Weavers and Dreamers: Leading the Beloved Community

To honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and legacy, the Rowland Hall community will continue its annual series of events and conversations to prompt reflection and foster solidarity towards action. Dr. King’s articulation of the “beloved community” emphasizes the necessity of individuals uniting across differences to build a trusting, loving, and better world for all. This year, our theme is Weavers and Dreamers, an opportunity to imagine alongside storytellers, artists, and musicians a beloved future where everyone can be themselves in multifaceted ways.

During this week, our community will be invited to consider how our dreams of and for the future necessitate listening to each other’s stories, being in relationship with each other, and working towards a shared future. Through poetry, music, discussion, and reflection, community members will confront the historical and contemporary barriers to the inclusion of Black individuals and communities within our collective imagination in order to expand their horizons towards greater inclusion and possible futures for all.

At a time of increasing division, Building a Beloved Future encourages each of us to recognize our role in working towards realizing Dr. King’s vision of becoming the beloved community through love, understanding, and solidarity.

Beloved Events

Weavers and Dreamers: Visionaries of the Beloved Community

Thursday, January 11, 6:30–8 pm
Larimer Center for the Performing Arts

This community-wide event is part of Rowland Hall’s weeklong celebration of the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We will begin by paying tribute to Reverend France A. Davis, a longstanding Board member, civil rights leader, and community trailblazer, for his contributions to Rowland Hall as well as local and national communities. Following this tribute will be a performance by Rowland Hall alum Micah Willis, ‘14 and his band as well as a storytelling program presented by members of the Nubian Storytellers of Utah Leadership (NSOUL): Charlotte Starks, Ashley Finley, and Franque Bains.

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Leading the Beloved Community: A Daylong Program for Students

Friday, January 12

Middle and Upper School students will engage in conversations about building a beloved community throughout the day. They will participate in activities featuring musicians, poetry, and storytelling and reflect on the connection between our imaginations and questions of belonging and inclusion. Students will engage with Micah Willis, a musician and Rowland Hall alum who blends elements of pop, funk, and hip-hop into his high-energy, crowd-pleasing performance, as well storytellers from the Nubian Storytellers of Utah Leadership (NSOUL), an organization committed to educating communities about the heritage and history of African and African American culture through storytelling. Students will also reflect on how storytelling is a crucial leadership skill that can help us imagine different and better futures.

Changemaker Day of Community Engagement

Monday, January 15

In the spirit of building the Beloved Community, students and families will have the opportunity to engage the community in service and a call to action. We will be doing tree planting from 9 am until noon at Tracy Aviary's Jordan River Nature Center located at 1125 West and 3300 South. Please RSVP for a shift. Following this community-based service project, we will have an opportunity to join the march sponsored by the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, and the Salt Lake School District from East High School to the University of Utah campus. The event at East High School begins at 2:30 pm with speeches and inspiration, includes the march along 1300 East to President’s Circle, and concludes on the University of Utah campus in front of Kingsbury Hall with refreshments and additional speakers.

Changemaker Chapel for Lower School Students

Tuesday, January 16

Lower School students will learn about and reflect on the idea of a beloved community leading up to this day. During this event, they will learn about Rowland Hall alum Micah Willis’s life and work as a musician and about the power of storytelling. Leading a Beloved Community allows younger students to express what they need to feel belonging and how they might imagine a world where everyone feels included and valued. Students will continue the tradition of creating an artifact and participating in a parade to demonstrate how they can contribute to making a better world possible.

Beloved Community Project

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