Sights and sounds from CBC’s inspirational MLK Spirit Award ceremony

Tri-Citians celebrated Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision and mission of racial equality and justice at Columbia Basin College’s annual bell-ringing event Monday.

Nayeli Berenice Aranda Hernandez of Pasco also was honored with this year’s Spirit Award for her persistence through adversity to become a tireless advocate for “marginalized and underrepresented voices.”

Here are some of the inspiring comments from this year’s participants:

Rebekah Woods, CBC president

“Today is a wonderful day for all of our community to come together to be able to celebrate legacy and the lessons of Dr. King that still ring true today and continue to guide us to what our community and world should be.”

Luz Garza, dean for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, CBC

“Right now we all need to be reminded of our humanity, of our community, and our family and that we are all finding our love right now, finding our joy. The community is feeling so heavy with all of the unknown, so the one thing that we can come back to is the thing that we do know about each other is that we are connected, that we are one, that we will aspire to have a better future.”

Lynn Carlson, 2025’s Spirit Award winner

“(Aranda Hernandez) embodies the true essence of humanitarianism, through her unwavering commitment to serving underserved and marginalized communities. Her work is grounded in compassion, equity, and a deep belief in the dignity and potential of every individual. She consistently uses her skills, relationships and personal time to uplift others especially families of students that face systemic barriers due to poverty, immigration status, language access and limited opportunities. Her work is routed in collaboration, empowerment and a belief that communities thrive when everyone especially those that are often overlooked have a voice and a place at the table. She actively builds, strengthens, and sustains harmonious cross-cultural relationships through every sphere of her influence.”

“I think today is important, especially right now in our nation to commemorate the work and the vision, and the legacy of Dr. King. Many of the issues that he advocated for are back, you know, resisting against fascism, authoritarianism, and nationalism today, and all sorts of systems of oppression. It’s important that we remember to come together as a community and remember that this work is not over.

Nayeli Berenice Aranda Hernandez, 2026 Spirit Award winner

“Today matters because we are honoring the life and the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. here in our country during difficult times. Today is when we should stay together and unify and fight with hope and love as he said. He chose to fight with love and not for hate. Something I can tell the younger youth is to persist in the pursuit of their happiness and to remember those that they will bring along with them to ensure that everything that they do, they do it from the heart and that one community is not on the basis of one person, but on the basis of many individuals despite color, race, or religion and to continue to strengthen community because that is what creates change.”

Scott Hunt is a freelance photographer in the Tri-Cities.

This story was originally published January 20, 2026 at 12:38 PM.