King Week 2017

Birth Home of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Gary Tarleton

News Release Date: January 10, 2017

Contact: Rebecca Karcher, [phone]

ATLANTA - Superintendent Judy Forte is pleased to announce the free public events that will take place at the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site (NHS) to celebrate and commemorate the 88th birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., beginning Friday, January 13, 2017 and ending on the National King Holiday, Monday, January 16, 2017.  Superintendent Forte said, “the National Park Service hopes to make this observance of the Martin Luther King Jr., National Holiday one that deeply honors and serves Dr. King’s life and legacy as a “day on” rather than a “day off.”

The schedule of events to include:
 
Friday, January 13, 2017 (10:00 AM – 12:00 PM) An educational program will be held
in the Heritage Sanctuary of Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church in celebration of
Dr. King’s 88th birthday. This very special program involves storytelling by a member
of the King Family. Metro-Atlanta schools are invited to participate. 
 
Also on Friday, the National Park Service will partner with Arndrea King, Yolanda Renee and Martin Luther King, III for the First Annual “Youth Care Drive,” which will occur in Fellowship Hall of Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church.   The donated items will benefit
Atlanta Homeless Women and Children Shelter at Solomon’s Temple and Hope-Hill Elementary School.  
 
Saturday, January 14, 2017 (9:00 AM – 1:00 PM)  A Volunteer Day of Service will begin under the canopy of the National Park Service Visitor Center at 9:00 AM. Approximately two hundred volunteers have already registered to participate in a variety of beautification and preservation projects on the National Historic Site campus.
 
Sunday, January 15, 2017 (4:00 PM - 6:30 PM) An artistic tribute in the form of a concert will take place at The King Center in the Yolanda D. King Theatre for the Performing Arts, located in Freedom Hall. The concert will feature an array of artists, honoring Dr. King's 88th birthday through music, song, dance and spoken word.  
 
Monday, January 16, 2017, National King Holiday (9:30 AM – 4:30 PM) Special programs will be conducted park wide throughout the day.
 
 

• The first floor (only) of the King Birth Home, the historic structure where Martin Luther King, Jr. was born and lived his first twelve years of life, will be open to park visitors for walk through tours from 9:30 AM through 4:30 PM.

 
 

• A “Children’s Corner” tent will be located on Auburn Avenue near the King Birth Home and will feature arts & crafts, a National Park Service photo booth and the Park’s Junior Ranger Program.

 
 

• A Historic Marta Bus will be on display for park visitors to step back in time to the mid’ 1950’s, the era of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, a pivotal moment in the Modern American Civil Rights Movement.

 
 

• Preservation exhibit stations will be displayed on the porches of some historic structures highlighting preservation and restoration efforts within the park.

 
 

• Historic Fire Station No.6, the Heritage Sanctuary of Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church and National Park Service’s Visitor Center will be open from 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM.

 
These events offer opportunities for the park visitor to engage in meaningful and memorable experiences that connect with the significant values inherent in the unique resources of Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site.