'From surviving to striving': Portage NAACP honors legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Themes of struggle and survival were discussed at the Portage County NAACP's annual Martin Luther King prayer breakfast Saturday.

The Kent United Church of Christ hosted the breakfast, which had a theme of Moving from Surviving to Striving.

The Rev. Eddie Harris, senior pastor of Upper Room Ministries Church of God in Christ (COGIC) in Ravenna, and Michael Daniels, director of the E. Timothy Moore Student Multicultural Center at Kent State University, were the keynote speakers. Students from Kent State University and Windham High School also made presentations at the event.

Harris said that during a recent conversation with his doctor, he realized he "had forgotten the struggle and the oppression." He remembered that his parents had moved from the Jim Crow segregation of the South in search of a better life in the North. But even in the North, he said, they still faced discrimination.

But he remembers hearing his mother's prayers at night. He encouraged people to continue praying now.

"The struggle is not over, but I hear the words of Martin Luther King," he said. "He would want us to march on. He would not want us to forget the struggle."

Daniels, meanwhile, spoke about survival, which he said he learned about through the show Survivor. Strategies outlined by the show's slogan and basic premise, "Outwit, Outplay and Outlast," he said, are applicable to life.

He said it's important to identify threats, align with the right people, and refuse to quit.

He pointed out that King once dreamed of a better future for the next generation.

"We need to make sure the next generation doesn't have to face the fight what we face now," he said.

Addressing community struggles

Christie Anderson, NAACP treasurer, said Kent Social Services has seen a dramatic increase in demand for its hot meals and food pantry. Supplemental SNAP benefits ended in March, which sparked the increase, along with rising prices at the grocery store. The area also is facing a housing crisis.

The First Christian Church of Kent at 335 W. Main St. will host a "Heart to Heart" Community Conversation at 3 p.m. Jan. 28. The event will have a panel of speakers from the Community Action Council, Portage Metropolitan Housing Authority and Kent Social Services. Topics will include free lunches in the Kent school system, the availability of housing and how much food can be purchased with food stamps.

Food donations will be accepted for Kent Social Services at the event.

Reporter Diane Smith can be reached at 330-298-1139 or [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Portage NAACP MLK breakfast explores themes of struggle, survival