Director of Student Services with the Decatur Public Schools and Associate Pastor of Discipleship at Maranatha Church, Lawrence Trimble will serve as the guest speaker for this year’s Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. luncheon to be held at noon Saturday January 13th at the Decatur Club, located at 158 W. Prairie Ave.
The theme for this year’s event is “50 Years Later – What is Your Dream?” with the lunch and annual freedom march scheduled for what will be the 32nd annual weekend of events in Decatur in honor of the slain civil rights leader. Tickets for the luncheon are $35 and are now available in the Human Resources Office of the City of Decatur, located on the 2nd floor of the Decatur Civic Center. Individuals or organizations can also purchase tables of 10 for $350.
Tickets will be issued on a first come first served basis and will not be sold at the door on the day of the luncheon.
For the past 14 years, Lawrence Trimble has been an active part of his community by helping organize youth/community events, volunteering in youth organizations, facilitating discussions on reducing truancy drop-out rates, organizing community meetings and being a community facilitator of conversation on race and racial taboo (moving beyond biases to mend racial relationships). Additionally, Lawrence serves on community boards and helps organizations reach their goals. Recently, he has been fortunate to facilitate discussions and training sessions on the impact trauma and negative experiences have on children’s ability to learn. As an engaged individual, the main idea he seeks to impart is for individuals and organizations to understand that forward mobility is tangible with the appropriate resources available.
Lawrence has also been part of symposiums on race at the University of Illinois, Springfield, beginning the conversation on how to reconcile racial divides in our nation; as well as a featured speaker for many different organizations.
To his credit, he is the author of three books. His blogs and writings have been featured on different national publications. Lawrence lives by the motto, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” understanding that if we engulf all of our mental capabilities in all we do, the possibilities are endless.
This year’s annual Freedom March is set to begin at noon on Monday, January 15 and will begin at one location – the Decatur Civic Center located at 1 Gary K. Anderson Plaza in Decatur. All marchers will begin at the civic center and will proceed north to the Church of the Living God Temple #1 at 1915 N. Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive.
The annual King weekend events are led by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Steering Committee, a subcommittee of the Decatur Human Relations Commission. Contact the City’s Human Resources Department at 217-424-2805 for more information.
