Celebration in Elgin marks 28th year

Elgin’s 28th Annual Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration will take place on the weekend of Jan. 19-21, celebrating the life, actions and dreams of Dr. King. 

Sponsored by the Elgin Human Relations Commission, along with the year- long efforts of the Martin Luther King Jr Planning Committee, the 2013 Celebration will begin with a Prayer Breakfast 8:30 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 19 and culminate with a day of service and learning on Monday, Jan. 21.

The Prayer Breakfast will be held at the Business Conference Center at Elgin Community College, Building K, 1700 Spartan Drive. 

Doors open at 8 a.m.. Various community organizations will be featuring their wares. The Prayer Breakfast will begin promptly at 8:30 a.m 

Keynote Speaker will be motivational speaker Dan Duster. Mr Duster is an expert in the area of motivation and personal achievement. 

As the great-grandson of Ida B. Wells, he speaks about her struggles and triumphs to motivate audiences to overcome the obstacles we face today. 

Also as part of the program, winners of the Humanitarian Awards will be announced and presented with plaques. 

Tickets for the Prayer Breakfast are $15  and can be obtained at City Hall. Order forms can be downloaded online at www.cityofelgin.org/MLK and mailed to the city at 150 Dexter Court, Elgin, IL 60120. Tickets are also available from committee members or by calling (847) 931-5667.

On Jan. 20, The MLK Public Program begins at 4 p.m. at the Second Baptist Church, 1280 Summit St.

Music will be provided by the Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Choir and other musical performances. The winner of the 2011 Art and Essay contest will be announced and Scholarship Award winners will be presented their awards. The public program is free and open to the general public.

From Jan. 2- 20, committee members are hosting a community food drive which will end with the distribution of food on the MLK Day of Service on Jan. 21.

Drop off sites include most area churches, Jewel stores, Elgin Fresh Markets, Butera Markets, and Elgin City Hall. Students and other volunteers will distribute it to area food pantries on the morning of January 21st. For more information about the food drive, contact Joe Wars at 847-742-2228.

On Monday afternoon, the second annual Youth Leadership Conference will take place at The Centre of Elgin, 100 Symphony Way. 

The program is designed to reach middle to high school age students with Dr. King’s message of leadership and community service. 

Adult leaders and students must register in advance for the conference, which will feature guest speakers and workshops on subjects relating to the messages taught by Dr. King. 

More information about the conference can be found on the city website at www.cityofelgin.org/MLK or call Dianha Ortega-Ehreth at 847-214-6910.

Members of the MLK Planning Committee include: Co-Chairs Shaan Jones and Rose Reinert, Danise Habun, Joe Wars, Janice Hare, Rene Neal, Algawan Dussard, Albert McCloud, Aloun Khotisene, and Dianha Ortega-Ehreth and Phillip Campbell. 

For more information on the events or the process for joining either the Elgin Human Relations Commission or the 2012 MLK Planning Committee, contact the City of Elgin at (847) 931-5667.

Author’s talk, prayer breakfast, Gospel Extravaganza at NCC

North Central College invites members of the community to join its annual celebration of the life and legacy of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Jan. 20-26 with a series of events and performances.

King spoke in North Central College’s Pfeiffer Hall in 1960. This year’s celebration includes musical tributes, a prayer breakfast, the college’s 25th Gospel Extravaganza and a keynote presentation by actor, author and philanthropist Hill Harper.

Harper’s talk, “Being an Active Architect of Your Own Life,” begins at 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 21, in the college’s Wentz Concert Hall at the Fine Arts Center, 171 E. Chicago Ave. Admission at the door is $5.

A star of the CBS TV drama CSI: NY and author of four New York Times bestsellers, Harper has earned seven NAACP Image Awards for his writing and acting. He is founder of the Manifest Your Destiny Foundation, which serves youths through mentorship, scholarship and grant programs.

Harper graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. from Brown University and cum laude with a J.D. from Harvard Law School. He holds a master’s degree with honors from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and honorary doctoral degrees from six institutions. As a speaker, he addresses a wide range of audiences, including youth, adults, couples and business leaders. 

In 2010, Harper was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. His 2011 bestselling book, The Wealth Cure: Putting Money in Its Place, chronicles the cancer diagnosis and his journey to health.

The weeklong celebration kicks off on Jan. 20 when the Chicago Sinfonietta presents its “Annual Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.” with featured Metropolitan Opera clarinetist Anthony McGill and renowned bass-baritone Eric Owens. 

The award-winning Waubonsie Valley High School Mosaic Choir will open the program. The concert begins at 3 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 20 in North Central’s Wentz Concert Hall at the Fine Arts Center, 171 E. Chicago Ave. 

Tickets are $50, $40 and $10/children and students; call the North Central College Box Office at 630-637-SHOW (7469) or visit northcentralcollege.edu/show.

The college presents a Poetry Slam featuring New York’s Carlos Andres Gomez and student poets at 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 25, at The Union, 129 W. Benton Ave., Naperville. 

Tickets are $12 at the door and $10 in advance; call the box office at 630-637-SHOW (7469) or visit northcentralcollege.edu/showtix.

The week concludes with the college’s 25th Gospel Extravaganza at 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 26, in Pfeiffer Hall, 310 E. Benton Ave. 

Tickets are $15/adults, $10/students and senior citizens; call the North Central College Box Office at 630-637-SHOW (7469) or visit northcentralcollege.edu/show. 

The lineup includes headliner Dexter Walker and Zion Movement Chorale, North Central’s own Voices of Praise gospel choir with alumni of the choir, the Wheaton College Gospel Choir, Voices of Praise Gospel Choir from the DuPage African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in Lisle and dancer-choreographer Glorielle Williams. 

COD, Benedictine team up for tribute

College of DuPage, in partnership with Benedictine University and Nicor Gas Company, will present the 18th annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Breakfast at 8 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 21, on the second floor of the Krasa Center, Benedictine University, 5700 College Road., in Lisle.

This event will feature a keynote presentation by former U.S. Colonel, Jill Morgenthaler. A celebrated public speaker, Morgenthaler earned a Bronze Star and the Legion of Merit during her 30 years of extraordinary military service. She is currently a consultant for CJMI, an emergency management organization dedicated to providing businesses, private and government institutions with emergency preparedness and post-hazard recovery solutions.  

In addition to Morgenthaler’s presentation, the winners of the 2013 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarships will be introduced.

Tickets for this event are $25 in advance or $30 at the door. Corporate Sponsorship tables, with seating for eight, are available for $2,000. A portion of the proceeds benefits the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship Fund.

For more information and to purchase tickets, call the McAninch Arts Center at (630) 942-4000 or visit www.cod.edu/mlk.