Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Observance: This is an annual town event which has grown in size so that it is now held at the Town Hall in Arlington on the night of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.
The last several years folks have been encouraged to bring Tapas to share at 6:00 PM. Starting at 7:30 PM there is a program that includes a Free Will Offering, a musical presentation, the recognition of outstanding achievement for one or more local folks, and then a distinguished speaker.
Park Avenue Congregational Church, UCC proudly joins many civic and other religious organizations throughout town in making a yearly small contribution to help defray the cost of this event.
In addition to planning the Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Observance held annually in January, the committee decides how to designate the Free Will Offering collected at the MLK Birthday Observance.
It is usually divided in various ways. Quoting from their Annual Report:
“For over 20 years the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Committee has donated funds earmarked to further the meessage of Dr. King. He believed that educating the next generation was our only hope for equality, justice and peace for and among all people.
To that end, we have funded the purchase of books of all cultures in our school libraries, embraced annual training for teachers in Facing History and Ourselves, and helped fund a multicultural festival at AHS that is now and annual event.”
In 2008 we witnessed the election of the first African American president. It is a time of hope for many, but there is much work to be done, and much learning needed on all sides to help wipe out racism.
Park Avenue Congregational Church made a one time donation to the MLK Committee to help them support Dr. King’s wish of peace and justice for all people.
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