Our Alliance’s own Kevin Williams and Carol Parker were among the “hometown heroes” presented with honors for their organizing work this past Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

As a way of recognizing the late civil rights leader’s legacy of service, the first-ever MLK Day Montrose celebration bestowed some local residents (chosen by a local committee) an award for making “a profound difference” in Montrose.

Our Board Chair (and one of our Founding Humans!) Kevin Williams was honored for his years of organizing work with Western Colorado Alliance and our parent organization, the Western Organization of Resource Councils (WORC), as well as his service on the Delta-Montrose Electric Association board.

At the event, Kevin said, “I had the honor and privilege of working with you for over 40 years to instigate — to use John Lewis’ words — ‘good trouble.’ While this award recognizes Martin Luther King’s commitment to service, let us remember that he stood and acted against war, poverty, racism and economic injustice, and he believed in the power of organized people to achieve social change through nonviolent, direct action.” Kevin said he accepted the award on behalf of “all the heroes and she-roes in this community.”

Carol Parker, a long-time Alliance member, was honored for her launch of the Valley Food Partnership, which has worked to “keep our agricultural system vital and regenerative and fair to all those who are involved.” She said she was honored to be included in these awards, especially on a day reserved for honoring Martin Luther King, Jr. “Dr. King was an enormous inspiration for us who are trying in our own little ways to make a difference.”

We’re very proud of both Kevin and Carol! As Carol said at the presentation, it’s all about values. “I think that’s a really big part of any community, making sure you uphold those values across anything you do.” Kevin and Carol are definitely the sort of Alliance members who uphold our values, and we’re so proud of this honor for both!

You can read more information about the awards event at the Montrose Daily Press.