The 32nd Annual Reston Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Celebration weekend, January 14-16, 2017 will once again be presented by Reston Community Center in cooperation with Martin Luther King Jr. Christian Church, the Office of Fairfax County Supervisor Catherine M. Hudgins, Reston Community Orchestra, Al Fatih Academy, Southgate Community Center, Reston Association and Cornerstones, with the support of many other religious and civic organizations, business groups, and schools.
For more information contact Kevin Danaher, Community Events Director, at 703-390-6166 or via email at kevin.danaher@fairfaxcounty.gov.
The highlight of this community-wide celebration will be a keynote address by Eugene Robinson. Audience members will enjoy a family-style community lunch after Robinson’s presentation exploring race relations in the United States; the topic is likely to be deeply resonant coming four days before Inauguration Day.
“Mr. Robinson is one of our foremost African-American intellectuals and a renowned author on the topic of race relations,” said Leila Gordon, RCC Executive Director. “Given his writing throughout the 2016 presidential campaign, I am confident his talk will be thought provoking and very relevant.”
Attendance at the Community Lunch and Keynote Address will be limited to registered participants only. Tickets are $5 for Reston residents and employees, and $10 for all others. This event is sold out, but a small number of tickets may be available at the door. To join the waitlist, patrons must come in person to the CenterStage Box Office at RCC Hunters Woods after 11:00 a.m. on Monday, January 16. For more information on this event – as well as other events for the weekend celebration – please visit: www.restoncommunitycenter.com/attend-shows-events-exhibits/2017-mlk-celebration.
The Reston Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Celebration will include events at RCC Hunters Woods, Lake Anne Plaza, South Lakes High School, Southgate Community Center and Northern Virginia Hebrew Congregation. Here is the Calendar of Events.
Saturday, January 14
Community Service Projects
9:00 a.m.
Southgate Community Center
12125 Pinecrest Road, Reston, VA
All ages – Free – Registration required through the Reston Association
Join friends and neighbors in honoring Dr. King’s legacy by serving your community. As Dr. King said, “Everybody can be great…because anybody can serve.” RCC is partnering with Southgate Community Center, Reston Association, Cornerstones and The Closet on community service projects. Indoor projects include making bag lunches for the Embry Rucker Community Shelter, sorting and organizing items from The Closet and several other projects at Southgate Community Center. There will also be several outdoor projects such as cleaning up the natural areas, pathways and hardscape surrounding the area, weather permitting. Volunteer hours conclude around noon, at which point volunteers will gather to share a lunch that will be provided.
Annual Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
With a Special Opportunity to “Meet the Composer” Olly Wilson
4:00 p.m.
RCC Hunters Woods
Community Room
The public will be invited to join a conversation between African-American composer Mr. Olly Wilson and Maestro Fleary to discuss the challenges of creating music for the contemporary listener. During the concert the orchestra will perform Elegy – a movement from the composer’s full-length work, Sinfonia, which was commissioned by the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and dedicated to the legendary conductor, Seiji Ozawa. In addition, performers will include popular song stylist Beverly Cosham of Reston, the outstanding baritone Bryan Jackson, a combined choir drawn from area churches, and the RCO with toe-tapping selections by Gershwin and Ellington.
The Pursuit of Harmony
8:00 p.m.
$5 Reston/$10 Non-Reston
Tickets sold through the CenterStage Box Office
Reston Community Center Hunters Woods
In partnership with the Northern Virginia Hebrew Congregation and All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS).
Join world-renowned Jewish-American songwriter Michael Hunter Ochs and award-winning Muslim Palestinian peace activist/songwriter Alaa Alshaham for an intimate evening of music and conversation. You will be inspired as these two improbable friends retrace their steps between Israel and Palestine – eventually finding themselves performing together at the United Nations.
Sunday, January 15
Voices of Inspiration
4:00 p.m.
Northern Virginia Hebrew Congregation
1441 Wiehle Avenue, Reston
All ages – Free
Voices of Inspiration is the 26th Anniversary program honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This event is sponsored by the Martin Luther King Jr. Christian Church and includes many Reston faith communities.
Monday, January 16
SOLD OUT!
Eugene Robinson
Keynote Address and Community Lunch
12:00 p.m.
Reston Community Center Hunters Woods: the CenterStage and Community Room
$5 Reston/$10 Non-Reston (Tickets sold through the CenterStage Box Office)
This event is sold out, but a small number of tickets may be available at the door. To join the waitlist, patrons must come in person to the CenterStage Box Office at RCC Hunters Woods after 11:00 a.m. on Monday, January 16.
Widely recognized for his ability to speak truth to power, Robinson is a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer who brings audiences a tested perspective on today’s political news. As one of the most prominent African-American intellectuals on the scene and author of Disintegration: The Splintering of Black America (2010), Robinson also shares his understanding of race relations in the United States and explains why many popular conceptions are now obsolete.
Especially for Youth
11:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Reston Community Center Hunters Woods
6 – 12 Years Old – Free – Registration Required
You may register your school age child (1st – 6th grade) to participate in activities at RCC. Children should be registered in advance. Limited on-site registration will be available on the day of the event; however, all forms must be completed in their entirety. Children will rotate through a series of activities including a performance, an age-appropriate video, and arts and crafts. All activities will be based on the history of Dr. King and the Civil Rights Movement.
Eugene Harold Robinson (born March 12, 1954) is an American newspaper columnist and the former assistant managing editor of The Washington Post. His columns are syndicated by The Washington Post Writers Group, and he is a member of the National Association of Black Journalists.
Robinson was awarded the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary in recognition of his columns that focused on then-Senator Barack Obama in the context of his first presidential campaign.[3]
He is author of these best-selling books:
- Coal to Cream: A Black Man’s Journey Beyond Color to an Affirmation of Race. New York: Free Press. 1999.ISBN 0-684-85722-7.
- Last Dance in Havana: The Final Days of Fidel and the Start of the New Cuban Revolution. New York: Free Press. 2004.ISBN 0-7432-4622-5.
- Disintegration: The Splintering of Black America. New York: Doubleday. 2010.ISBN 0-385-52654-7.
