Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and the Washington D.C. Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation, Inc. are proud to announce that a memorial will be erected in Washington D.C., to commemorate the life and achievements of the Late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

It took nearly two decades of hard work and more than ten years of intense lobbying before Congress approved and President Clinton signed Public Law 104-333 in November 1996, authorizing Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., to raise funds and manage the design and construction of the Memorial. Plans call for ground breaking to take place in the fall of 2006 and the construction of the Memorial to be completed by the fall of 2008.

The movement to erect the memorial on the National Mall was spearheaded by Alpha Phi Alpha, the first Greek letter fraternity established for African-Americans. Founded in 1906 at Cornell University, the Alphas have worked diligentlly to create this memorial to Dr. King, a fraternity brother from the Sigma Chapter at Boston University. Their due diligence has paid off. Dr. King's memorial will be situated on the National Mall on a four-acre site along the Tidal Basin. It will be adjacent to the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial, and on a direct line between the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials. Natural elements - stone, water and trees will be used to underscore the memorial's three underlying themes - justice, democracy and hope.

Meet four of the MLK FOUNDATION 'DREAM BUILDERS' (pictured from left to right): CFO Richard Marshall, Chief Marketing Strategist Ty Christian, Foundation Presient Harry E. Johnson Sr. and Executive Architect Dr. Ed Jackson

The memorial will stand as a tangible symbol of what is still achievable through non-violent action, tolerance and appreciation of diversity; and a reminder for all Americans to fight racism, injustice, and inequality. Located near the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials, the slain American hero will be the first and only African-American individual to be memorialized on the National Mall. Under the leadership of CFO Richard Marshall, Harry E. Johnson, Sr., the foundation's President, and Ty Christian, the Chief Marketing Strategist, the foundation has launched a nationwide fundraising effort, which includes faith-based initiatives, the national distribution of Public Service Announcements on broadcast TV, advertising in major publications and a global wristband campaign. The effort has garnered the support of Hollywood notables like Academy Award winners Halle Berry and Morgan Freeman, Grammy Award winning entertainer Nelly, and Today Show's Al Roker. Millions have been raised from individuals worldwide, as well as corporate giants like General Motors, Toyota, NBA/WNBA, Bank of America, BellSouth Corporation, and Tommy Hilfiger, USA. To date, the Foundation has raised in excess of $45 million. Meet some of these key players and learn more about their roles in creating history. Richard W. Marshall MLK Foundation Chief Financial Officer Marshall, a Jacksonville native and 1968 graduate of FAMU, is a "loaned executive" as part of General Motors North America's corporate philanthropic gift to the Washington, D.C. MLK Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation. Richard's accounting career began as a staff auditor for Arthur Young & Company (NY) in 1969. In addition to his auditing work, he started an accounting program to provide assistance to non-profit organizations in the NYC area. He has since spent 30 years with the financial staff of General Motors North America. In His Own Words: “GM got involved with the Foundation before I even knew about it. [GM is the lead sponsor on the project, with a ten million dollar donation.] Once I found out about it, I mentioned to my bossRod Gillam (GM’s VP of Comm Affairs), and told him my interest...that I'd like to get involved in some way. As it so happened, the Foundation was looking for a CFO, so it was a perfect fit. I have such a great reverance and respect for Dr. King’s work. Being involved with the Foundation was the very least I could do personallly, being that Dr. King's work open doors for me to pursue the career I have. I wear the blue wristband, and I’ve pledged not to take it off until construction on the memorial is complete." Ty Christian Chief Marketing Strategist Orlando resident Ty Christian is a marketing and sales executive with over 25 years of diverse marketing experience in the cable television, telephone and advertising industries. He has worked in several marketing management positions with such industry leaders as GTE, J. Walter Thompson, Times Mirror, Westinghouse, Financial News Network and Cablevision Industries. Recognized as a leading authority on the many issues of diversity marketing, he was recently appointed to the Board of Directors for the Florida Tourism Commission, and is currently working on a book detailing the many merits of diversity marketing entitled, “Get That Cheese, Baby."

How He Got Involved:
"Our firm (YPBR/Christian) volunteered its efforts for some time before being selected as one of three firms to be advertising agency of record for the Foundation. Prior to the close of the year, Harry [Johnson] asked me to come on board as a full-time consultant for 90 days to assist with the development of a Black History Month promotion. After 90 days and a successful marketing effort, I was offered the position of CMS.

Working with the Foundation on such a monumental endeavor has been a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and a marketing person's dream come true. It’s very humbling to work with some of the brightest marketing minds in the world on a project that will leave an undying legacy on the nation.To work with talented, distinguished professionals like Richard, Ed, Harry and others at the Foundation has made this an amazing experience."

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Harry E. Johnson, Sr.
President, MLK Foundation
Harry E. Johnson, Sr., President of the Washington, D.C. Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation, Inc. is as well, the 31st General President for Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., serving as national leader from 2001-2005. A native of St. Louis, Missouri, Mr. Johnson is a practicing attorney in Houston, Texas and serves as an adjunct professor of law at Texas Southern University's Thurgood Marshall School of Law. He is also a Board member of the National Big Brothers and Big Sisters and member of One Hundred Black Men.

About His Role:
"I’ve only been involved with this project for the past five years. The bill was signed into law under Alpha Phi Alpha General President Milton Davis. The current General President, Darryl Matthews, has taken the reigns, sits on the [MLK Foundation] Board of Directors, and is doing an excellent job carrying forth the fraternity’s mission.

I’m pleased to be involved in a historical project of this magnitude, one so important to the history of America and African Americans. However, in the grand scheme of the project, my role is relatively small. My duties are to facilitate the fundraising, and to make sure that the three trains - fundraising, administration and design and construction - run properly."

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Ed Jackson, Jr. ArchD
MLK Foundation Executive Architect
With over 25 years of architectural planning and design, and project management experience in multi-million dollar projects for state and local agencies, Dr. Ed Jackson Jr. serves as the Executive Architect for the Washington, DC, Martin Luther King, Jr., National Memorial Project Foundation, Inc. His initial involvement with the project began as a volunteer in January 1997, where he was asked to serve as Chair of the Design Committee responsible for the development and administration of the largest international design competition in honor of an American citizen. He joined the Foundation in March 2001 as Executive Director.

How the Winning Design Was Selected:
"Qualified candidates from 52 countries and 6 of 8 continents responded to our call for entries. The selection committee for this international competition was comprised of architects, Landscape Architects, etc. from Bejing, India, Paris, Mexico, and the U.S.

In going through the 900 entries, we started to become keenly aware of what we were looking for, and narrowed our list to 21. As Dr. Woo of Bejing said, “What we are looking for is a memorial that will be in harmony with everything in the [National] mall, but distinctively different.” Hands down, ROMA Design Group’s entry was most in harmony.

Working on this project is an enormous privilege. Once can't imagine that you'd grow up and have a part of something of this magnitude that would represent a contribution to America at large."

For more information and to make a donation, visit www.buildthedream.org.
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