Chamber Foundation, ASU to host King Day dinner
Special Illustration
From staff reports
ALBANY — The Albany Area Chamber Foundation will host the 2023 MLK Dinner on Monday in partnership with Albany State University and the King Day Celebration Committee. Presented by Colony Bank, the MLK Dinner is a celebration of the ideals of unity inspired by Martin Luther King Jr.
“The Albany Area Chamber and Albany Area Chamber Foundation champion the business case for diversity, equity and inclusion in our community, reiterating the benefits of being intentional in attracting a diverse and dynamic work force where all are welcome and encouraged to contribute,” Albany Area Chamber President/CEO Barbara Rivera Holmes said of the chamber’s 501(c)(3) affiliate, the Albany Area Chamber Foundation.
“This initiative is in line with and inspired by the beliefs of Dr. Martin Luther King, and we are honored to celebrate his legacy through the MLK Dinner.”
The event features honored guest and speaker Venessa Harrison, president of AT&T Southeast Coastal States, recently named as one of GeorgiaTrend magazine’s 100 Most Influential Georgians.
“Albany State University is proud to partner in hosting this event, which commemorates the work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., as we, as an institution and a community, continue striving to manifest Dr. King’s dream of unity,” ASU President Marion Fedrick said. “This event and the opportunity to host it on our campus is particularly special in that it demonstrates Dr. King’s lasting impact on our community, even more than 60 years after his time in Albany.”
The event will take place at ASU’s West Campus Student Center at 2400 Gillionville Road. Dinner and networking begin at 6 p.m., and the program begins at 7 p.m. To register for the event, visit bit.ly/MLKDinner2023.
For some King Day celebrants, the holiday is a time to spruce up, including a neighborhood cleanup that will be held from 9 a.m.-noon on Monday in east Albany.
“Keep Albany-Dougherty Beautiful is partnering with (Albany City Commissioner) Jon Howard to pick up debris around Dougherty Comprehensive High School,” KADB Executive Director Jwana Washington said. “It’s really part of the Martin Luther King holiday. It’s a day on, not a day off.”
Last year Howard’s cleanup effort was centered on the street in Albany named for the slain civil rights leader.
The organization will provide gloves, bags, pick-up sticks and other supplies needed at the high school.
“We’ll be out in support of Commissioner Howard in his efforts,” Washington said. “He is a very faithful supporter of Keep Albany-Dougherty Beautiful. He’s always supported us and our mission.”
Events like the Monday debris removal are just as important to the overall goal of cleaning up the community as large-scale ones, the director said.
“It’s always important to look around your community to see what you can do, because every little bit helps,” she said. “If all of us did this as a whole, it would make a difference.”
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