The Rev. Jesse Jackson to Speak at MLK Birthday Celebration

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 19, 2009

For more information, contact:
William A. Vance, Jr., Chair, City of Bloomington Dr. Martin Luther King Commission, 332-1513
Craig Brenner, Special Projects Coordinator, Community and Family Resources, City of Bloomington, 349-3471
Danny Lopez, Communications Director, City of Bloomington, 349-CITY, lopezd@bloomington.in.gov




Bloomington, IN - Mayor Mark Kruzan has announced that the Rev. Jesse Jackson will be the keynote speaker at the 2010 City of Bloomington Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Celebration.

All residents are invited to attend the celebration on Monday, Jan. 18, 2010. The event begins at 7 p.m. at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater, 114 E. Kirkwood Ave., and is preceded by a 5 p.m. reception at the First United Methodist Church featuring light refreshments and a display by the winners of the "A Day On! Not A Day Off" web design contest. Both the program and reception are free and open to the public.

"We are excited that the Rev. Jesse Jackson, one of America's foremost political and Civil Rights leaders, will be our keynote speaker," Kruzan said. "We welcome the opportunity not only to hear Rev. Jackson but to share with him some of things that make our community what it is and that help us perpetuate Dr. King's life and legacy."

Although free, this is a ticketed event. Tickets will be available at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater Box Office, 114 E. Kirkwood Avenue, during the week of January 11, 2010. Due to anticipated high attendance, there is a limit of two tickets per person. Ticket holders must be seated prior to 7 p.m. on January 18 or they will forfeit their seats.

Major event underwriters include Ivy Tech Community College-Bloomington and Chancellor John Whikehart, as well as Cook, Inc., Otis Elevator, and Monroe Bank. Speakers will include Kruzan, Whikehart, City of Bloomington King Commission Chair William A. Vance, Jr. and Master of Ceremonies Rev. Patricia Efiom. The Indiana University African American Choral Ensemble, directed by Professor Keith McCutchen, and Margaret Chun, winner of the Talent Hunt Program, will perform during the ceremony, and contest winners and volunteers will be recognized.

Information about the MLK Day Celebration is available online at www.bloomington.in.gov/cfrd, or by calling Craig Brenner, Special Projects Coordinator in the City's Community and Family Resources Department, at 349-3471.

Additional event underwriters and sponsors include Indiana University, United Commerce Bank, Stephens Honda-Hyundai, WFIU, Indiana University Credit Union, Bloomington Hospital, The Villages of Indiana, Inc., Local Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'i's, United Way of Monroe County, Southern Indiana Pediatrics, LLC., and Robert McAuley, City of Bloomington Human Rights Commission, Oliver Wine Company, Inc. and Guy Loftman.

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