Marshall Center hosts Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Observance
GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, Germany (Jan. 25, 2018) – The Marshall Center's Bavarian Military Community Diversity Committee hosted a Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day observance at the Garmisch Elementary and Middle School on Artillery Kaserne.
“During his lifetime, Dr. King dreamed of a nation of freedom and justice for all,” said U.S. Army Master Sgt. Corey Dennis, non-commissioned officer in charge of the Visual Information Division, Directorate of Business Operations, who was master of ceremonies of this event. “Today, we honor his dream.”
Officially, the Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. observance is an American federal holiday marking the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. It is observed on the third Monday of January each year, which is around King's birthday, January 15.
U.S. President Ronald Reagan signed the holiday into law in 1983, and it was first observed three years later. It was officially observed in all 50 states for the first time in 2000.
This is the second year that the Marshall Center has hosted the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day observance at GEMS.
“I am so glad that our school is the centerpiece for community events like this one,” said Clyde Hadrava, the new GEMS principal.
Highlight of the event was when the 64 students in grades Kindergarten to fifth grade colored pieces of the puzzle, while students in grades sixth to eighth wrote what service means to them. These pieces with fit together on a canvas shaped in the profile of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This canvas will be displayed at the school.
“Each year the Department of Defense joins the nation in honoring the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by making the holiday a day of community service – ‘A Day on, not a Day off,’” Dennis said. “It encourages people from every walk of life to reflect on the principles of our nation – ‘That all men are created equal – regardless of color or creed’ – and we are all equal members of the human family.
Dr. King was a Baptist minister and a leader of the civil rights movement in the United States from Dec. 1955 until his death on April 4, 1968.
“While others were advocating for freedom by ‘any means necessary.’ Including violence, Dr. King used the power of words and acts of non-violent resistance, such as protests, grassroots organizing and civil disobedience to achieve seemingly-impossible goals,” Dennis said.
Dr. King became a civil rights activist early in his career. He led the 1955 Montgomery bus boycott and helped found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1957, serving as its first president.
With the SCLC, he led an unsuccessful 1962 struggle against segregation in Albany, Georgia, and helped organize the nonviolent 1963 protests in Birmingham, Alabama. He also helped to organize the 1963 March on Washington, where he delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech.
On Oct. 14, 1964, Dr. King received the Nobel Peace Prize – at that time, he was the youngest recipient – for combating racial inequality through nonviolent resistance. In 1965, he helped to organize the Selma to Montgomery marches, and the following year, he and the SCLC took the movement north to Chicago to work on segregated housing.
“Everybody can be great...because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
“During his lifetime, Dr. King dreamed of a nation of freedom and justice for all,” said U.S. Army Master Sgt. Corey Dennis, non-commissioned officer in charge of the Visual Information Division, Directorate of Business Operations, who was master of ceremonies of this event. “Today, we honor his dream.”
Officially, the Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. observance is an American federal holiday marking the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. It is observed on the third Monday of January each year, which is around King's birthday, January 15.
U.S. President Ronald Reagan signed the holiday into law in 1983, and it was first observed three years later. It was officially observed in all 50 states for the first time in 2000.
This is the second year that the Marshall Center has hosted the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day observance at GEMS.
“I am so glad that our school is the centerpiece for community events like this one,” said Clyde Hadrava, the new GEMS principal.
Highlight of the event was when the 64 students in grades Kindergarten to fifth grade colored pieces of the puzzle, while students in grades sixth to eighth wrote what service means to them. These pieces with fit together on a canvas shaped in the profile of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This canvas will be displayed at the school.
“Each year the Department of Defense joins the nation in honoring the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by making the holiday a day of community service – ‘A Day on, not a Day off,’” Dennis said. “It encourages people from every walk of life to reflect on the principles of our nation – ‘That all men are created equal – regardless of color or creed’ – and we are all equal members of the human family.
Dr. King was a Baptist minister and a leader of the civil rights movement in the United States from Dec. 1955 until his death on April 4, 1968.
“While others were advocating for freedom by ‘any means necessary.’ Including violence, Dr. King used the power of words and acts of non-violent resistance, such as protests, grassroots organizing and civil disobedience to achieve seemingly-impossible goals,” Dennis said.
Dr. King became a civil rights activist early in his career. He led the 1955 Montgomery bus boycott and helped found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1957, serving as its first president.
With the SCLC, he led an unsuccessful 1962 struggle against segregation in Albany, Georgia, and helped organize the nonviolent 1963 protests in Birmingham, Alabama. He also helped to organize the 1963 March on Washington, where he delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech.
On Oct. 14, 1964, Dr. King received the Nobel Peace Prize – at that time, he was the youngest recipient – for combating racial inequality through nonviolent resistance. In 1965, he helped to organize the Selma to Montgomery marches, and the following year, he and the SCLC took the movement north to Chicago to work on segregated housing.
“Everybody can be great...because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
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