” according to Rev. Gary Houston. “We remember people who gave their life for civil rights, people who went to prison, who were killed, who came to Mississippi to walk and encouraged people to vote.”

A celebration service will take place at 7 p.m.

“This walk of remembrance is the kick off to the NAACP breakfast and the parade,” Houston said.

Monday: Meridian/Lauderdale County NAACP MLK Community Breakfast, Jan. 20

The 35th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Breakfast is scheduled for 8 a.m. Monday at the Tommy E. Dulaney Center (across from the Meridian Community College campus). “When we come together in Love, we Win,” is the 2020 theme for the community breakfast.

Keynote speaker will be Philadelphia Mayor James Young, who was elected the city’s first black mayor in 2009.

According to a biography on the Mississippi Civil Rights Project website (mscivilrightsproject.org), Young was born and reared in Neshoba County and was the only black sixth-grader at Neshoba Central Elementary School in 1967. He and several other children integrated Neshoba County schools under the “Freedom of Choice Plan.” He went on to become a paramedic in the county-operated ambulance service.

Young was the first black person to be elected to the Neshoba County Board of Supervisors and served as the 2004 president of the board. He was a founding member of the Philadelphia Coalition, a community group that organized around the 40th anniversary of what is known as the Freedom Summer Murders, or the Neshoba Murders, in which local klan in collusion with local law enforcement, murdered James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner.

Tickets for the community breakfast are $10 are may be purchased online by visiting the website meridianlauderdalenaacp.churchcenter.com.

Monday: Community Service Project

Mississippi Power, Leadership Lauderdale and Sleep In Heavenly Peace will be teaming up to help build bunk beds for children in need. Cutting, bed assembly and delivery will be taking place, with Mississippi Power CEO and President Anthony Wilson on hand as well.

It will take place around 9:30 a.m. at the Mississippi Power Service Center, 3118 HWY 45 N. in Meridian.

Monday: MLK Day Parade 

The MLK Day annual parade is scheduled at noon Monday in downtown Meridian. Churches, school and youth groups and organizations, school bands as well as social and civic clubs, organizations and individuals are encouraged to sponsor an entry. Graham encourages parade participants to incorporate the local theme in their entry.

The entry fee is $35. First-, second- and third-place trophies will be awarded to the top three decorated entries. For more information, call 601-479-2018.

Jan. 25: Scholarship Gala 

Committee spokeswoman Pamela Graham said the local theme for the parade celebration and scholarship gala is “Dream … Believe … Do.”

This is the18th anniversary for the scholarship gala, which is scheduled from 7-11 p.m. at the MSU Riley Center in Meridian. The semi-formal evening event will include an introduction of the scholarship recipients, music by the band Just A Few Cats of Birmingham, Alabama, heavy hors d’oeuvres and door prizes.

Tickets are $40 per person; reserved tables are limited. Tickets may be purchased from committee members or at the door. For more information, call Graham at 601-479-2018.

The scholarships are a minimum of $500 and may be applied at the college of the student’s choice, Graham said. Academic excellence, community service and a 300-word essay about themselves and the impact Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. has had on their lives as well as others is the criteria considered in choosing applicants. The scholarship can be applied at the school of the recipient’s choice.

Since the gala’s inception, more than $55,000 in scholarships have been awarded, Graham said.