Youth honors Martin Luther King Jr. with pageant

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) —  One group in southeastern North Carolina continues to work and honor the actions of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and this weekend they held their first ever pageant.

The pageant was held at Williston Middle School Saturday afternoon.

Thirteen contestants competed for the new title as the Martin Luther King Jr. king and queen.  But it was about more than just winning the crown.

“What it means to me is we are passing things along, getting people involved, kids involved in something that they will cherish forever,” co-chair of the MLK Celebration Committee Henry Jacobs said.

The pageant was hosted by the MLK Celebration Committee.

Their purpose is to honor the work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., improve racial relations within communities and educate especially our youth.

“It is important that we have the youth involved because the youth were involved from the very beginning when it came to Martin Luther King getting started with the movements and he had a lot of energy behind him with the MLK celebration through the youth,” Jacobs said.

This pageant was one of the first events working towards commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of Dr. King’s death.

The committee’s goal is to build on this event for upcoming celebrations until April of next year.

But until then, it is all about the fun contestants had competing for the crowns.

“It’s not all about winning, it’s about having fun and just hanging out with your friends during the pageant,” contestant Aamere Montgomery said.

Even though only two could be named king and queen, it was a moment everyone could be proud of.

WWAY’s Amanda Fitzpatrick was also at the event and presented an award.

Click here for more information on events held by the MLK Celebration Committee.