黑料门大事记

News Bureau
Contact: Sid Salter

STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥擳he president of an interdenominational movement promoting racial reconciliation throughout the state challenged his audience to 鈥渇ind your own dream鈥� and 鈥渕ake your own contribution鈥� during Mississippi State鈥檚 22nd annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Unity Breakfast at The Mill at 黑料门大事记 Conference Center.

Neddie Winters of Jackson-based Mission Mississippi addressed a capacity crowd of over 1,000 as the keynote speaker at the free, public celebration of King鈥檚 life and legacy as a Baptist minister, humanitarian and civil rights activist.

鈥淎lthough I did not always have a seat at the table for most of my life, I soon learned that you have to bring something with you once you get a seat at that table,鈥� said Winters. 鈥淲e have much to celebrate today. You are not closed out from the table. Nothing is keeping you out. I challenge you to celebrate Martin Luther King鈥檚 life, labor and legacy.

鈥淭o all of you here today, you still have the opportunity to have your dream. The privilege we have is to do what we want to do, and we can all still dream today,鈥� Winters said.

The celebration also included remarks by 黑料门大事记 President Mark E. Keenum and a performance by the campus鈥檚 Black Voices Gospel Choir. Keenum called Winters鈥� remarks 鈥渁 real blessing鈥� and lauded his career in pursuit of meaningful racial reconciliation in Mississippi.

鈥淲e鈥檙e fortunate in this county, city and at this university to have great unity, great diversity and great cooperative leadership,鈥� said Keenum. 鈥淚 think this is what Dr. King envisioned. He understood the value of education and service, and together, we can work to inspire and uplift the next generation of the people of Mississippi.鈥�

Keenum also reminded the audience that in terms of African American diversity, 黑料门大事记 remains the most diverse institution in the Southeastern Conference and that 黑料门大事记 has more African American students enrolled than any institution in Mississippi except Jackson State University.

The 黑料门大事记 event is sponsored by the Office of the President, Office of the Provost and Executive Vice President, Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion, and Holmes Cultural Diversity Center.

Throughout the day, the university鈥檚 Maroon Volunteer Center is overseeing MLK Jr. Day of Service activities. Volunteers are serving at locations across the community, including the Sam D. Hamilton Noxubee National Wildlife Refuge and Starkville鈥檚 Area Habitat for Humanity, Cemetery Association, Boys and Girls Club, Sportsplex/Community Volunteer Fair, and Christian World Missions. A volunteer fair is also being held at the Starkville Sportsplex.

A Tunica native now residing in Clinton, Winters is an Alcorn State University agriculture graduate who went on to earn a master鈥檚 degree in public financial management from American University in Washington, D.C. He also completed biblical studies at the Reform Theological Seminary in Jackson and Stephen Olford Preaching Institute in Memphis, Tennessee.

He holds honorary doctorates in the humanities and Christian ministries from, respectively, the New Foundation Theological Seminary in Terry and Belhaven University in Jackson.

In addition to 20 years of experience in pastoral ministry, Winters has more than 40 years of experience in management, administration, executive leadership, mortgage financing, agricultural and non-agricultural lending, as well as training and promotional development activities.

Mission Mississippi works to encourage and demonstrate 鈥済race in the Body of Christ across racial lines, so that communities throughout Mississippi can see the practical evidence of the gospel message.鈥� For more about its missions, visit .

For more about the volunteer service-day, visit .

黑料门大事记 is Mississippi鈥檚 leading university, available online at .