BY MICHELLE KEY
MICHELLE@OPELIKAOBSERVER.COM
OPELIKA — The Dream Day Foundation has produced and hosted the Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration for 24 years. This year will be the 25th anniversary of the event. In honor of that milestone, the nonprofit organization is also hosting a scholarship and initiative gala on Jan. 6, 2024. The event will be held at the Life Center at Greater Peace Baptist Church.
Marion Sankey, founder and executive director of The Dream Day Foundation discussed the reasons for the gala, the MLK Jr. Celebration and what the organization hopes these events will bring to the community.
THE GALA
“In the past 24 years we have never hosted a gala as a major fundraiser and the time is now as we approach our 25th year of sponsoring and producing the MLK Jr. Celebration,” Sankey said. “The gala will also provide a platform to honor the tireless efforts of individuals who have been instrumental in making this celebration a beacon of hope and inspiration.”
Sankey said that people consistently ask the question of how they can help, and this gala will give people an opportunity to participate and volunteer.
“I’m very excited and based on response to the gala, the community is as well,” she said.
Sankey said that the gala will be a heartfelt tribute to the enduring legacy of Dr. Martin L. King Jr. and the Dream Day Foundation’s commitment to fostering unity, justice and equality.
“As we reflect on over 20 years of dedicated service to the annual celebration, we believe it is essential to come together, celebrate progress and renew our dedication to the principles Dr. King stood for,” Sankey said. “This gala will provide everyone that believes in what we do an opportunity to help our young people with scholarships, growth and accomplish our overall mission and goals.”
The Dream Day Foundation began awarding scholarships to graduating high school seniors in 2014 as a way of investing in the young people of the community and to aid them in achieving their goals. There will also be scholarships awarded to graduating college students that need a little boost with moving into their next phase of life.
“We have quite a few initiatives that were put into place many years ago and [are] ongoing and some new initiatives such as the Drive, Putt and Chip Golf Mentoring Program,” Sankey said. This program is comprised of adult men and women willing to serve as mentors for middle and high school students that are interested in learning the basic skills of golf while being mentored.
“Another initiative we started this year is Dream Day Ambassadors,” Sankey said. This program, which consists of students in grades nine through 12 from all high schools in Auburn, Opelika and Lee County, is designed to promote leadership skills while serving as advocates for the Dream Day Foundation and its missions.
“We have a total of 33 students that were recommended or selected, serving as ambassadors at this time,” she said.
Other initiatives and programs such as the Annual Teen Summit and Black Male Summit can be found on the foundation’s website www.dreamdayfoundation.org.
Some of the funds raised from the gala will be used to help maintain and enhance these programs as well as develop new initiatives that will benefit the youth in the community.
Sankey said that people can get involved by purchasing a ticket to the black-tie gala or by making a donation to the foundation. Ways to donate can also be found on the website.
Tickets to the gala are $75. Table sponsorships are available as well and can be purchased by calling (334) 332-0118 or (334) 663-6638. The event will include entertainment and a live auction.
THE MLK JR. CELEBRATION
The Dream Day Foundation hosted the inaugural MLK Jr. Celebration in 2000. The one next month will be the 25th. It will be held at 11 a.m. on Jan. 15, 2024, at the Opelika Center for the Performing Arts, located at Opelika High School, 1700 Lafayette Parkway. The event is free, but non-perishable donations are appreciated.
“When this vision came to me in 2000, I had no idea that we would still be producing the annual MLK Jr. Celebration in the year 2024,” Sankey said. “I knew as an educator for many years that young people needed a creative way to learn about the works of Dr. King and others and the importance of expressing his works. … They are looking for engaging activities and ways to understand the relevance of what they are doing. I wanted to create an event where our youth are the stars and where the focus is on them to help build their self-confidence as an example being on a stage solo or as a part of a group. We love to see young people develop through all that the Dream Day Foundation has to offer. This is what makes me happy and I just want to live out my purpose.”
More than 100 people are involved with this year’s MLK Jr. Celebration. Sankey said that there are more than 75 children and 15 past participants that will be involved in the celebration in some capacity, as well as, approximately 20 adults assisting in the event. Numerous volunteers are also anticipated to help out.
All students that want to participate are welcome to be involved and the organization strives to include students from around the entire county.
“One of the beauties of the event this year is that we have students from every school and community throughout Lee County represented,” Sankey said. “We welcome all that would like to participate.”
Also, students that have graduated and moved out of the area are also welcome to return and participate when they can, Sankey said.
“We are more excited that many of our participants — now young adults — are returning from [places like] New York, Nashville, Houston, New Orleans, Washington D.C., Birmingham and Mobile, just to name a few, to show their appreciation of what the celebration meant to them then and now,” Sankey said. “We are super excited that this 25th Celebration will take place on Dr. King’s birthday on which he would have been 95 years of age.”
The group has been rehearsing for nearly four months in preparation for the Celebration. Sankey said they use the rehearsals as teaching moments in addition to preparing for the event itself.
“The rehearsals are great because it gives us an opportunity to teach and test the children on the many aspects of Dr. King’s life,” Sankey said. “It also provides an opportunity for our children to build relationships among each other and with our volunteers and assistants.”
Sankey said that the main purpose of this year’s event is to invite the young men and women who have been a part of the program as children to come back together as repeat participants and to reunite with other past participants.
“Many of our past participants are now health care workers, first responders, policemen, doctors, lawyers, teachers, preachers, entrepreneurs and more,” Sankey said. “[They] are giving back to their communities. People can witness how the Dream Day Foundation has grown over the last 25 years and now encompasses more diversity, bringing people together across political and economic lines.”
Since its inception at Greater Peace Missionary Baptist Church located in the Black community with the support of the Greater Peace Church family and local community, it is now supported by all communities near and far. The community looks forward to the individual or group selected by a committee each year as the Dream Achiever of the Year. This person or group is one that not only exemplifies the characteristics of Dr. King, but walks and talks with love, peace, unity and equality, which is a part of Dr. King’s legacy.
“This event will continue to help build a stronger and united community where people can come together for the purpose of reminding us all of Dr. King’s, ‘I Have a Dream’ and all that it encompasses,” Sankey said.
Sankey expressed great appreciation and thanks to her husband and family for their support and commitment to aiding her and the foundation in producing the event every year.
“This 25th year is made possible because of their unwavering support, time and endurance,” Sankey said. “I would like to thank the parents for their continued support in loaning us their children who are on loan for a lifetime with the Dream Day Foundation. I would like to thank the community for the continuous support and contributions. Thank you to some of the greatest board members an organization can have. They are committed to the vision and supports whole-heartedly our mission and vision. Both of these events are being created and produced with a lot of love and humbleness and I am so grateful for the volunteers who have been a part of the event regardless of if it’s been 25 years or just a few months or a day. Last but not least, I would like to say that I miss my all-time favourite character from all celebrations, my four-legged nephew, the late Mr. Solomon, who played Toto in the year 2008. He understood his assignment and was fantastic.”
Sankey said people can also get involved by volunteering with any of the initiatives and programs and are always welcome to contact her.