It's been 56 years since Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. inspired the nation toward racial equality. After all that time, his message still rings true as members of the community and the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Committee of Santa Barbara marched down State Street to the Arlington Theatre with songs and words of inspiration.
The group wasn’t just celebrating Dr. King, but also the life of one of their beloved members, Sojourner Kincaid Rolle, who had lived in Santa Barbara since 1985 and passed away on November 13, 2023.
Kincaid-Rolle lived in service of her community, which was evident in her dedication to local organizations like City at Peace, local schools, the MLK Jr. Committee of Santa Barbara, and her love of poetry.
"I stand with those who live and strive towards the dream… conquering hurdles on an arduous course… their eyes ever fixed on promised glory," reads an excerpt from a Sojourner Kincaid Rolle poem.
Her husband, Rod Rolle, says Sojourner was tireless.
"If she wasn’t writing a poem, she was doing something for the community. She even taught poetry in the prisons, at the California Men’s Colony, so the range of her dedication was very broad," he said.
Personal friend and colleague Melinda Palacio Santa Barbara Poet Laureate credits Rolle with bringing her into the community role she now holds.
"She just involves people and now 20 years later, I’m the poet laureate for Santa Barbara," Palacio said.
Palacio is Santa Barbara’s first Chicana poet laureate and says there was always something special about Rolle.
"She just had this glow about her and her love and confidence just flowed onto everything else," Palacio said.
So on this MLK Day, the Dr. Martin Luther King. Jr. Committee said in the words of Dr. King, “The time is always ripe to do what’s right”.
