At the Milwaukee Public Museum, we have been honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with an annual Peace Tree ceremony on his observed birthday for many years.  There are really three parts to the ceremony.  We have an essay contest on this topic and select children read their essays
on Dr. King, mostly pertaining to his lasting influence. Sometimes we have local speakers, too. The other two parts are related.  A local school makes tree ornaments with the name of every Milwaukee homocide victim from the previous year.  The families of the victims are invited to
the ceremony and a police (peace) officer reads off the names of the victims.  Its a moving and poignant reminder of the struggle for peace.  Thankfully, the list is getting shorter every year. The tree is up for about three months. The ornaments are presented to the families after
the tree is taken down. (The ceremony is at 2pm today if anyone is close enough to attend.)

Dawn Scher Thomae
Milwaukee Public Museum

Indigo Nights wrote:

> Today, in the US, marks the day set aside to
> commemorate the birthday of Dr. Martin L. King, Jr.
> Though his actual birthdate was January 15, as is our
> custom, the celebration was moved to Monday instead of
> retaining calendar accuracy.
>
> I'm wondering which museums around the world currently
> have exhibits the recognize Dr. King and his work.  It
> might make a good reminder for those on list who have
> the day off and are looking for a memorable way to
> mark the occasion.
>
> On a related note--and I KNOW he's going to kill me,
> LOL--did you know that one of our members actually
> knew Martin and prayed with him as Dr. King struggled
> with his decisions.  This person was a civil rights
> reporter at the time and knew many of the notables in
> King's entourage.  And, for what it's worth, he also
> set up the political debate between President's Ford
> and Carter back when.  Oooh, he's gonna get me!  LOLOL
>
> So, you're wondering who that esteemed person might
> be, right?  It's none other than our own Ross Weeks of
> the Historic Crab Orchard Museum,
> [log in to unmask]
>
> When Ross first told me the story, in his usual and
> customary most humble fashion, it sent chills up and
> down my spine.  Perhaps, if he's reading he might gift
> the list of what Martin went through in coming to the
> decision to peacefully protest.
>
> =====
> Indigo Nights
> [log in to unmask]
>
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The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).