Merced to sponsor numerous events for MLK Jr. Day Jan. 17
The city of Merced said National Park Ranger Shelton Johnson, Dr. Mary Jones and the Rev. Dwight Amey will be the grand marshals of the 15th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Monday, Jan. 17.
The event will begin with a march along Martin Luther King, Jr. Way from the Amtrak Depot to the Merced County Fairgrounds, where a multicultural celebration will be held. A horse-drawn wagon from Coyote Springs Ranch will lead the march, which will include a Mexican show horse, school groups and individuals.
The event is sponsored by the Martin Luther King, Jr. Committee and the city of Merced.
Johnson is a ranger in Yosemite National Park who has been well known for his portrayal of a Buffalo Soldier. Buffalo soldiers were African-American cavalry troops who patrolled the West, and for a time protected the natural wonders of Yosemite.
Johnson worked with filmmaker Ken Burns to make his series on the National Park system, and personally discussed the film with President Barack Obama. He has been on “Oprah” and toured in a one-act play called, “Yosemite through the Eyes of a Buffalo Soldier, 1904.”
The ranger is a strong advocate for connecting blacks and other minorities to nature and the natural wonders of the National Parks, the city said in a news release. Johnson has been a ranger since 1987, spending the last 17 years in Yosemite.
Dr. Mary C. Jones has been an educator for 37 years and is the deputy superintendent of Educational Services for the Ceres Unified School District. She has been a school administrator for the past 17 years. She has served as an assistant principal at the junior high level, principal at the elementary and high school levels.
She began her teaching career in 1973 with the Newark Board of Education in New Jersey where she taught middle school for 10 years. In 1983 Dr. Jones relocated to California where she was hired by the Atwater Elementary School District as a Gifted and Talented Education teacher. She also is serving as the mistress of ceremonies.
Bishop Dwight Walter Amy Sr. has been pastor of New Faith Tabernacle Christian Church of Merced for 35 years. He has conducted revivals and marriage seminars across the country and in Germany, Japan and Turkey.
He is a past member of the Merced City Council, Officer of the Courts, Lions Club, Kiwanis Club, member of the Merced Citizen Advisory Redevelopment Agency, City of Merced Parks and Recreations Commissioner and president of Friends of Merced Parks and Recreatiaon. Amy also is the chairman for the annual Martin Luther King Celebration.
The City Council recently honored him by naming the Dwight Amy Neighborhood Park after him.
The march will begin at 11 a.m. Monday at the Amtrak station, 324 w. 24th St., and end at the Merced County Fairgrounds, 900 Martin Luther King Jr. Way.
Inside the Exhibit Building at the fairgrounds the celebration will continue with a multiethnic unity program featuring entertainment by local school children, youth groups, choirs and speakers. There will be exhibits reinforcing the “Unity” theme of the event, as taught by Dr. King.
There is no admission charge for the celebration.
This story was originally published January 11, 2011 at 10:54 AM with the headline "Merced to sponsor numerous events for MLK Jr. Day Jan. 17."