ROANOKE, Va. – 58 years after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., the Roanoke chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference gathered Saturday to remember his legacy — and recommit to the work he left behind.
The SCLC Roanoke Chapter held a memorial service, bringing together community members, faith leaders and students at the Dumas Center before moving outside for a wreath-laying ceremony at the MLK statue on Henry Street.
Bishop Edward Mitchell, president of the SCLC Roanoke Chapter, reflected on what made King’s leadership so enduring.
“He was never afraid, he was never afraid to be in front of a crowd,” Mitchell said.
“His legacy, time can’t wash away that, it’ll always be there, you can pick up a book anywhere and hear somebody talking about Dr. King,” he added.
For Mitchell, the MLK statue on Henry Street is more than a monument — it’s personal. He was part of the years-long effort to bring it to Roanoke.
“Nobody knows what we went through to get this,” he said.
Mitchell recalled the battle to preserve the very ground where the statue now stands.
“In the ’60s they were gonna tear this bridge down, and there were people who worked tirelessly until they okayed and got a vote that we put the bridge here,” he said. “It was a great fight but it was well worth the fight to keep on until we got an okay.”
Organizers said Thursday’s event was not just about remembrance — it was about momentum.
Rabbi Howard Stein, the keynote speaker, called on attendees to take King’s example and apply it to today.
“There are people like Dr. King who are willing to stand up and lead that charge, to risk everything because this is such an important cause,” Stein said.
“We can do something, there’s generational leaders like Dr. King who can inspire us, but we all have something we can do and by doing it together, by each lifting a little bit of the load, we can accomplish great things,” he added.
Emerita Permeller Chubb-Wilson, former president and founder of the SCLC Roanoke Chapter, acknowledged that progress has not always moved in one direction.
“Some of us are still going backwards instead of forward, but I thank God that so many of us are still fighting,” Chubb-Wilson said.
For Mitchell, the fight is ultimately about the next generation.
“That’s why we have to keep fighting, I don’t want them or nobody’s children to have to go through the struggle that we went through just to get here,” he said.
William Fleming High School senior Xen Yjwajed said the day gave her a deeper appreciation for the sacrifices made before her time.
“All the sacrifices made by all the people before us, like I wouldn’t of been able to go to school with everyone that I’m going to school with if it wasn’t for all of that,” Yjwajed said.