Photo By Jet Fabara | During the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day remembrance event, guest speaker Staff Sgt....... read more read more
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BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan – In celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Bagram Air Field, with the help of Joint Task Force Odin, hosted a special observance Jan. 18, 2016, at the MWR Coalition Theater to honor the legacy of King.
More than 200 service members, civilian employees and installation leadership attended the remembrance event that featured music from the 10th Mountain Division Band, an invocation, a guest speaker and videos that reflected on the meaning of the holiday and a tribute to King.
“We had a strong leadership presence. It is especially great to have an event that spans the rank of a Private First Class to our own U.S. Forces-Afghanistan Deputy Commanding General-Support, Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Bannister,” said Maj. George Rollinson, USFOR-A Equal Opportunity program manager. “I always want more people to attend every Equal Opportunity observance we hold in Afghanistan. Our national identity as Americans is diverse, so we welcome its unique, yet conjoined celebration.”
During the event, guest speaker Staff Sgt. Robert Dones, 455th Expeditionary Medical Operations Squadron surgical technician, read from King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Dones not only focused on King's civil rights legacy, but on what everyone can do to preserve that legacy well into the future.
“The beauty of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's "I Have a Dream" speech is it still motivates over half a century later. I see similar issues today, but thankfully less severe than our own tumultuous American history,” Rollinson said. “There were messages and themes delivered by Dr. King that I never heard before or knew were his. To rediscover him as a transformational leader in our time and location gives us another perspective to reflect on our current missions.”
The event wrapped up with a video tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
According to Rollinson, there were several other MLK observances across the Combined Joint Operations Area-Afghanistan.
“Even though there are smaller locations, they all do something during this day. The whole message today is "Remember! Celebrate! Act! A Day On...Not a Day Off," added Rollinson. “Even if a lone service member only sees Dr. MLK Jr's image printed in the company area and gets inspired, then I am positive they will be successful that day. We recognize great leaders in several ways aside from big events in the auditorium, like with posters throughout the bases, theaters playing MLK-themed movies, and unit training with quotes to ponder and inspire others.”
| Date Taken: | 01.18.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 01.19.2016 11:04 |
| Story ID: | 186516 |
| Location: | BAGRAM AIR FIELD, AF |
| Web Views: | 129 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Bagram honors, remembers Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., by Jet Fabara, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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