Mia Washington, 5th grade BEAM student, won 1st place in the Martin Luther King, Jr. Speech Contest in the 5th and 6th grade category. The 29th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Celebration was held on January 20 of this year. The theme of this year’s event was “Fair Play, Good Will and Justice”.  This was the theme that Mia kept in mind as she created an award-winning speech!

Excerpts from Mia’s Award-Winning Speech:
“Even though I am too young to have known Dr. King, I really do know him. I know him because of the legacy he left behind. He was a great man of faith and used his own life’s journey to create a pathway just for me. As I skip along the pathway of life, I am faced with both obstacles and opportunities. Sometimes there are small pebbles on that path and sometimes there are larger rocks. Sometimes the path is clear! Thanks to Dr. King I can overcome any of those obstacles and take advantage of any and every opportunity brought before me on my life’s pathway. On this pathway Dr. King left the right for me to receive a quality, fair education. Today, I can attend any school I so desire. It does not matter what my race, culture, or religious background may be…”

The BEAM staff and administration is proud of Mia and her accomplishment. Way to go, Mia!