Local youth spend day learning about MLK, celebrating his life

Instead of being home from school on the holiday hundreds of students packed into the Wicomico County Civic Center for the 31st annual Martin Luther King Jr. youth activity.

The event was put on by the Salisbury High School Alumni Association. The idea behind it to help kids realize that the day symbolizes more than just a day off from school. Students spent time learning more King and celebrating his life.

Students like 16 year old Destiny Simmons even taking time to perform poetry at the event.

"I feel like it's a good cause. I mean me being African-American I feel like I should give back to like the efforts that Martin Luther King, you know, basically died for," Simmons said.

The event was filled with musical presentations, poetry and more. However it was the education they received there that students like 14 year old Taylor Monroe from Salisbury Middle said makes the event so worthwhile.

"In school we don't get to learn a lot about Martin Luther King, so when we come here we get to learn more about his heritage and where he grew up," Monroe said.

The theme of the event was "Keep your dreams alive", Monroe said her dream its to get accepted in the Duke Ellington School of Arts to study vocal music and eventually to make it big enough to give back.

"My goal is that I make it Broadway and all the money that I give back I'm going to start my own charity and I'm going to give back, go to nursing homes, go to shelters and I'm going to give back to my community because I feel like that that's the right thing I should do," Monroe said.

t's dreams like that and pursuing them that those like motivational speaker Will Smith, who spoke at the event,  believe are the best way to carry on Kings legacy.

"I really feel like that's how we can keep our dream alive and not just in keeping MLK's dream or president Obama's dream, but just to keep our dreams alive and make the world a better place," Smith said.

Event coordinator Rosemary Hudson said they plan to continue to hold the event for many years to come.