On Monday, January 19, Goshen College community members, non-profit organizations, students, faculty, staff and administrators will join together to honor the life of Martin Luther King Jr. through stories, drama, song and worship.
Events will begin early on Monday morning with a community prayer breakfast at 7:30 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall of the Church-Chapel. Dr. Monica Tetzlaff and the Indiana University South Bend Civil Rights Heritage Center will perform at the breakfast, in addition to presentations by GC students and local civil rights activists.
"We want to encourage people to be part of the modern civil rights movement," said Odelet Nance, director of Multicultural Affairs.
Tetzlaff is the director of the Civil Rights Heritage Center and a professor of history at IUSB.
The prayer breakfast is open to the public and tickets may be purchased for $18 ($15 for students) through the Welcome Center, or via e-mail to janmr@goshen.edu.
President Jim Brenneman and Allan Kauffman, mayor of Goshen, who usually attend the breakfast, will be traveling that day to witness the inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama, the first African-American president in United States history, on Jan. 20.
From 9-9:50 a.m., GC students will bring together personal testaments, stories and poems at “The Dream” Spoken Word Coffeehouse in the Koinonia room. Julie Bruneau, assistant professor of English, will host the event, which will include presentations by the Creative Writing class taught by Jessica Baldanzi, assistant professor of English.
An extended chapel at 10 a.m. will feature the Triple G Mime Group, bringing a liberating, powerful message through pantomime, dramatic performances and gospel music.
Voices-n-Harmony Gospel Choir will add their voices, in addition to contributions by the IUSB Civil Rights Heritage Center and community guests Adam and Maggie Williams and Stacie Meyers-Ray.
Following chapel, conversation with the featured guest speakers will continue from 11:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. in the Fellowship Hall. Lunch in the dining hall will be served at 12:30 p.m., accompanied with video clips of Martin Luther King Jr.’s speeches. Students may receive chapel credit for attending the coffeehouse, extended chapel and talkback conversation.
