WEST MICHIGAN — This year's Martin Luther King Day is a cold and snowy one, but there are several opportunities across West Michigan to celebrate and honor Dr. King.
In Grand Rapids tonight, Grand Valley State University and Grand Rapids Community College are hosting their 40th Annual MLK Celebration at the Wealthy Theater starting at 6:00 PM.
"With us being in such a tumultuous time of being indifferent and everything is being polarized that that speaks to a lot of what Doctor King talked about of like, no matter the color, no matter the shape, no matter man, woman or in between, there's always a shared responsibility for us to not just care, and center around ourselves," said Grand Rapids Community College's Jamilia Hartley. "But what are we doing for others, especially In indifference, especially when we don't have the shared, same beliefs and lifestyle and experiences."
40th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration: A Call to Courageous Community Action
- Monday, Jan 19 2026
- 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
- Wealthy Theater - 1130 Wealthy St SE Grand Rapids, MI 49606
"We have so much work to do in this country, in our state, in our city, and in Dr King, him and others," Bobby J. Springer with GVSU told us at FOX 17. "I mean, they worked in and gave up their lives, you know. So we have some of the opportunities that we have today, and in order to keep his dream and other people's dreams alive, we need to continue to work at making life better for everyone, and unless we come together and brainstorm and talk through these situations, will just not make the progress that we need to make."
We have a link to the full week of MLK celebrations being presented by GVSU here.
Here are other events are celebrating MLK Day across West Michigan. We recommend double checking any events are still on before attending due to the weather.
Ottawa County
- Hand 2 Hand Community Packing Event
- 12:00 PM, 2:00 PM, 4:30 PM
- 306 Chicago Dr, Jenison
Muskegon County
- Muskegon Art Museum
- Free Admission
- 11:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Kent County
- Grand Rapids Public Library
- Lecture by Dr. Randal Maurice Jelks "Integrating into a Burning House: Martin's Great Fear and the Challenge Before Us"
- 6:30 PM
- 111 Library St. NE, Grand Rapids
- MLK Day Party
- Sugah Please
- Breakfast Brunch Bar with live DJ, food, and drink
- 11:00 AM - 4:00 PM
- 1 Carlton Ave. SE, Grand Rapids
- Calvin University
- Naomi Tutu - Our Shared Humanity: Creating Understanding Through the Principles of MLK
- 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
- 1795 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids
- Rockford Community Cabin
- The Courage of Dr. King
- 6:30 PM
- 220 Monroe St. Rockford
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