Justin L. Bryant, son of Rev. and Mrs. Larry Bryant, Sr., a Junior at Morehouse College will be the keynote speaker at the annual Rev. Dr. M.L. King, Jr. Commemorative Program. Bryant, also president of the NAACP Morehouse College Branch is enrolled in the Morehouse College Honors Program. He is a member of the Golden Key Honor Society and on the Dean’s List. A UPS Community Service Scholar, Bryant earned this honor by volunteering 300 community service hours at a local Atlanta elementary school.

Themed, “Making the Dream Count,” the Fayette County Branch of the NAACP in partnership with the Fayette County Board of Education will present the sixth annual parade and subsequent 10th annual commemorative program in celebration of Dr. King’s Birthday Holiday.

State Senator Valencia Seay, District 34, will serve as the parade’s Grand Marshal. The branch invites the community; churches, fraternities, sororities, civic organizations and businesses to participate in the parade. All groups interested in participating in the parade and/or interested in obtaining more information on this event should call 770-460-9934 or access the website www.fcnaacp.org; registration form will be available on the website.

At a nominal cost, pre-parade breakfast will be served from 9-10 a.m. in the Lafayette Center Cafeteria. The parade will start from Fayette County High School Parking Lot at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 18, and at noon will conclude with a short program at the F. A. Sams Auditorium in Fayetteville.

The Sandy Creek High School Football Team, 2009-2010 GHSA Class AAAA State Champions will participate in the parade and be honored at the program. All third graders in the Fayette County School System are invited to be the NAACP’s special guests and the NAACP will recognize students of color with the highest GPAs from each of their five respective county high schools.

Founded in 1909, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is the nation’s oldest and largest civil rights organization. Its half-million adult and youth members throughout the United States and the world are the premier advocates for civil rights in their communities and monitor equal opportunity in the public and private sectors. The Fayette County Branch was organized and chartered in February, 1997, to implement the NAACP mission by making a positive impact on the quality of life for the citizens of Fayette County.

The branch is an all volunteer civil rights advocacy organization that continuously seeks to improve the Fayette County community. Members work tirelessly to proactively find solutions to social issues that adversely affect the Fayette community while working to improve racial harmony by addressing Civil Rights issues.