In Fayetteville, Two events will take place in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday, Jan. 20: The 21st Annual Prayer Breakfast and the 2014 MLK Challenge Day of Service. This year’s prayer breakfast is hosted by The New Life Bible Church and as in years past, is slated at the Crown Exposition Center. The Honorable Judge, Ed Pone (Fayetteville-Cumberland County) is the keynote speaker.

“Every year, the night before the actual prayer breakfast, the churches of the Fayetteville/Cumberland County Ministerial Council get together in a local church and have a worship service to worship the Lord,” said Dr. Allen McLauchlin, pastor of The New Life Bible Church. “Last year, it was held at Northwood Temple. This year, it is at The New Life Bible Church Center.”

McLauchlin said that a good turn out includes anywhere between 800 to 1,000 people.

“The prayer breakfast itself is to highlight Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday,” said McLauchlin. “It is open to the community whether they are people of many different faiths or people of no faith.”

Local and national recording artists, Pastor Rodney Raines and Emmanuel, will provide entertainment at the event.

“We do this in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. because he’s an icon,” said McLauchlin. “He sacrificed his life and he represents a struggle. You normally tend to pick out people who are trailblazers, and he definitely was that. He left a trail for us to follow and blazed a trail for us to get through. He was a visionary who believed that all people are created equal and his message is timeless.”

Immediately following the breakfast, the public is invited to attend a citywide conversation on working together for Fayetteville’s success.

“After the breakfast, we will have a public-policy forum where we will sit down and speak to teenagers with the hope of inspiring them to do something for the public,” said McLauchlin. “One of thfind alternatives to violence. If a person is thinking about their future, wanting to become somebody and leaving their mark on society, when violence comes their way, they’re going to stray away from it, and so we need to give these kids something to look forward to.”

The 2014 MLK Challenge Day of service is a day in which the faculty, staff and students of Fayetteville State University, Methodist University and Fayetteville Technical Community College invite the residents of Fayetteville and Cumberland County to come out and help serve the community in celebration and honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by making this annual day of service “a day on, not a day off.” Initiated by Congress in 1994, it is a nationwide effort to transform the federal holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. into a day of community service and continued elaboration on his teachings that help solve problems. An adult must accompany anyone under the age of 18

.Registration begins at 8 a.m. and the opening ceremony commences at 9:15 a.m. The event takes place at Fayetteville State University’s Lilly Gymnasium. For pre-registration, visit www.2014MLKDay.Eventbrite.com. Everyone is encouraged to bring nonperishable foods for the Second Harvest Food Bank.

The 21st Annual Prayer Breakfast is sponsored by The Fayetteville/Cumberland County Ministerial Council, Inc.. The prayer breakfast will last from 7:30 to 10 a.m. with a donation of $18 or $20 at the door.

For more information, contact Reverend Mary Owens: 910-670-5662, Dr. Maxie Dobson: 910-624-7785, or Dr. Allen McLauchlin: 910-818-1228 or visit the website at www.ministerscouncil.net.

Photo: The community is set to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with a breakfast and day of service.