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Sponsor
Your sponsorship helps support the celebration and keeps Dr. King's inspiration and message alive today and for future generations of Arlingtonians. Your gift also supports the furtherance of justice and equality in the greater community including yearly scholarships to two Black graduating seniors of Arlington High School.
We are grateful to our generous donors for sustaining our work.
2026 Sponsors
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Social Justice Warriors ($1,000+)
Mark and Melissa Ellis
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Freedom Fighters ($500+)
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First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church
Pearl and Garfield Morrison
Park Avenue Congregational Church
Watertown Savings Bank
Marchers for Justice ($200 - $499)
Arlington Education Association
Arlington Equal Opportunity Advisory Committee Brookline Bank
Calvary United Methodist Church
Knights of Columbus Council #109
Carolyn and George Parsons
St John's Episcopal Church
Attorney Mary Winstanley O'Connor
Shaun Berry
Fiona Perry
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Civil Rights Patriots ($50 - $199)
Arlington Democratic Town Committee
Arlington League of Women Voters
Janice Bakey
BethEl Temple Center
Dr. Kathleen Bodie
Center for Jewish Life Arlington-Belmont
Andree Green Checkley
Covenant Church
John and Mary Deyst
First Baptist Church of Arlington
Sherry Hahn and James Hill
Jillian Harvey
Garfield and Lisa Morrison
St. Agnes and St. Camillus Catholic Churches
Paul Schlichtman
Schools for Children, Inc.
Robert Spiegel
Will and Miriam Stein
Temple Isaiah, Inc.
Temple Shir Tikva
Trinity Baptist Church
Melanie Brown
Joshua Young
Betty Stone
William Wilson
Ellen Lawton
Gwen Chasan
Katherine Tranquada
Phylllis Mahoney​​
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​In-Kind Donations
​We greatly thank the generous local bakeries that enhanced our celebration with donations of delicious cookies and pastries:
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Trader Joe’s ​
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Thanks to the Arlington Human Rights Committee for contributing refreshments
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We are indebted to Swifty Printing for their generous and steady help.
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We extend praise and thanks to Arlington Community Media, Inc. for expanding our reach by live streaming our event and rebroadcasting it on cable TV.
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Tremendous thanks to Lee Phenner for program design
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Great thanks to Jilliann Harvey for designing our flyer
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Thanks to Juliann Flaherty, our Chief of Police, for her presence and support
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Thanks to Patsy Kraemer for her coordination with Town Hall
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Thanks to Leo Muellner, APS Art Department Head, for the beautiful art in the display cases in Town Hall Lobby
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Thanks to Arlington Department of Public Works for help with signage​​
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Thanks to Greg, custodian for Town Hall, for all his effort in making this event sparkle
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You can donate via the link below, or by mailing a check to:
Arlington Martin Luther King Birthday Observance Committee
PO Box 320
Arlington, MA 02476 ​
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Thank you!
Outstanding Achievement Award
This year we recognized Dr. Kathleen Bodie and Robert Spiegel with our 2026 Outstanding Achievement Award.
Dr. Kathleen Bodie served as superintendent of the Arlington Public Schools from 2008 until her retirement in 2021. Among her many achievements on behalf of Arlington's children and families, Dr. Bodie recognized the value of increasing the diversity of APS staff to better reflect the student population and expanding standards of inclusion overall. ​
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Robert Spiegel has been the Director of Human Resources for the Arlington Public Schools since 2011. Prior to that he was a practicing attorney, counseling private and public sector employees in all aspects of labor and employment law. Mr. Spiegel is widely respected for his professional and personal commitment to equal opportunity, his deep respect for diverse cultures, and his belief in recognizing excellence in every individual.
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Nominate
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Please help us to recognize a community member in the coming year whose focus and impact on furthering the goals of equality and justice exemplify the work of Dr. MLK, Jr. Send us the town person's name, along with a statement of why he or she deserves this honor. Such local recognition is a hallmark of our observance.
Your recommendation may be emailed to our secretary, Kate Cubeta:
or mailed to:
MLK Birthday Observance Committee
PO Box 320
Arlington, MA 02476