For the 25th yearly celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day in Danvers, the town is hosting an open house in the atrium of Danvers High School with student musical performances and remarks.
The day will also include the presentation of the inaugural “Seed of Hope” award, and a variety of interactive art projects that center around this year’s theme showcasing how individual community members can “move like King” by creating a vision for the town’s future and building on Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy.
“I’m really excited about this version of the event that we’re landing on that combines creativity with community engagement, to really center ourselves in this legacy of social justice and service and work together to build our community,” Danvers Director of Equity and Inclusion Jasmine Ramòn said. “It’s really amazing to see where the community has landed after 25 years of acknowledging MLK.”
The first student art exhibit in the atrium of Danvers High School is called “Art of Action”, where attendees can tour a variety of different works from young people in Danvers, with work typically centered around the subject of social justice.
The “Make your Mark” art project will have the community come together to contribute to a banner that will be hung around various locations in the community to show the power of collaboration.
Attendees can also contribute to a King-sized vision wall where they can share their individual thoughts and reflections on an idea that they have or a way that they “move like King”. Similarly, the Children’s Dream Center will have children collaborating on a mini mural full of ideas, messages, and words to think about how they can be more inclusive and part of a just society.
There will also be a handful of tables representing different organizations with social justice opportunities for engagement in 2024.
“As always, the human rights and inclusion committee and the Danvers accessibility commission are both always looking for community volunteers, even if they’re not voting members, to support event planning and we’re always looking for people to submit a talent pool application to actually become a voting member,” Ramòn said. “But it’s not just boards and commissions, there will also be more community based organizations there as well.”
The presentation of the inaugural “Seed of Hope” award, typically given to a person or group who amplifies the life and legacy of MLK by sowing seeds of hope for a more equitable and just community, will be given to Agnes Misigah, the director of housing, policy and practice at Centerboard. Misigah has been working in Danvers with families that arrived through the emergency assistance shelter program.
Finally, five Danvers residents will share how they move like Martin Luther King Jr. in their life and work in Danvers through “Neighbor to Neighbor”, where speakers, including anyone from first responders to town employees, will share how they further his legacy through their community work.
The event will take place on Monday, Jan 15. in the Danvers atrium from 3-6 p.m.
Michael McHugh can be contacted at mmchugh@northofboston.com or at 781-799-5202