This year's celebration includes a parade, selfie tour and a night of spoken word.
For William Thomas Jr., it’s all about purpose.
Thomas serves as the president of the Improvement League of Plant City, which will be hosting the 31st annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Festival in Plant City from Friday, Jan. 6, through Saturday, Jan. 21.
This year, the organization is inviting Plant City residents to celebrate history in an interactive way. The MLK Festival will include the Plant City African-American Selfie Tour, which incorporates historical African-American landmarks around town.
“It centers around the Bing House,” Thomas said. “That museum highlights the African-American history of Plant City and it helps bring more attention to what we’re trying to do. We’re doing the sites and the selfie tour to draw more attention to what we’re doing and what our purpose is.”
The selfie tour will kick off Monday, Jan. 2, and includes 25 sites of historical significance. In addition to the Bing Rooming House Museum, other sites of significance include the Glover School, Bealsville Park, Antioch Church and Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church. Thomas hopes that younger people will be encouraged to actively learn about history through the area. Selfies can be posted to Instagram
with the hashtag, #PlantCityMLK.
“A lot of young people are descendants of these business owners and families and they don’t even know it,” Thomas said. “We also want to draw in the inclusion of downtown. It’s about starting that conversation.”
The first three people to submit the most photos from the selfie tour will each receive a Visa gift card, as well as recognition at the festival’s annual MLK Leadership Breakfast on Sunday, Jan. 15. The selfie tour ends Tuesday, Jan. 10.
But the tour isn’t the only addition made to the festival this year. The Improvement League also has teamed up with Norm Blanton and CareFest Plant City, which uses volunteers to help those in need.
“CareFest moved their dates to take place during cooler weather,” Thomas said. “We combined it. It’s a project we can’t get done in a day, so we’ll be having two days of service.”
Volunteers will team up to assist with CareFest Plant City on Monday, Jan. 16, and Saturday, Jan. 21.
The highlight of the festival will be the Saturday Street Fest on Saturday, Jan. 14, which includes the festival’s annual drumline battle and MLK Parade at the MLK Recreation Center and Sports Complex, with the parade kicking off in Historic Downtown Plant City.
The festival will continue Sunday, Jan. 15, with the MLK Leadership Breakfast at Hillsborough Community College. This year’s keynote speaker is Hillsborough Chief of Schools Harrison Peters. Channel 10 News Anchor Tammy Fields will serve as the mistress of ceremony.
While the goal of the festival is to give back while celebrating history, the festival also serves as the primary fundraiser for the Bing Rooming House Museum. This year, festival organizers hope to raise the final $42,000 needed to complete the back portion of the museum.
“That’s one of our main goals,” Thomas said. “It will include a kitchen and an exhibit of family and soul food recipes.”
The purpose of the finished kitchen is to support plans for an upcoming Taste of Laura Street Soul Food Festival, which is slated for March 2017.
“That will include a cook-off contest and include wings, greens, cornbread and mac and cheese,” Thomas said. “Ten participants will compete and the public will judge.”
The Plant City MLK Festival will kick off at 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 6, with the Forever Young Old School Jam at the Historic Glover School, 5110 Horton Road. Tickets are $10 and can be picked up at the Bing Rooming House Musuem, 205 S. Allen St.
Contact Emily Topper at etopper@plantcityobserver.com.
