<em>Photo above: Young people took part the Martin Luther King Jr. parade on Jan. 16 in Beaufort. Photos by Bob Sofaly.</em>

In celebration of the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., there were several events held throughout Northern Beaufort County.

On Jan. 15, there was a Community Sing at Penn Center.

This traditional program promotes and preserves the spirituals that were traditionally intoned in the Sea Islands of South Carolina.

The event was held on the grounds of Penn Center, the place where Dr. King sought refuge and held Southern Leadership Conference Center staff retreats to plan the forward progression of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement.

There was also a parade Jan. 16 in Beaufort to honor Dr. King.

Golf carts, motorcycles and farm tractors were some of the “floats” during the parade and young and old alike marched.

The Rev. Dr. Kenneth C. Doe, pastor of Bethesda Christian Fellowship on St. Helena Island, was the keynote speaker during the celebration of Dr. King’s 88th birthday at the University of South Carolina’s Center for the Performing Arts Center.

[caption id="attachment_30984" align="aligncenter" width="1828"]<a href="http://www.yourislandnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/DSC0038.jpg" rel="attachment wp-att-30984"><img class="size-full wp-image-30984" src="http://www.yourislandnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/DSC0038.jpg" alt="All dressed in spats, overcoat and almost a tophat, this unidentified man rides his bicycle during the Martin Luther King Jr. parade." width="1828" height="2100" /></a> All dressed in spats, overcoat and almost a tophat, this unidentified man rides his bicycle during the Martin Luther King Jr. parade.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_30991" align="aligncenter" width="2100"]<a href="http://www.yourislandnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/RES9982.jpg" rel="attachment wp-att-30991"><img class="size-full wp-image-30991" src="http://www.yourislandnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/RES9982.jpg" alt="Cars and pickup trucks help tell the message of Martin Luther King, Jr., including this truck representing the Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce." width="2100" height="1388" /></a> Cars and pickup trucks help tell the message of Martin Luther King, Jr., including this truck representing the Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_30987" align="aligncenter" width="2100"]<a href="http://www.yourislandnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/RES9930.jpg" rel="attachment wp-att-30987"><img class="size-full wp-image-30987" src="http://www.yourislandnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/RES9930.jpg" alt="Members of the Orange Grove Baptist Church choir sing spirituals during the annual Community Sing on Jan. 15 at Penn Center." width="2100" height="1288" /></a> Members of the Orange Grove Baptist Church choir sing spirituals during the annual Community Sing on Jan. 15 at Penn Center.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_30985" align="aligncenter" width="1688"]<a href="http://www.yourislandnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/RES9921-e1484832689309.jpg" rel="attachment wp-att-30985"><img class="wp-image-30985 size-full" src="http://www.yourislandnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/RES9921-e1484832689309.jpg" alt="" width="1688" height="1952" /></a> Dylan Torres Tejada, a fourth-grader at Robert Smalls International Academy, was one of the students from the school giving the keynote address during the annual Community Sing night on Jan. 15 at Penn Center in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The other speaker was student Matthew Selby.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_30989" align="aligncenter" width="2100"]<a href="http://www.yourislandnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/RES9972.jpg" rel="attachment wp-att-30989"><img class="size-full wp-image-30989" src="http://www.yourislandnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/RES9972.jpg" alt="Students and teachers from St. Helena Elementary School took part in the MLK Day parade." width="2100" height="1370" /></a> Students and teachers from St. Helena Elementary School took part in the MLK Day parade.[/caption]