SAN ANTONIO – (Jan. 19, 2023) – Legionnaires and auxiliary members of Fred Brock American Legion Post No. 828, joined by politicians, clergy, businesses leaders, and community organizations, gathered at Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza to present a wreath during the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Wreath-laying Ceremony, Jan. 15.

The event, hosted by the Martin Luther King Jr. Commission, is held annually to honor the life, accomplishments, and legacy of Dr. King. The 2023 theme was “Together We Can Be THE Dream’.

The keynote speaker was U.S. Army Reserve Col. Judge Calvin L. Williams of Montgomery, Ala. A veteran of Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, Williams was the first African American to hold the elected seat of Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge for Family Court.

Williams has been recognized and featured nationally on television, social media and numerous print media as the judge who ordered the expungement of the conviction of Civil Rights icon, Claudette Colvin.

On. Jan. 14, members of the post attended the 94th Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Remembrance Celebration held at the Gateway Club aboard Joint Base San Antonio – Lackland Air Force Base.

The celebration, hosted by the San Antonio Northwest Civic & Social Club, in collaboration with Roosevelt Tennessee Holy Royal Arch Chapter, provides a venue to help honor and celebrate the life’s work of Dr. King.

The keynote speaker was retired U.S. Navy Captain Frank Jackson, former mayor of Prairie View and current grand junior warden of the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge, Free & Accepted Masons of Texas.

Jackson, the president and fire chief of the Prairie View Volunteer Fire Fighting Association, Inc., is a member of the World Conference of Mayors where he serves as vice president. The author of five books, he was inducted into the Prairie View A&M University’s Sports Hall of Fame in 2010. The theme of his speech was “Lifting the Veil”.

The SANCSC is a non-profit organization that was established in January 1990 by 14 founding members and became nationally chartered in 1991.