Mecklenburg County District Court Judge Rickye McKoy-Mitchell will be the keynote speaker at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast on Monday.
The breakfast, sponsored by the Salisbury-Rowan Human Relations Council, starts at 7 a.m. at the J.F Hurley Family YMCA, 828 W. Jake Alexander Blvd. Tickets are $8.
McKoy-Mitchell earned her law degree at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and practiced criminal and civil law at state and federal court levels prior to becoming a district court judge.
She was employed as an assistant district attorney in Mecklenburg County, a senior trial attorney for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, an attorney adviser at the Office of Hearings and Appeals of the Social Security Administration, and a staff attorney and Reginald Heber Smith Fellow for Legal Services of the Southern Piedmont.
McKoy-Mitchell has been a district court judge in Mecklenburg County since 1998. She has presided in all of the district courts including criminal, civil, domestic violence, child support, domestic and juvenile. She presides primarily in juvenile court, hearing cases involving delinquency and foster care.
She previously served as lead model court judge and lead juvenile judge with the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges as well as the lead domestic violence courts judge and is the judicial liaison for several court-related committees and other community-related committees and organizations.
Following the breakfast, there will be a procession to the Freedman Cemetery at the corner of Liberty and North Church streets. A memorial ceremony will take place there at 10 a.m.
The Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Parade will commence at 11 a.m. It will travel from the Freedman Cemetery to the Salisbury Civic Center at 315 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. S. A celebration will take place at the civic center from noon to 4:30 p.m. It will include live musical performances, food and arts and crafts booths.
Organizers say entry forms for the parade will be accepted through 5 p.m. Friday at the Salisbury-Rowan Human Relations Council, 132 N. Main St. They can be faxed to 704-638-8479.
Entrants can also register the day of the parade from 9 a.m. until 10 a.m. at Soldiers Memorial AME Zion Church, 306 N. Church St.
A meeting for anyone interested in volunteering during the parade will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday in front of the Soldiers Memorial AME Zion fellowship hall.
Breakfast tickets can be purchased from Salisbury-Rowan Human Relations Council members and at these locations:
• Salisbury Rowan Convention & Visitors Bureau
• J.F. Hurley Family YMCA,
• Salisbury city Human Resources Office,
• Rowan County Human Resources Office,
• Bible Book Store.
For more information contact the Human Relations Council at 704-638-5217 or www.srhrc.org
Here’s a lineup of events this weekend celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day:
• Friday
Hefner VA Medical Center, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. program, 1601 Brenner Ave., Salisbury, Building No. 6, Social Room, 1 p.m.
• Sunday
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Humanitarian Awards program, Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, 1920 Shirley Ave., 3 p.m.
• Monday
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast, Salisbury YMCA, 828 W. Jake Alexander Blvd., tickets are $8. Call 704-638-5217 or 704-638-2168.
Procession from YMCA to Freedman’s Cemetery, 9:30 a.m.
Freedman’s Cemetery Ceremony, corner of Liberty and North Church streets., 10 a.m.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. parade, 11 a.m. Parade line up begins at 9 a.m.