HomeMy Public PortalAboutTOL PR 2011-02-12 MLK Memorial dedication
Town of Leesburg
News Release
For Immediate Release
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial
Dedicated in Downtown Leesburg
Annual March Route Permanently Designated
Leesburg, VA (February 12, 2011) – This morning, members of the “I Have a Dream”
Committee, Mayor Kristen Umstattd and members of the Leesburg Town Council dedicated a
memorial to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in downtown Leesburg. The memorial consists of a
series of engraved granite plaques along the route of the annual Martin Luther King Day March,
beginning at the Loudoun County Courthouse and ending at the Douglass Community Center.
Mayor Umstattd praised and thanked the members of the “I Have a Dream” committee, which
was formed in 1992, for their efforts to make this memorial a reality.
“These monuments memorialize the route of the MLK Day March, now and forever,” she
commented. “Down through the years, people will be reminded of Dr. King and his important
work for civil rights as they walk along this route and read Dr. King’s inspiring words.”
Tammy Carter, with the
“I Have a Dream”
committee, presented
plaques to each of the
committee’s founding
members. Following the
ceremony, Ms. Carter
encouraged attendees to
walk the entire march
route, at their
convenience, to see all of
the plaques.
The plaques marking the
beginning and the end of
the MLK Day March
route feature a profile of
Dr. King and information
TOL PR 2011-02-12 MLK Memorial dedication
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about the “I Have a Dream” Committee and the annual MLK Day March. Five smaller plaques,
engraved with quotes from Dr. King’s speeches and writings, are located in the sidewalks along
the south side of East Market Street, at the Loudoun County Government Center, Mom’s Apple
Pie, the Verizon Building, Virginia Commerce Bank and Capital One Bank. The ten bricks
engraved with “MLK Dream” are interspersed along the route between the engraved plaques.
The MLK March route designation project was approved by the Leesburg Town Council on
October 26, 2010. The plaques were designed by Bill Ference, the Town’s Parks and Public
Space Planner, and installed by the Town’s Streets Division crews. Total cost for purchasing the
route designation plaques and bricks was slightly more than $2,000.
The annual march commemorating the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is part of the Loudoun
MLK Celebration and takes place on the third Monday in January each year, the observed
holiday of Dr. King’s birthday.
Contact:
Betsy Fields
Research & Communications Manager
bfields@leesburgva.gov
703-771-2734
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