Monday, 1/19/26, is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Here are some local events commemorating the day. This year’s them is Mission Possible II: Building Community, Uniting a Nation the Nonviolent Way.
“This theme is more than a banner; it’s a blueprint for action,” reads The King Center websie. “It guides our programming, fuels our outreach, and anchors our commitment to building the Beloved Community; a world where injustice ends, violence is replaced by compassion, and love becomes the prevailing force.”
Learn more about Dr. King at https://thekingcenter.org
New Bedford’s Annual Community Program
The City’s annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Community Program will be held on Sunday, Jan. 18 from 3-4:30 p.m. at Grace Episcopal Church, 133 School St., New Bedford.
Sponsored by the City’s Department of Community Services and its Human Rights Commission, the Office of the Mayor, and the SouthCoast Community Foundation, the program will feature musical performances, remarks from Mayor Jon Mitchell, and keynote speaker Rev. Dr. Ray Hammond.
The Senior and Founding Pastor of Bethel A.M.E. Church in Boston, Rev. Dr. Hammond is a man of many hats with a heart for social justice and a deep commitment to community. He is the co-founder and Chairman of the Ten Point Coalition, an ecumenical group of Christian clergy and lay leaders focused on issues affecting black and Latino youth. He serves as a trustee of the Yawkey Foundation, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, BMC Health System, and the MATCH School. He previously served as chairman of The Boston Foundation.
Sunday’s program also features addresses from the Creative Expression Contest winners, as well as inspirational musical performances.
All are encouraged to attend. For more information, contact the MLK Planning Committee at MLK@ newbedford-ma.gov or at 508-979-1692.
BCC Annual Breakfast
Join Bristol Community College for its 26th annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Breakfast on Monday, January 19, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. The event is free and open to all. Please register to help us with our planning at https://bristolcc.wufoo.com/forms/qqddspk11znayq/
The breakfast will be held in the Commonwealth College Center (G building) on the Bristol Fall River Campus, 777 Elsbree St., and will include a breakfast buffet, a keynote address and resource tables hosted by community organizations.
The event will feature the unveiling of a portrait of Captain Thomas J. Hudner, Jr., a Fall River native and Medal of Honor recipient who, during the Korean War, risked his life attempting to save his fellow squadron mate and wingman, Ensign Jesse L. Brown, the first African American to complete Navy flight training. The portrait, created by artist Brian Fox and donated by Paul Burke, will be permanently displayed at the college as a symbol to justice, character and community.
The keynote address will be delivered by Dr. Sean Edmund Rogers, Dean of the University of Rhode Island (URI) College of Business.
Dr. Rogers is Dean of the URI College of Business, the Alfred J. Verrecchia-Hasbro Inc. Leadership Chair and Professor of Management. Previously, he served as URI’s Vice President of Community, Equity, and Diversity.
Before joining URI, he held faculty appointments at Cornell University, New Mexico State University and the University of New Mexico, and prior to that worked in finance and industrial engineering at several Fortune 500 firms. Dr. Rogers is a U.S. Army combat veteran and currently serves as a healthcare administration officer in the Air Force Reserve.
An expert in human resource management and leadership, he has authored more than 30 scholarly articles and two books, delivered more than 80 keynote addresses and workshops, and regularly provides consulting to business executives and nonprofit organizations. Dr. Rogers earned his Ph.D. from Rutgers University and has degrees from Brown University, Wake Forest University, University of Illinois and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. He is a Life Member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and a member of Martin Luther King Jr. Lodge Number 29, Prince Hall Free and Accepted Masons, in Arizona.
The event will also include about 12 resource tables by nonprofit organizations offering services and information.
For details, visit https://bristolcc.edu/studentservices/resources/multiculturalaffairs/mlk.html
Support Bristol Students
Guests are encouraged to bring donated nonperishable, shelf-stable food items to the community breakfast that will be collected for Bristol’s Office for Basic Needs Support, which connects students with basic needs support and community resources.
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