The 7th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. celebration themed Unique United Unalaska was held Monday, January 19th at the Department of Parks, Culture, and Recreation's Community Center. The event hosted a plethora of community talents, cultural performances, and speakers.

The speakers were community elder, Harriet Berikoff; Unalaska City School District educator and local historian, Jeff Dickrell; community member, Karen Pilande; and Alaska’s Miss Congeniality of 2014, Doanh Tran. Each spoke to the theme and gave their personal stories.

The performers pulled out all the stops for the 7 year running event. Frank Kelty, sang the Star Spangled Banner a cappella, followed by Tammy Taylor with her rendition of MLK’s favorite gospel song, “Take My Hand, Precious Lord”. There were performances by the Samoan Dance Group, Nawan-alaxsxan Axanan Dancers, Onya Enkhbat, and the Filipino-American “Bayanihan” Association. Many of the groups practiced for weeks to ensure an entertaining routine for the community.

The Unalaska City School District was very involved in the occasion. Students from the Unalaska City School Readers Theater acted out “The Dreamkeepers” by Laura Langston. The UCSD Band, directed by Kerry McNamara, wowed the audience by playing “A Grand Entrance” by local composer Brent Bain. Award winners and honorable mentions from the MLK Poetry/Essay contest read their entries.

The Martin Luther King Jr. event celebrating diversity in Unalaska wouldn’t have been accomplished without the MLK Planning Committee. The PCR would like to thank M. Lynn Crane, Lydia Gordon, John Conwell, and Rhonda Anderson for their efforts in making this event a success.