Around the nation and across the globe, people from all communities will pause Monday to remember the birth of a man who took great strides to achieve racial equality and whose message about fighting justice in the face of adversity holds true today. For those looking to pay homage to Martin Luther King Jr. a number of celebrations and events will be taking place across Berrien and Cass counties. Here is a compilation of those events and what attendants can expect if they attend.

DOWAGIAC — Members of Second Baptist Church in Dowagiac will once again invite members of the Dowagiac community to brave the winter weather and march in solidarity, just as people did during the life of famous civil rights activist.

People are invited to gather at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday outside Dowagiac City Hall, at 241 S. Front St., for the church’s annual celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Following a brief prayer by Second Baptist Pastor Maurice Broadway, the crowd will walk from downtown through the city streets to the church, located at 203 N. Paul St.

Once inside, members of the church will present their annual MLK Day program, including a recitation of King’s fabled “I Have a Dream” speech — which the civil rights leader delivered during the 1963 March on Washington — by Second Baptist members Donald Nash, Donald Lucas and Zariah Pulliam. The program will also include a sermon by

Following the program, attendees may gather in the church basement to enjoy a meal of homemade soups and chili.

The theme of this year’s march will be “togetherness,” based off the passage from Romans 8:28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose.”

Nash has organized the annual MLK Day celebration for the last several years. The march from city hall to the church is symbolic of King’s own struggle to get men and woman across all walks of life to unite, he said.

“It’s a [Dowagiac] tradition,” Nash said. “It’s about all of us coming together to celebrate.”

Around 50 people usually participate in the walk, depending on the weather, with another 50 or so joining the rest of the congregation inside the church, Nash said.

The event is free and open to the entire community.

“Come out and walk with us,” Nash said, to encourage people to participate.

For more information, people may contact the church at (269) 782-6197.

NILES — In partnership with the NAACP, the South County Democratic Party will host a Martin Luther King Jr. Day Legacy event to honor the civil rights activist’s work and mark on history.

The event will take place at 4 p.m. Monday, Jan. 15, at the Bell Building, 305 N. Third St. The event is free and open to the public, but donations will be accepted to help to defray the cost.

As attendees enter the Bell Building on Monday, they will hear the words of Martin Luther King Jr. as a recording of his speeches are played in the background. At 5 p.m. dinner will be served and include soup, sandwiches and dessert. Beverages will also be available. Starting at 6 p.m., three speakers will address the crowd including Marletta Seats from the Benton Harbor School Board; Elizabeth McCree an attorney in Benton Harbor and Greg Nassbaum, the director of the Ferry Street Resource Center in Niles. The speeches will center around King’s views of equality across the education, justice and housing. Speakers will discuss Berrien County’s progress and goals for education, justice and housing equality as well.

Betsy VanderBurg, the treasurer for the South County Democratic Party, said she hopes the message inspires those who attend to enact their own positive change.

VanderBurg, of Niles, has spent the past couple of weeks helping to spread the word about the event.

Traditionally, the NAACP hosts the event, but this year they were not able to put on the event themselves, so the South County Democratic Party stepped up to help out.

VanderBurg said she was honored to help carry on a more than 20-year tradition and that she could see the partnership with the NAACP continuing, should they need help with the event in the future. 

“We are glad to help out.” VanderBurg said. 

VanderBurg said partners at the NAACP and the South County Democratic Party wanted to host a local event in the hopes that more people would be able to honor King without having to travel to bigger cities like South Bend or St. Joseph.

“It is important for the people in the community to do that and have some way to honor Martin Luther King and have a celebration,” VanderBurg said.

She encouraged people to attend the event and find inspiration in King’s legacy while remembering his bravery and fight for equality. 

Those who attend the event will also be able to study some artifacts preserved from a civil rights march in Alabama. The artifacts were obtained from members of the South County Democratic Party when some of the members visited Alabama to participate in a march.

VanderBurg encouraged the community to take part in the event.

“I hope that people leave with a sense of history and a sense of hope,” she said.

While they won’t be able to host their own event Monday, the NAACP’s traditional breakfast to honor Martin Luther King Jr. will take place from 7 to 10 a.m. Monday, Feb. 19 at the Mt. Calvary Baptist Church, 601 Ferry St. in Niles.