Days after what would’ve been Martin Luther King Jr.’s 93rd birthday, members of the University of Central Missouri and Warrensburg community came together to celebrate and honor his mission during the 2022 Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Scholarship Fundraiser. The night consisted of a poetry reading, live painting, a couple of dances, and vocal and instrumental performances.  

  The emcee of this year’s ceremony, Lover Chancler, the director of the Center for Multiculturalism and Inclusivity, initiated the event by having the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps Color Guard present their flags and rifles. After doing so, the night went on to showcase individuals who displayed their creative expressions. The Freedom Scholarship fundraiser helps supplement scholarships to historically underrepresented students, to help them enhance their opportunities to achieve their higher educational goals, which is made possible through the UCM Alumni Foundation. Freedom Scholarships was established in 1994 by the members of the African Americans Association, one of them being Eugene Stillman. He and colleagues noticed there weren’t any scholarships specifically for African American students and wanted to make a change.

  “We pulled money out of our pockets and threw it on the table,” Stillman said. “We didn’t have enough money to give a scholarship. I think it was three years later, we finally had enough money to give a scholarship. We had that first event, and we had little drinks and cookies, and we decided that we wanted to have an event like that every year for our students.”

  “Living the Dream: Live and in Color” was the title of the event where attendees and honored scholarship recipients shared one another’s company. UCM alumnus Dominique Hampton presented the invocation, where he shared,

  “[King] proclaimed that this nation may one day not be bound by Black and white dreams, but will be a nation that lives out the dream alive and in color,” Hampton said.

  The four honorary recipients who were awarded the scholarships include interior design major, Monzerrad Barajas, elementary education major Nikkita Dismuke, biology major Kaitlyn Dolecheck and  biology major Jack Mwamba.

 The gross money earned from the 2022 fundraiser will go toward future Freedom Scholarships through the UCM Alumni Foundation. According to Chancler, this year’s event earned enough money to where the organization will be able to give away at least four $1,500 scholarships next year to students that live King’s dream.  For the end of the night remarks after the event, Chancler shared that she hopes the event gets bigger and better. 

  “We all know we’re in the middle of COVID and we’re trying to make sure that we keep everyone safe,” Chancler said. “While it was a smaller event this year, as time goes on, I do want to open up, and we can have more people participate. To invite more community members to be a part of the celebration because ultimately, it’s about all of us coming together.”