Members of the Aquinas College Community will gather on the steps of the Academic Building at noon on Wednesday, January 15 to listen to Dr. Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech. Following the speech, the group will march to Bukowski Chapel for a

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Members of the Aquinas College Community will gather on the steps of the Academic Building at noon on Wednesday, January 15 to listen to Dr. Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech. Following the speech, the group will march to Bukowski Chapel for a service of prayer and reflection. Dr. Ronald Landfair, director of Black Catholic Ministries and director of the Multicultural Initiative Project for the Lansing Diocese, will speak on "Martin Luther King, Jr.: The Preacher." The public is welcome to attend. The program is sponsored by the Aquinas College Multicultural Department.

Dr. Landfair has a background in Urban and Metropolitan Studies and Economics from Michigan State University and a master's degree in Pastoral Studies from Loyola of New Orleans. He is a graduate of the "Teaching for Spiritual Growth Institute," sponsored by Boston College, Harvard University and Weston School of Theology. He has also completed the African American Catholic Ministries Program from The Institute for Black Catholic Studies. He is a nationally known award-winning writer and a contributor to the Catholic News Service, Faith Magazine, American Magazine and U.S. Catholic magazine.

In 2001, The National Black Catholic Congress launched an initiative in partnership with the Diocese of Lansing, Michigan and the American Red Cross. The initiative, "The Blood of Martyrs," was launched in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The initiative was created and implemented by Landfair and the American Red Cross in the Diocese of Lansing to demonstrate an alternative way of celebrating the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday, by not just attending a breakfast or conference, but by donating blood to the American Red Cross, in honor of a man who shed his blood for justice and unity. Landfair is hopeful "The Blood of Martyrs" initiative will spread across the country giving real meaning for the reason we celebrate the life of Dr. King.

Having worked in both the public and private sectors, as well as the local, state and federal levels of government, Landfair has received many awards. He is the recipient of the Outstanding Young Man of America Award, The Order of Saint George Award, the Whitney M. Young Service Award-Boy Scouts of America and the Great Lakes Region Red Cross Holiday Hero Award, among others.