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The Morristown Task Force on Diversity celebrated the diversity in the area in 2022, and now it looks to continue its mission in the New Year.

Founded in 2008, the task force is made up of volunteers who seek to build unity within the community through activities that celebrate diversity.

“Our main goal is to bring unity to our community,” said Dr. Alpha Alexander, chairperson for the organization. “When you look at Hamblen County, the people of this county is really changing in terms of population. We have a lot of new people moving here and the new jobs are drawing people here which is changing the diversity in the county.

“We have a large Hispanic population here and within the community we have a lot of diversity with people coming from different areas of South America.”

“So it is our goal to host events and activities that celebrate all the diversity and different groups of people throughout this area.”

As COVID numbers continued to fluctuate, the task force had to keep that in mind as they planned for 2022, but that didn’t stop them from having a great year.

“Due to COVID and not knowing what to do, we were very cautious about the events we hosted and partnered with,” said Alexander. “With several COVID restrictions and being limited with what we were able to do, I believe we had a very successful year.”

Alexander recapped the events the task force hosted this past year.

“We kicked off the year with our MLK Breakfast,” she said. “We were hit with a snowstorm and ice storm but we still had the breakfast and by the end of it we had at least 100 people show up.”

The 2021 breakfast had Sharon Bowers, Associate Chaplain for Emory & Henry University, as the keynote speaker and the winners of the essay contest present their articles to the audience.

In June, members of the community joined the task force at the Downtown Morristown’s Farmer’s Market to celebrate the emancipation of enslaved people in the U.S.

“The Juneteenth event was met with great success,” she said. “We held it on June 18 in Downtown Morristown.”

There were several vendors, music, games, live performances and guest speakers to educate the community.

In August the task force celebrated the day the slaves were freed in Tennessee with its Jubilee Day.

“We celebrated the day the slaves were freed in Tennessee,” she said. “We had a very fun picnic at Fred Miller to celebrate with games and food.”

In collaboration efforts, the task force hosted an old school dance party in partnership with the Morristown Parks and Recreation’s Fall Festival.

“We threw an old school party for the 2022 Morristown Parks and Recreation Fall Fest. We provided a DJ who played all the late great hits.”

The task force prides itself on collaborating with organization within the community to amplify its message.

“We are very proud to collaborate with other organizations within the community such as HOLA Lakeway, The Men of Vision, The Reunion of the Ages and several other organizations within Hamblen County.

“I think it’s very important we are able to work with different groups within the community and to afford the opportunity to educate the diversity that we have in this community.”

This year the task force has a busy schedule planned ahead with the MLK Breakfast kicking off its year once again.

The breakfast is scheduled for January 16 at 9 a.m. at First United Methodist Church. Tickets cost $20 per person or an 8 person table for $200. The last day to purchase tickets is Tuesday January 9.

This year the MLK essay winners will recite their essays to the audience and the task force will announce the MLK Art Contest winners and the MLK Community Award winners.

“We will have plenty of good music, good food and fun. I believe everyone will have a good time and enjoy themselves,” Alexander said. “This year we have Colortech as our major sponsor and we are so thankful to have them part of this event.”

The keynote speaker for this year’s event will be Freedom Rider Joan Browning, who participated in the sit-in movement, picketed segregated stores and facilities, and was on the Albany Freedom Ride on December 10, 1961.

“I think it’s very special we have Joan Browning as our keynote speaker because she is a Freedom Rider and that speaks volumes within itself.”

In collaboration with HOLA Lakeway, the two organizations will invite Browning to a Tertulia which will be an intimate conversation with the freedom rider.

The Tertulia will be held at HOLA’s facility on January 13 and capacity will be based on a first come first serve basis.

“We have a very busy year scheduled and we are so excited to celebrate the diversity in the community once again.”

For more information or to purchase tickets for the MLK Breakfast or the Tertulia, visit the Morristown Task Force on Diversity’s website.