The annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration march went off without a hitch despite the frigid temperatures that greeted participants on Monday, Jan 21.

The march has been a Lewisburg tradition on Martin Luther King Jr. Day for numerous years, always ending at the Lewisburg United Methodist Church in order to start the celebration and luncheon. Due to the cold weather the marching crowd was sparse, yet the church was packed with attendees who were eager to listen to the speakers and musicians present their pieces.

The theme for this year’s event was Fairness, Unity, Equality: “Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” The quote is from a 1964 address by Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary school students who entered the 2019 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day essay contest and the art contest based their works on this theme. Students at Crichton Elementary School, Greenbrier Episcopal School, Rainelle Elementary School, Lewisburg Elementary School, and Mountain View Elementary and Middle School participated. The winning essays and works of art were featured in the program.