Whether it was a plaque, an idea, or a new appreciation for what Dr. King stood for, it's hard to imagine anybody walking out of the annual Martin Luther King Jr.  “I have a dream & I can achieve it” community breakfast without a little more than they walked in with.

On Monday, Jan. 21, members of the community came out to honor the legacy of Dr. King, and to pay tribute to those who embody the lessons he taught in their daily lives.

The keynote speaker was Darcy Fernandes, a former Wareham teacher and current principal of Roosevelt Middle School in New Bedford.

She told a story about an encounter she had as a college student in Chicopee. She and a group of friends went to a restaurant, but she was turned away. The proprietor made it clear that African Americans were not welcome at that establishment.

“I grew up in a community where I didn’t think there was any racism,” said Fernandes.

As she was walking home, shocked and despondent, she heard footsteps behind her and thought the worst. “All of a sudden, I heard my name being called,” said Fernandes.

Out of the 20 some odd girls she’d gone to the restaurant with, two had followed after her. “They risked their lives to ensure I was safe," Fernandes explained.

Fernandes also spoke about the need to love our enemies, no matter how hard it may be. “It has been a struggle for me to reach down inside and love my enemies,” said Fernandes.

Darcy’s mother, Marcine Fernandes, was honored for her volunteer work with the Community Award, presented to her by Pastor David Shaw of the Emmanuel Church of the Nazarene.

Marcine Fernandes used to work as the Foster Care and Homeless liaison for Wareham Public Schools, and has been active in local organizations such as the Turning Point Resource Center, WomenAde, and the Foundation for Wareham Education.

Marcine Fernandes presented nine local students with the MLK Youth Spirit award in recognition of their overall character and demonstration of Dr. King’s values.

The students were also given legislative citations from the Mass. House of representatives.

The students were nominated by the principals of local schools, the Boys & Girls Club, and the Gleason Family YMCA.

The path to graduation is fraught with distractions and side roads to nowhere, and one student who was honored stayed the course, despite foregoing traditional high school for night school.

“Day school just had too much going on,” said 19-year-old Seth Warnica. “I never thought I’d graduate.”

Anxiety about school threatened to derail his life, but going to the Wareham Jr./Sr. Cooperative night school program helped him pull his grades up.

Warnica is entering Bristol Community College for the 2013 spring semester, and hopes to be the first person in his family to attain a college education.

Wareham High School senior Angel Rodriguez shined as the captain of the football team last fall, and now he is trying something new: Cheerleading.

Rodriquez says that it’s been a bit of a challenge going from the captain of an aggressive, male-dominated sport to a team where he’s the only male. It certainly doesn’t help that some people are less than open-minded about it.

“People are going to judge. … I expected it,” said Rodriquez. “It’s actually taught me a lot about how people are,” he said, explaining that while his real friends don’t care what sport he chooses to do, he has gotten flak from some of his classmates.

So why not just hang up his cheer uniform to avoid any backlash?

“I like cheerleading, he said. "It’s fun.”

Rodriquez was also awarded the inaugural Marcine Fernandes scholarship, which is worth $1,000.

Outgoing Boys & Girls Club Director Barbara Sullivan was instrumental in bringing back the annual community celebration after years without it. Sullivan says she'll stay involved in the event, even though she's retiring as of Jan. 31.

"Wareham is all about youth," said Sullivan.

The breakfast ended with George Carter of Onset performing an a cappella version of “This Little Light of Mine.”

After the awards were handed out and the last notes of each song were sung, the crowd trickled into the light outside of the Boys and Girls Club.