Don’t be complacent but take action was the message from Dr. Paul Spradley, keynote speaker of the 26th annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Unity Breakfast on Jan. 19 at La Roche University.
Spradley, the executive director of the university’s Ketteler Center for Peace, Justice and Inclusion, shared King’s message as well as his own life experiences.
King’s work was mostly directed “to those sitting silent from a space of apathy to action,” Spradley said.
“There are a lot of folks who will say, ‘I’m a good person … I want peace,’ but they’re not doing anything about it,” he said.
He referred to The King Center’s six-step approach, based on King’s philosophies, for nonviolence, asking the audience to “be a catalyst for change.”
Spradley has hope for the future with the current generation.
“I’m more optimistic than I’ve ever been in my life,” said Spradley, referencing Generation Z. “I believe they will be more socially conscious than any other generation.”
He also is impressed by the number and diverse group of attendees at the event.
“I’m optimistic because change is going to happen with the people in this room,” he said. “Do the small things. These small things add up.”
Spradley invited Faith Mudd, a senior at La Roche, to read a poem at the conclusion of his talk.
While the event registered 180, nearly 200 people ended up attending the breakfast at the university in McCandless, said Geil Wesley Williams of North Hills Ebony Women Inc. Williams helped coordinate the event with Sarah White, La Roche’s dean of students.
“It’s important to celebrate Dr. King and his commitment to equality and human rights, especially in these times. We try to make it diverse to the community,” said Williams of McCandless, who was taking registrations alongside Janice Peischl of the American Association of University Women.
The event also featured a morning prayer by the Rev. Kelli Brownlee of Story Collective Church in Pittsburgh and a performance by vocalists Chloe and Cheyenne Rudder, twin sisters and students at La Roche.
Students from high schools north of Downtown Pittsburgh were invited to participate in the essay contest, which included all the northern suburbs in Allegheny County and the city schools on the North Side, according to White.
First place went to Abdul Kabir Babakar Khel of Northgate Senior High School, second to Naomi Rapp of Avonworth High School and third to Mollie Matous, also of Northgate.
The students were asked to write a 300-word essay to answer the question: “How have you or could you actively work against violence to positively influence your community?”
Tom Baker, chief executive officer of Variety, the Children’s Charity, kicked off a list of nonprofit representatives present at the breakfast, such as Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh, Glade Run Foundation, Wesley Family Services, North Hills Community Outreach and more.
The day also included service projects, such as creating cards of encouragement and celebration to families and a local nursing home courtesy of the YWCA Greater Pittsburgh, creating a unity banner through handprint art for La Roche University and stuffing teddy bears for the nonprofit Olive Branch to give to children at local hospitals, to name a few.
The event ended with reading of King’s quotes by Sister Carol Stenger of the Sisters of Divine Providence in McCandless, a closing prayer by senior Rabbi Aaron Bisno of Temple Ohav Shalom in McCandless and a song.