WASHINGTON
D.C. NATIONAL MARTIN LUTHER KING MEMORIAL MONUMENT FOUNDATION
LAUNCHES FAITH-BASED INITIATIVE IN MONTGOMERY
Pastors and City Officials Participate
in Interdenominational Luncheon
WASHINGTON,
DC — Montgomery faith-based organizations join nationwide
grassroots initiative to raise visibility and funds for the Washington,
DC Martin Luther King (MLK), Jr. National Memorial. Alabama
Lieutenant Governor Lucy Baxley, Montgomery City Council Members, and
Montgomery City Commissioners join pastors in an interdenominational
Montgomery luncheon to discuss the importance of building the MLK Memorial
on the National Mall in Washington, DC.
“We are reaching
out to citizens of all faiths in the campaign to build a national memorial
honoring Dr. King,” said Harry E. Johnson, Sr., President of the
Washington, DC Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial Foundation.
“We encourage anyone who has ever benefited from Dr. King’s
ideals of justice, democracy, hope and love, which should be all of
us, to donate by accessing www.buildthedream.org
or by calling
888 4 THE DREAM.”
Montgomery was chosen
as one of the MLK Memorial’s early faith-based partners for a
number of key reasons: this city played a leadership role in the civil
rights movement, Dr. King served as a pastor the Dexter Avenue King
Memorial Baptist Church, and Montgomery served as a launching point
for the historic bus boycott.
The MLK Memorial’s faith-based
campaign includes a series of regional church-based events culminating
in a “day of giving” in each city, when funds will be
raised to help build the memorial. Montgomery’s day of giving
will take place May 1st. The state of Michigan and the city of Dallas
have already begun their faith-based initiatives. The campaign will
continue in Houston, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York and Washington,
DC.
“I am thankful that
religious and community leaders nationwide are teaming together to raise
funds for the MLK National Memorial,” said Reverend Dr. Joe Samuel
Ratliff who will speak at the Montgomery luncheon and who is a member
of the MLK Memorial Foundation board and pastor of the Brentwood Baptist
Church of Houston, Texas. “The MLK Memorial will serve as a place
for future generations to visit and reflect on Dr. King’s visions
of love and peace.”
The MLK Memorial’s
major donors include: General
Motors, Tommy Hilfiger Corporate Foundation, The Ford Motor
Company Fund, Toyota, Procter and Gamble, Fannie Mae Foundation, AFLAC,
The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation, Ann & Joel Horowitz
Family Foundation, Federated Department Stores, Bell South, Bank of
America Charitable Foundation, and Delta Airlines.
The Board includes:
Mrs. Coretta Scott King, Ambassador Andrew Young, Gary Cowger, Suzanne
dePasse, George Foreman, William Gray, III, Willie Gary, Joel Horowitz,
Vernon Jordan, Tommy Hilfiger, J. W. Marriott, Jr., Franklin Raines,
David Stern, Jack Valenti, and Dr. Robert Wright. Morgan Freeman,
Nelly, and Carlos Santana are starring in television and radio public
services announcements (PSAs).
Washington, DC Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation,
Inc.
A memorial honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. will be built on the
National Mall in Washington, D.C. The four-acre memorial
will be situated adjacent to the F.D.R. Memorial and in a direct line
between the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials. Congress passed Joint Resolutions
in 1996 authorizing Alpha Phil Alpha Fraternity, Inc. to establish a
memorial honoring Dr. King to be built in Washington, DC. President
Clinton signed a Joint Congressional Resolution in 1998. The cost of
the Memorial is $100 million. Groundbreaking is scheduled for late 2006
and is contingent upon reaching the goal of $66 million in pledges.
Presently $35.5 million in pledges have been raised.
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