KCK honors MLK legacy with scholarships, call to action

Rev. Claybon Lea Jr. delivered the message at the 2026 KCK MLK Day celebration.

Hundreds gathered at Memorial Hall on Monday to celebrate the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., with a special emphasis on turning remembrance into action through education and community service.

The annual citywide celebration, organized by the Unified Government, the Baptist Ministers Union, and the Wyandotte County District Attorney’s Office, featured the theme “MISSION POSSIBLE: Freedom, Equality, Justice for ALL.” The event highlighted the award of 37 scholarships totaling $18,500 to local high school seniors.

“They’re not our future for tomorrow. They’re our future for today,” said Rev. Ricky Turner, pastor of Oak Ridge Missionary Baptist Church, during the offering appeal. “Because before you have tomorrow, you have to have today. And so today starts today.”

Sermon on justice and action

The keynote message was delivered by Rev. Claybon Lea Jr., pastor of the Macedonia Baptist Church in Fairfield, Calif. Drawing on the biblical text of Micah 6:8, Lea connected the prophet’s ancient call to this year’s theme of “Mission: Possible.”

Lea’s fiery message challenged attendees to remember King not just as a peacemaker, but as a fighter for justice who faced arrest and violence in pursuit of equality. He warned against domesticating King’s legacy by focusing only on the “I Have a Dream” conclusion rather than the radical substance of his message.

Lea contrasted “I Have a Dream” with the “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech that King gave to Memphis’s striking sanitation workers, focusing on wages and job conditions, just before his assassination.

“I hope that we don’t just lift up the man who was a dreamer, but the man who was killed because he was a danger,” Lea said. “I hope that we lift up that Martin King that was more radical than we have allowed him to be… That’s the Martin King that we need to emulate. That’s the Martin King that we need to celebrate.”

The preacher questioned whether the mission of achieving freedom, equality, and justice is truly possible in 2026, citing concerns about reduced government benefits, food deserts, medical disparities, and voter suppression. Yet he emphasized that the mission can be achieved if done through the three requirements of Micah 6:8: “…to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”

Scholarship recipient Calei McConnell, a senior at Piper, posed with her family after the awards ceremony.

Investing in the next generation

District Attorney Mark Dupree, who himself received a scholarship from the program over 25 years ago, emphasized the importance of education in preventing crime and creating opportunity.

“When I got here, it’s not just for me,” said Dupree. “So then I opened the door and I recruited the first ever African American chief deputy of the DA’s office. What you do is not just for you, but it is to open doors for someone else.”

Among the scholarship recipients were Ana Guillen Oliva, a senior at Wyandotte High School planning to study interior design at Park University, and Calei McConnell, a senior at Piper High School who plans to study nursing at a Historically Black College or University. Recipient Michael Knight from Sumner Academy plans to pursue football at a community college, then transfer to a four-year school, becoming an architect or engineer and returning to serve his community.

“If you can’t fly, then run. If you can’t run, then crawl. But by all means, keep moving,” Oliva said, quoting the King passage she chose for her scholarship essay. “I feel like I can relate to it in some sense. Like no matter what happens, I have to just keep on moving, keep on trying, no matter what happens.”

McConnell chose another powerful King quote for her essay: “Darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only love can do that.” She explained that the concept of love as a motivation resonated deeply with her faith. “I believe that if we as a nation were really just connected in unity towards that concept of love, all that we’re dealing with right now, like systemically, all of the problems with ICE, all of those problems with poverty, it wouldn’t be a big problem if we all just were driven with love,” McConnell said.

Through the years at the KCK MLK Day

Erik Murray’s connection to the MLK Day celebration spans nearly four decades. At age five, he stood on the stage at the Reardon Center and recited the entire “I Have a Dream” speech while his father, LaVert Murray Sr., ran the event as a Unified Government employee. Twenty-five years ago, Murray returned to that same stage as a graduating senior from Sumner Academy to receive one of the scholarships the program awards.

Now, as a business owner of Eastside Innovation and Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, Murray serves as a sponsor of the event, helping to make possible the same opportunities he once received.

“A lot of times people only think about that peaceful side of Dr. King, and I think that’s important,” Murray said. “But we have to remember that Dr. King was a fighter. Dr. King, you know, was on the front lines being arrested and being hosed.”

Murray reflected on Lea’s sermon, emphasizing the need for action. “The other takeaway is faith without works is dead,” he said. “We’ve got to do the work of Dr. King.”

Murray put in a holiday weekend of heavy campaigning, criss-crossing the state with pilot Josh Oakman. Despite starting Monday in Wichita at a breakfast celebrating civil rights pioneer Josephine Brown, Murray made of point of being back in KCK for this year’s celebration.

The choir performed several selections that had the audience clapping and singing along.

Legacy of unity

The celebration included performances by the MLK Mass Choir, along with youth dance groups and the Kansas City Kansas Community Orchestra. Sylvia Canady-Smith, a member of the mass choir, said she participates whenever there’s a mass choir in the city.

“I just love to sing,” said Canady-Smith, who highlighted “Total Praise” by the late Richard Smallwood as a standout song from this year’s program. She reflected on the historical significance of music in the civil rights movement, noting that for enslaved ancestors, “that would be their way of communicating with each other.”

Rev. C.L. Bachus, former pastor of Mt. Zion Baptist Church, recounted the event’s history. Forty-eight years ago, the late Rev. Taylor proposed holding the celebration at the Reardon Center, despite fears there wouldn’t be enough attendance.

“Dr. Taylor told us it’s something I want to do and if I have to pay for it myself, we going to have a real celebration,” Bachus recalled. “We didn’t have standing room in the Reardon Center.”

Bachus also shared his personal story of growing up in Sunflower County, Miss. “My mom and daddy lived and died without ever being able to cast a vote,” he said, emphasizing the importance of remembering the sacrifices that made today’s freedoms possible.

UG Mayor/CEO Christal E. Watson delivered the MLK Day proclamation in her characteristically lively style. Rev. Lea joked that the “E” must stand for “Ebullient.”

Call to service

Mayor Christal Watson read a proclamation from the Unified Government declaring Jan. 19 as Martin Luther King Jr. Day in Wyandotte County, calling on residents to transform King’s legacy into lived action.

“By a shared commitment to move forward together, this year’s theme, “Mission Possible: Freedom, Equity, Justice for All” reminds us Dr. King never meant to live only in history books or speeches. It was meant to live in our actions, in our policy, and in how we treat one another,” Watson said. “Today is a call to reflect, a call to serve, and a call to love our neighbors.”

The invocation was delivered by Monsignor Stuart Swetland, president of Donnelly College, who drew connections between King’s dream and the upcoming 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. He invoked President Franklin Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms: freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear.

“We pray that the 250th anniversary of our nation’s founding is not merely a celebration of the past, but a commitment to the future where the self-evident truth that all are created equal is finally realized,” Swetland said.

U.S. Representative Derek Schmidt praised the event for its focus on young people and noted how meaningful it was to hear each scholarship recipient’s chosen King quote.

“It says something about them. You listen to it and you can see what really connected with them,” Schmidt said.

Rev. Tony Carter Jr., general chair of the MLK Committee and former pastor of Salem Baptist Church, closed the celebration with a message about working together.

“We are laborers together with God,” Carter said, quoting 1 Corinthians 3:9 then added, “The work we do is hard, laborious, but it is easier if you’ll work with me and I’ll work with you.”