Covington County will be home to two events organized to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

In Andalusia, St. Peter Missionary Baptist Church will hold its tribute on Mon., Jan. 19, at 6 p.m. with the sermon and special music provided by the Rev. Paul Lee. A special tribute and presentations by the youth department will also be made.

Sammy Glover, one of the event organizers, said the day is important to celebrate.

“Our youth need to remember him because the privileges and the advantages they are enjoying today was part of Dr. King’s dream,” Glover said. “They are living to see part of his dream come true with the inauguration of President-Elect Barak Obama on Tuesday.”

In Florala, the Church of God in Christ will host its annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration over a two-day period. The Dr. King service will be held on Sun., Jan. 18, at 6 p.m. at the Church of God in Christ located on Third Street at Seventh Avenue. A march will be held on Monday. Line up will begin at 10:30 a.m. at the church and the march is set to begin at 11 a.m. A discussion on the life and times of Dr. King will be held at the march indoors at the church.

“We invite our city government as well as all Florala citizens to attend,” said Hazel Lee, event organizer. “The civil rights movement headed by Dr. King was aimed at abolishing racial discrimination against black Americans and restoring suffrage in the Southern states. But it was more than this, it was about the fundamental issues of freedom, respect, dignity and economic and social freedom.

“As such, the civil rights movement affected the entire nation,” she said. “It served as America’s mirror, and America did not like the image that it saw and sought to change it.”

Lee said the success of the movement brought the south and the nation in closer alignment with America’s principles of democracy and freedom for all men.

“That is why we celebrate Dr. King for taking on the risky leadership role in the civil rights movement, a role that he paid for with his very life,” she said. “This day should be celebrated by all Americans, not just black Americans. So, we invite you and your friends to join us in the following celebrations.”