Wheeling March Amplifies Martin Luther King Jr.’s Message of Hope

photo by: Emma Delk
Residents brave the cold and the snow to honor Martin Luther King Jr.’s memory on Sunday during the MLK Celebration March in Wheeling.
WHEELING — Despite the cold temperatures and snow on the ground, community members gathered at the top of Stone Boulevard to march through the Friendly City in remembrance of Martin Luther King Jr. and his legacy.
The MLK Celebration March kicked off Sunday’s celebrations in King’s memory. City officials, local faith leaders and residents gathered at The Windmill to begin the march that proceeded downtown along Chapline Street and concluded at West Virginia Northern Community College.
Ron Scott Jr., Wheeling MLK Committee co-chair, said the turnout was “pretty good” despite the weather.
“If we had three people at the march today, I was going to applaud them just for coming out,” Scott said. “The fact that the weather is so bad, and we still had a good turnout says a lot about how people respect the ideas of Dr. King.”
Wheeling Councilwoman Connie Cain, who participated in all of Sunday’s MLK festivities, said the turnout for the march demonstrated the dedication residents had to honor King.
She said it was significant that residents of all backgrounds, not just Black community members, gathered to recognize MLK Day.
“It’s very important that we recognize our forefathers who have gone through the struggle to get us where we are today,” Cain said. “Dr. Martin Luther King brought people together and made great strides for us through his voice and his actions, so it’s very important to represent his legacy.”
Wellsburg Mayor Dan Dudley also made the trip to Wheeling to join in the celebrations. Dudley noted he has been attending the Wheeling MLK Day march for “at least” the last 30 years, adding he used to bring his children and their Sunday school classmates to the march.
For Dudley, marching through the streets of Wheeling reminded him of when his older brothers and sisters had to attend school in Wheeling and not their hometown of Wellsburg due to busing.
“My older brothers and sisters had to be bused all the way from Wellsburg to Wheeling to go to school, so they had a lot of friends from Wheeling that are still like family to me today,” Dudley said. “I love Wheeling because I’m comfortable with so many of the people here. A lot of the older buildings that were familiar to me on Chapline Street are no longer there, but I’m glad I can still enjoy the great celebration here.”
After the march, community members gathered at WVNCC for the presentation of the MLK and Rosa Parks Awards. Two of the five recipients, Rosa Parks Award winner Tressie Fitzhugh and MLK Award winner Donald Walters, were honored during the ceremony.
Scott said Fitzhugh and Walters were being recognized as two community members who “paved the way” for people like him who were able to “reap the benefits” of their public service.
“These are two folks who have contributed so much and it’s really amazing for us to get the opportunity at this time in their lives to honor them for everything that they’ve done before,” Scott said. “Most folks think of this award as recognizing what someone has done for the community lately, but we’re honoring these two as an overall recognition of what they’ve done for our community over many years.”
Wanda Morgan, Wheeling MLK Committee co-chair, introduced Fitzhugh and Walters during the ceremony. Both winners received the Octogenarian Certificate of Appreciation from the MLK committee last year. Morgan noted this meant the pair had endured the “evils” of Jim Crow laws, segregation, voting restrictions for black voters and “other oppressive methods put in place to keep African Americans down.”
“Both of these individuals exemplify what being a silent but loud figure means,” Morgan said. “When I say silent but loud, I mean they don’t say much, but when they do, they speak loud. Both have persevered in life and become successful leaders in the community.”
Following the awards presentation, an MLK Dinner was held at 4 p.m. at the Soup Kitchen of Greater Wheeling.
A second ceremony at 6 p.m. during the Interfaith Prayer Service and Awards Presentation at Bethlehem Apostolic Temple honored the other MLK and Rosa Parks Awards recipients.
At the service that concluded Sunday’s events, Bishop James M. Agnew III of the Tree of Life Church of Martins Ferry and the Rev. Kenny Hardway, Senior Minister at the First Christian Church in Wheeling, received MLK Awards and Sister Carmella Campione received the Rosa Parks Award.
Fitzhugh has served the community through her career, faith and community service. She served clients enduring inequalities and disparities at Catholic Charities for 15 years. Fitzhugh has also held several positions as a member of the Macedonia Baptist Church and has been a faithful and active member of both the Deborah Temple 125 of the Elks and the Eastern Stars, organizations based on community service.
Walters, a member of the Elks Panhandle Lodge 74, is the oldest active member of the Black Elks in West Virginia. Despite being in his nineties, Walters still attends meetings and is active in the community, including supporting all the community service events that Panhandle Lodge 74 sponsors.
Agnew has been a faith leader in the upper Ohio Valley since he felt the call to ministry in 1984. He served at Shiloh Temple as a Sunday school teacher, assistant choir director in the brotherhood, president and vice president of the Young People’s Union and a trustee. Agnew currently pastors the Tree of Life Apostolic Church and Family Worship Center, which he and his wife founded. Agnew was the first African American elected to the Martins Ferry school board in 2021 and earned the same distinction when he was elected to the Martins Ferry council.
Hardway has shared his passion for teaching while making the rounds of First Christian congregations in Wheeling. As the Regional Youth Minister, Hardway strengthened his mission of advocacy and serving the disadvantaged. Harway has also been identified as the “heart” of the MLK Celebration Committee through offering advice and welcoming groups to use his church space for meetings and other gatherings.
Campione, a member of the Congregation of St. Joseph for 70 years, has served the community through her faith and her career as a teacher and principal in many schools throughout West Virginia. She is also a longstanding member of the Wheeling MLK Celebration Committee, a member of the executive community for the West Virginia Faith Table and a member of the board of Women In New Directions, a local YWCA program.