TAMPA, Fla. — The Martin Luther King Jr. holiday is quickly approaching, which means the annual day parade is back!
The annual city of Tampa's MLK Parade will start at noon on Monday, Jan. 16, and begin at Cuscaden Park, located at 2901 North 15th Street. The route ends at East Osborne Avenue and North 22nd Street.
The annual national celebratory weekend, which is observed on the third weekend of January each year, reflects on King's legacy as a civil rights leader. Organizers say this will be the largest Tampa MLK parade they’ve had based on the number of participants registered.
The parade will include floats and marching bands from Bethune-Cookman University, Miles College and Edward Waters University will be in attendance.
"These three dynamic bands will be joined by nearly 150 high school marching bands, floats, motorcycles, horses, dance groups, and cars — the biggest parade to date," the organizers said in a statement.
The parade will be led by Grand Marshal Hillsborough County Commissioner Gwen Myers.
Throughout the early 1960s, King also made trips to Tampa and Orlando. In November 1961, he spoke at the Fort Homer Hesterly Armory on N Howard Avenue to a crowd of more than 4,200 people.
"Martin Luther King. Oh boy, we definitely wouldn't have missed that,” said 94-year-old Doris Ross Reddick. She was in attendance on the day of the speech.
A program, a few photos, a short article and fading memories are all that remain.
However, his legacy is celebrated through community gatherings and activities that take place every MLK weekend.
Click here to check out the full list of events set to happen around the Tampa Bay area.
10 Tampa's Emerald Morrow contributed to this story.