Photo By Christine June | Alex shares that he would like to end terrorism during the George C. Marshall European...... read more read more
GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, Germany (Jan. 18, 2017) – U.S. Army Maj. (P) Joseph Gardner’s paternal grandmother shared with him about the time she heard Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. speak at the Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church in Batesville, Miss., March 19, 1968 – days before he was assassinated.
“She often told me about this event and marching with Dr. King as he made his way through Mississippi in route to Memphis, Tennessee,” said Gardner, regional affairs officer with the Plans and Strategy Division at the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies.
Gardner was the guest speaker at the Marshall Center Equal Opportunity and Diversity Observances Committee’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration “Remember! Celebrate! Act! A Day On, Not A Day Off” Jan. 18 in the multi-purpose room of the Garmisch Elementary Middle School.
U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Carrie Fox said that this was the first time since she has been the chairperson for the Equal Opportunity and Diversity Observances Committee that they partnered with the Garmisch Elementary Middle School for an equal opportunity observance. She has been the chairperson for about three years. She is also the equal opportunity leader for the Marshall Center.
She said the idea to partner with school, the only Department of Defense Education Activity school in the Garmisch military community, for the MLK Day Celebration came up at one of the bi-monthly meetings.
“We have wanted to partner with the school for some time now and thought this would be a great opportunity,” she said.
“It was a great opportunity and an outstanding event. It really highlighted the great work of Dr. King,” said GEMS Principal David Groat. “It was an added value learning for our students. They learned about Dr. King and discussed in class, as well as preparing for this event. They were able to make the connections and see how they, as children, can make a positive change and impact in the world.”
Students in Kindergarten to second grade staged a play on fairness and sang “Sing About Martin.” Teachers worked with students in the fourth and fifth grades, teaching them about activism and how kids can make a difference in the world. Then, each of the students wrote an essay on what change they would make in the world. Three of those essays were chosen to be read during the observance.
Andrew and Ethan shared that they would like to save the planet through recycling efforts, while Alex said he would like to end terrorism.
Everyone at the event watched a short video of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech delivered during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in August of 1963.
“Our students were mesmerized by seeing Dr. King and hearing his words (from the video),” Groat said.
“Dr. King’s legacy is more than his most noted ‘I Have a Dream’ speech given in the shadow of the Lincoln Memorial,” Gardner said. “Even though, this particular march on Washington and the adjourning speech led to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and helped pave the way for the Voting Rights Act of 1965, his legacy is much more.
“Furthermore,” Gardner continued, “Dr. King’s legacy is not limited to Washington D.C. or confined in Selma, Alabama, instead it stretches from the Atlantic Ocean in the East to the Pacific Ocean in the West and from the Gulf of Mexico in the South to Great Lakes in the North.
“His legacy is not constrained by the color of his skin, but cemented in the content of his character,” Gardner said. “We honor his legacy, by acknowledging that we are all created equal and by treating one another with respect, dignity and compassion.”
Gardner highlighted the importance of three words as they related to Dr. King: equality; character; and, legacy.
He talked about the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which introduced the idea of equality for all. He talked about how our character is a reflection of who we are. And, he said that our legacy – much like Dr. King’s – lives on in the people we associate with our families, friends and colleagues and sometimes, people we barely know.
“May these three words be our guide post as we interact with others, because it’s the right thing to do,” Gardner said.
Officially, the Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. observance is an American federal holiday marking the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. It is observed on the third Monday of January each year, which is around King's birthday, January 15.
President Ronald Reagan signed the holiday into law in 1983, and it was first observed three years later. At first, some states resisted observing the holiday as such, giving it alternative names or combining it with other holidays. It was officially observed in all 50 states for the first time in 2000.
“The reason we celebrate Dr. King and the significance of the American Civil Rights Movement is that his efforts and this undertaking highlighted that as Americans, we have many common causes that unite us, which outweighs anything that may divide us,” Gardner said. “We must not lose sight of this.”
| Date Taken: | 01.18.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 01.19.2017 08:46 |
| Story ID: | 220640 |
| Location: | GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, BY, DE |
| Web Views: | 32 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Marshall Center, DoDEA School Host MLK Day Celebration, by Christine June, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT