FARMINGTON — A service to honor the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will be held at noon Monday, Jan. 18, at Henderson Memorial Baptist Church on Academy Street.

It is open to the public.

The Rev. Doug Dunlap’s talk is titled, “Speaking Truth to Power: The Legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.” Dunlap will focus on the importance and urgency of developing constructive conversations about race and racism in every community.

Dunlap has a vision that such conversations will create better understanding, mutual respect and the affirmation of human dignity … values in keeping with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision of “beloved community.”

Dunlap is an ordained minister and a chaplain at Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington. He and his family have lived in Franklin County for over 35 years.

He has served as a professor of rehabilitation at the University of Maine at Farmington and as a licensed psychologist in the community. He has served disadvantaged children and youth in Aroostook County, North Carolina and Arizona, and as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Pacific islands of Micronesia.

Dunlap is one of the founders of the Franklin County Community College Network, an initiative to expand higher education opportunity throughout the county. He has volunteered for Western Maine Community Action, Regional School Unit 9, Androscoggin Home Care and Hospice, and other local outreach programs.

Dunlap is a Maine guide and has published four books about travel through the western mountains of Maine by foot or paddle.

The one-hour service is sponsored by Farmington Area Ecumenical Ministry. A special offering will be received to benefit the Western Maine Homeless Outreach shelter in Farmington. 

It will honor Dr. King and Rita Kimber, former Farmington Area Ecumenical Ministry moderator who passed away recently. She served as a liaison between the ministry and the board of Western Maine Homeless Outreach.

Checks may be made payable to either WMHO or FAEM. All contributions are tax-deductible and will be acknowledged.