By Jon Brown
Many members of the Florida A&M University (FAMU) family observed the 2017 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day holiday with service projects and other activities in Tallahassee and throughout the United States.
On Jan. 11, FAMU Interim President Larry Robinson, Ph.D. joined Florida State University President John Thrasher and Tallahassee Community College President Jim Murdaugh to honor Dr. King at the annual tribute hosted by Leon County and the MLK Foundation of Florida, Inc. at the Leon County Courthouse in Tallahassee.
On Friday, Jan. 13, the FAMU College of Agriculture and Food Sciences provided fresh produce from the University’s farms to senior citizens at the Smith Williams Community Center in the Bond Community.
On Dr. King’s birthday, Jan. 15, Dr. Robinson was the guest speaker during the Southern Christian Leadership Conference annual observance and awards program at Bethel A.M.E. Church in Tallahassee. He reminded the audience of the work that remains in order to fulfill Dr. King’s Dream.
“The next great American community must eliminate health and medical disparity, bridge the digital and technological divide, allow untethered access to the benefits of the American economy, and expand access to higher education in order to ensure the community is well represented by all of the diversity this nation has to offer,” Robinson said.
On Monday, Jan. 16, the FAMU community joined the Tallahassee branch of the NAACP for their annual MLK Remembrance Walk from the historic C.K. Steele Plaza to the new Cascades Park, where Dr. Robinson delivered the keynote address. A custom-wrapped bus commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Tallahassee Bus Boycott carried seniors from the plaza to the park.
Immediately following the MLK Remembrance Walk, the Martin Luther King, Jr. “Dare to Dream” Festival, hosted by the MLK Dare to Dream Association and the City of Tallahassee, kicked off at Cascades Park, celebrating and honoring Dr. King with speakers, songs, dance, spoken word, and comedy.
Also, after a decade, FAMU’s Marching “100” was back in St. Petersburg for the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Parade. The last time the band performed in the parade was 2007, which was also the year the band backed the artist, Prince. Many have called the performance one of the greatest Super Bowl halftime shows of all time.
More than a dozen FAMU National Alumni Association (NAA) chapters participated in service projects from Jan. 11 – 16. The Las Vegas Chapter of the FAMU NAA volunteered with “Serving our Kids” on January 12; an organization in Henderson, NV helped feed at-risk children, who most often only receive meals during school hours. The chapter also participated in the organization’s evening “bagging event,” where volunteers bagged more than 1,000 bags of food to be distributed the next day to elementary schools in lower income areas of the city.
A few of the NAA chapters participating in the Day of Service included: Detroit’s J.R.E. Lee Chapter; the Jacksonville, FL Chapter; the Jefferson County, FL Chapter; the Leon County, FL Chapter; the Marion County, FL Chapter; and the Polk County, FL Chapter.