BY KARISSA MILLER

Hundreds of people from all backgrounds braved the cold weather Monday morning to celebrate the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. at the Statesville Civic Center.

Families, faith leaders and community groups gathered for the 31st annual Martin Luther King Jr. Community Prayer Breakfast, which was part of a weekend-long celebration.

Rochelle Gray Brown opened the program with a stirring rendition of “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” as many in the audience joined in.

Statesville Mayor Doug Hendrix issued a proclamation for MLK Jr. Day. The proclamation described the efforts of the Statesville MLK Planning Committee to inspire the community by bringing King’s vision of equality, justice and unity a reality.

Musical performances by the MLK Celebration Choir and guest speaker brought King’s message and this year’s them, “I can make a difference,” to life.

Guest speaker Chris “YP” Thomas challenged the crowd to live like Martin Luther King Jr. by embracing and living the civil right’s leader’s call to make a difference.

“We came to be renewed. We came to be challenged. Some of us came to be activated,” Thomas said.

The theme, he continued, is very simple, but very profound: Every person can make a difference.

He asked each person in the crowd to “turn to the person next to them and say, ‘You can make a difference.’ ”

Then say, “Because you are the difference,” he added.

Thomas noted King’s belief that “ordinary people anchored in faith could challenge the course of history.”

“Just because you don’t have a title doesn’t mean that you aren’t called to be great,” he said.

Everyone was gifted with an ability that no one else has, Thomas said, adding that social movements are born when you stay faithful.

Thomas is a nationally recognized motivational speaker, leadership mentor and faith driven communicator from Statesville. He is the son of Bishop Sam Thomas Jr. of Statesville Covenant Church and Karen Thomas.

Micah Boatwright, 14, a South Iredell High School student, performed a solo of “Come by Here My Lord.” 

Boatwright, who sings in the choir at his church Empowerment for Living Ministries, said he was both proud and excited to be a part of the MLK prayer breakfast this year.

“This is our culture. It’s uplifting each other and being able to represent what he wanted,” the teen said.

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