Press Release

December 14, 2016 | By Cole Hatcher

The Rev. Dr. Valerie Bridgeman, founder of Woman Preach Inc.

Ohio Wesleyan, Delaware to Observe 2017 Martin Luther King Day

Jan. 15-16 Events to Explore ‘Where Do We Go From Here’; Breakfast Tickets Available Now

DELAWARE, Ohio – Ohio Wesleyan University and the Delaware County Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Committee invite the community to explore “Where Do We Go From Here:  Chaos or Community?” during the 2017 observance of King’s legacy.

The Rev. Gregory Kendrick Jr.

The 2017 two-day observance will begin at 3 p.m. Jan. 15 with the 32nd annual MLK worship service at Methodist Theological School in Ohio, 3081 Columbus Pike, Delaware. The featured speaker will be the Rev. Gregory Kendrick Jr., pastor at United Methodist Church for All People in Columbus.

Delaware’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. observance will continue at 7:45 a.m. Jan. 16 with the 24th annual MLK Breakfast Celebration in the Benes Room of Ohio Wesleyan’s Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, 40 Rowland Ave., Delaware. The formal program will begin at 8:30 a.m.

The featured speaker at the breakfast will be the Rev. Dr. Valerie Bridgeman, founder of Woman Preach Inc. and an associate professor of Homiletics and Hebrew Bible at the Methodist Theological School of Ohio. Bridgeman also is a poet, peace activist, and interdisciplinary scholar in the areas of the Hebrew Bible, worship, preaching, and art. She earned her doctorate at Baylor University and her Master of Divinity degree at Austin Theological Seminary, both in Texas.

Breakfast tickets – available now – are $20 for individuals, with eight-person table sponsorships available for $160. Tickets may be purchased online at www.eventbrite.com or by mail via the Ohio Wesleyan Office of Community Service Learning, Attention: Susanna Long, 40 Rowland Ave., HWCC 308, Delaware, Ohio 43015. Reservations and payment are requested before Jan. 6. (A limited number of tickets may be available at the door.) For more information, contact Long at sslong@owu.edu or (740) 203-6812.


Founded in 1842, Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation’s premier liberal arts universities. Located in Delaware, Ohio, the private university offers nearly 90 undergraduate majors and competes in 23 NCAA Division III varsity sports. Through Ohio Wesleyan’s signature OWU Connection program, students integrate knowledge across disciplines, build a diverse and global perspective, and apply their knowledge in real-world settings. Ohio Wesleyan is featured in the book “Colleges That Change Lives,” listed on the latest President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll with Distinction, and included in the U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review “best colleges” lists. Learn more at www.owu.edu.