The 2014 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day observance will return to downtown Junction City on January 19th and 20th.

This years theme is “Reclaim the Dream…Move Forward.”

The event will kick off at 5 p.m. on Sunday, January 19th at the C.L. Hoover Opera House with a gospel tribute and musical celebration featuring the Wiley College A Cappella Choir from Marshal, Texas.

Larry Hicks, MLK Jr. Celebration Committee member, said that the Wiley College group performed last year in Junction City,”I think everyone who heard them last year enjoyed them very much.”

The actual formal commemoration for MLK Jr. will be the next day Monday, January 20th.

“Our keynote speaker will be Dr. Jose Soto who is the Vice President for access equity and diversity at Southeast Community College in Lincoln, Nebraska,” Hicks said. Soto is a 1967 JCHS graduate as well.

Following the keynote address the “MLK March” will conclude the events.

Hicks explained the significance of the march,”To demonstrate to the community that despite from our progress there’s still a need to exhibit how people are concerned about still many shortcomings that exist at various levels of both the public and social levels of our community.”

During the two-day event, free-will offerings will be taken to establish a Ruby Stevens Scholarship to honor her many years of leadership in the community.