City’s Annual Dr. King Program to be Held Sunday

NEW BEDFORD – The City’s annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Community Program will be held on Sunday, Jan. 14 from 2-3:30 p.m. at the International Church of the Nazarene located at 278 Pleasant St.

Sponsored by the City of New Bedford’s Department of Community Services and its Human Rights Commission, and the Office of the Mayor, the program will feature musical performances, remarks from Mayor Jon Mitchell, and keynote speaker Rev. Dr. Sandra Gatlin Whitley.

Rev. Dr. Whitley is the senior pastor at Bethel A.M.E. Church in New Bedford. She served 22 years as a commissioned officer in the U.S. Air Force before pursuing ministry. Rev. Dr. Whitley attended Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary and earned a Master of Divinity and a Master of Arts in 2004. She was ordained Itinerant Elder in the African Methodist Episcopal Church in 2007 and served as pastor for 14 years at People’s A.M.E. Church in Chelsea. She currently serves on the Governor’s Advisory Committee on Women Veterans.

“New Bedford is committed to Dr. King’s timeless values of peace, justice, and service,” Mayor Jon Mitchell said. “Our City will come together at this annual remembrance ceremony to celebrate Dr. King and his message.”

Sunday’s program features musical performances from New Bedford native Candida Rose Baptista, Councilor at-Large Shane Burgo, Elliot Talley, Vanessa Marques, the International Church of Nazarene Youth Choir, and more.

All are encouraged to attend. For more information, contact the MLK Planning Committee at MLK@newbedford-ma.gov or at 508-979-1692.