7th annual tribute to Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. January 20, 2025 in Edmonds

Lift Every Voice Legacy (LEVL) announced today that it will host its 7th Annual Tribute to the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. - Inspiring a Beloved Community in Song, Artistic Expression and Dance for Children and Families on January 20, 2025 from 9:30am to 11:30am, at Edmonds Waterfront Center 220 Railroad Ave Box 717, Edmonds, WA 98020

The evening program will not be held this year.

The free morning event is produced in partnership with the Edmonds Waterfront Center and with major funding from the Hazel Miller Foundation.

“Our theme this year, “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop,” is taken from Rev. Dr. King’s last speech on April 3, 1968, a day before he was assassinated in Memphis on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel.

"He offered words of hope, encouragement, and inspired bravery to striking sanitation workers who were underpaid, overworked, and racially marginalized,” said Donnie Griffin, founder and president of Lift Every Voice Legacy. 

“In building a Beloved Community free of hatred, injustice, and poverty, Rev. Dr. King’s vision lives with us today, as does the work we must do to make the dream a reality today and for generations to come’” Griffin added.

Shorecrest Hip Hop Team performed at the 2024 Lift Every Voice Legacy (LELV) Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Tribute event and will return for the 2025 program at the Edmonds Waterfront Center 

Last January, more than 700 children and families throughout Snohomish and King Counties engaged in activities promoting Beloved Community values taught by Rev. Dr. King. 

“Community is built when we learn and play together. Whether it’s the children's book reading station, family ballet lessons, individual and group performances on the main stage, arts and crafts including pottery making, or creating quick and easy homemade snacks, we have found the formula for creating space that fosters belonging, cultural pluralism and caring communities among our neighbors.

"This is what we do on the day we commemorate Rev. Dr. King’s birthday,” Griffin continued.

The mission of LEVL is to inspire, embrace, and develop models of a Beloved Community that promote grassroots community involvement centered on love and social and economic justice. 

A Beloved Community embodies a dynamically nourishing environment free of hatred, injustice, and poverty and includes all people. 

Our primary strategy for the seventh year is to create common gathering spaces to reach a caring community of culturally diverse people in the South Snohomish-North King Counties who would be encouraged and motivated by the legacy of Dr. King's life.