By Bella Sarbora, Staff Writer

When I attended the 32nd Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration at First Flight High School this past Saturday, I never expected it to make as deep of an impression on me as it did. I originally went because I was singing with the FFHS choir, but I left the memorial with a deepened appreciation for Dr. King’s work and the impact it continues to have today. 

This event was unlike anything I’ve ever attended. The humor and personality of the various speakers, the warmth and welcoming nature of the audience, and the striking talent of the performers all contributed to the touching ceremony. 

From the moment Reverend Michael Lewis, Chairman of the Dare County Martin Luther King Jr. Committee, walked on stage and started speaking, to when I walked out of the auditorium, I felt the feeling of community in the room. The entire Lewis family was there, sharing the legacy of this committee. 

Rev. Michael was passed the baton three years ago by his mother who had run the group for 29 years previously. She had been a part of a singing group called The Echoes of Heritage. The current leader of the group, Coquetta Brooks, introduced us to the two others with her. One was her mother, Doris Creecy, the last living original Echo and the other was Clarence Lewis, Rev. Michael’s father and co-leader of the event. 

The trio told us to sing along, despite the fact that none of us knew a single song. They all had such exuberant personalities. I loved Coquetta’s beautiful bedazzled hat and bright red hair. Doris cracked joke after joke and Clarence had a trusting and fatherly feeling to him.

Doris and Coquetta’s enthusiasm didn’t stop when they sat back down though. They cheered on our choir when we went on stage, singing along to the spiritual piece Mr. Buford selected for us. They even had a whole conversation with the Elizabeth City State University choir director, Dr. Walter Swan, while he was on stage. They both had so much kindness and love – I felt as if my own grandmothers were here. 

Anjelica Lewis, another member of the Lewis family, read a poem she had written when she was 11 years old. I was expecting a short and sweet rhyming poem, something you would expect a sixth grader to write. Instead, we got a moving and deep piece with metaphors and rhetorical questions. Anjelica got choked up reading it and I sat in stunned silence, something that rarely happens to me. 

As touching as all of this was, the very beginning of the event was what had the biggest impact on me. I read in the program that Reverend Spottswood Graves would be presenting some icebreakers. I was confused, picturing him up on stage asking what we do for a living. Instead,  he told us to get up and ask a complete stranger how their house was heated. I looked over at my friends in confusion as Rev. Graves told us he wasn’t joking. 

In a rare moment of braveness, I stood up and walked over to the ECSU choir. I asked the first person I came across how their house was heated. We had a short and pleasant conversation about how we don’t really need heat down here anyway and moved on to the next person. 

As the cycle continued, I ended up hearing about how Dr. Swan’s first house was heated by a stove. He had to go out to the water pump to bring water back and I told him my father had to do the same thing when he was younger. It was such a simple and unnecessary question, but that was the point of the exercise. You don’t always have to connect on a deep and personal level, sometimes just sharing simple and random information is enough to make a friend. 

The closing of the event was perhaps the best moment of the afternoon. The ECSU choir had me staring at the ceiling, wondering if I was in a Disney movie soundtrack. Not only were they magical as a group, but the soloists could have been finalists on The Voice. There was so much emotion and heart behind the melodies that I would have listened to them forever if I could. 

Dr. Swan made his debut as one of the best singers I have ever heard in my life. My jaw dropped as soon as he sang the first note. Then, one of the members stepped down and played a breathtaking piece on the piano. But ECSU brought more than mesmerizing music, they brought thought-provoking questions. 

Dr. Swan spoke about the political division in America and how that contributes to racial division. The choir then sang a breathtaking song that was patriotic but encouraged improvement and change in our country. 

The program continued as we were invited to sing along to the final few songs of the set, having the lyrics printed in our programs. Nobody knew the melody nor the rhythm, but the willingness of Dr. Swan to sacrifice his choir’s unified sound so that we could all be included speaks volumes about his caring nature.

What originally was going to be three hours of my Saturday stolen, turned into a valuable and heartwarming moment. Everybody, from Rev. Graves to the students I talked to from ECSU, were so kind and friendly, I felt as if I had known them for years. As I spoke to Rev. Michael Lewis after the event, I could see how passionate he was about this project and how much he wanted everyone else to be too. 

I remember something Rev. Michael said to me after the event: “The goal of the program is to bring the community together in a way unlike the traditional ways. There are festivals all over the Outer Banks, but this one targets everybody in every way, shape and form. We don’t all have to have the same beliefs, but we can all enjoy the same music and experience while growing a little closer to one another.” 

This event is definitely one worth going to. You will be welcomed with open arms and showered with moving speeches, encapsulating performances and bubbling personalities. But above all, it will remind you to live like Dr. King: with kindness, hope and love for all. 

Senior Bella Sarbora can be reached at 23sarborais62@daretolearn.org.