Hosting a Moment That Matters: MLK Day in Greer

Some events are about energy. Some are about timing. And some are about responsibility.

Hosting the City of Greer’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Life and Legacy Event for the third year in a row falls squarely in that last category.

This is not a hype-the-crowd kind of room. This is a listen closely room. A room filled with faith leaders, longtime residents, elders who have been showing up to this event longer than most of us have been speaking on stages. As a host, that changes how you move. How you pace. How you speak.

Your job is not to be the loudest voice. Your job is to be the right voice.

This year carried added meaning as Greer celebrates its 150th anniversary. There’s something powerful about opening the year with reflection instead of noise. With reverence instead of rush. MLK Day does that if you let it.

One of my favorite moments was sharing that I now live in Greer. That landed differently than I expected. It turned the role from “invited host” into “neighbor.” From guest to stakeholder. And honestly, that’s when hosting becomes personal. You are not just guiding a program. You are stewarding a moment for people you now run into at the grocery store.

The program itself reminded me why civic events still matter. Multiple faith communities. Multiple generations. Different life experiences, all in one room, choosing to pause together. That does not happen by accident.

The keynote message centered on Dr. King’s question, “Where do we go from here?” As a host, that question stays with you. Because hosting is not just about transitions and timing. It’s about helping people move from reflection to direction. From honoring the past to owning the future.

There was also a powerful recognition moment as the city honored a hometown athlete whose career carried him around the world as an ambassador of the game. Those moments matter. They remind young people in the room that legacy can start local and still reach global.

Walking off that stage, I felt grounded. Not amped. Not rushed. Grounded.

That’s how you know an event did what it was supposed to do.

This is the heart of the work I love most. Hosting moments that are bigger than applause. Events where presence matters more than performance. Where respect for the room comes first.

Dr. King’s legacy deserves that level of care. And so does every community that gathers to honor it.