The Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel

Restoring Our Global Treasure

“We have inherited a large house, a great

‘world house’ in which we have to live

together—black and white, Easterner

and Westerner, Gentile and Jew, Catholic

and Protestant, Moslem and Hindu ... All

inhabitants of the globe are now neighbors.”

–Martin Luther King Jr. ’48

After nearly four decades of serving Morehouse College

and the larger community as a sanctuary, performance

venue, museum and the College’s largest classroom,

the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel,

understandably, has begun to show significant signs of

wear and age.

To ensure that the Chapel is prepared for the

demands of the 21st century, in true ecumenical

fashion, Morehouse is extending an invitation to

invest in the Chapel’s restoration to every individual,

corporation and foundation that values the inestimable

contributions of King and those who strive to further

his dream of a “great world house.”

Simply put, the Martin Luther King Jr. International

Chapel belongs to the world. It is our chapel. It is

a cherished, incomparable treasure of the global

community and, as global citizens, we must support

efforts that keep this Chapel and its programs relevant

and thriving for new generations of world leaders.

The College has embarked on a fund-raising initiative to

raise the $8 million needed to complete the restoration

project. One of the first to join our effort is The Robert

W. Woodruff Foundation.

Restoration will include:

• Replacing major building systems

(HVAC, electrical, plumbing, fire

protection and code compliance

improvements, including ADA)

• Replacing the roof

• Replacing auditorium seating

• Installing state-of-the-art audio/

visual equipment and lighting

• Installing new acoustical shell

and stage equipment

• Improving ceiling grid, painting,

flooring and signage

As part of the Chapel’s restoration, Morehouse will

secure LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental

Design) certification. This gold standard of achievement

in green building will ultimately lower the Chapel’s

energy and utility costs, and increase overall operational

efficiency. By adhering to these best-in-class building

strategies and practices, Morehouse is supporting a

growing initiative focused on transforming the way

facilities and communities are designed, constructed,

maintained and operated around the world.

The Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel has

walls that talk.

In the lobby, marble walls are engraved with words from

the world’s best known dreamer: “I still have a dream. It is

a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.”

In the sacred hush of the nave, the walls have countless

tales from ministers of nearly every denomination

under the sun, from educators and entertainers, and

from politicians and poets—all of whom have brought

messages of encouragement, empowerment and

inspired leadership to students who dream of becoming

Morehouse Men.

Along parallel corridors flanking the nave are 190

portraits, each of which paints a thousand words about

the vision, courage and service of the human and civil

rights leaders so vividly captured. Even the Chapel

Library, whose walls are completely covered with rare,

enthralling photos of King and other leaders, virtually

pulsates with life.

With nearly 25,000 visitors a year—from 2,100 students

attending required weekly Crown Forum assemblies, to

dozens of ministers and laity being inducted annually

into a scholarly colloquium, to hundreds of parents

entrusting their beloved sons to the College each fall,

to thousands of visitors snapping photos of the King

statue on the plaza throughout the year—the Martin

Luther King Jr. International Chapel is indeed the

College’s “living room.”

For those who dream of a beloved world community,

non-violent social change, personal transformation,

brotherhood, justice and peace, the King Chapel offers

both a scholastic and spiritual home.

An investment in restoring our global treasure is

an investment in the ideas, vision and courage of

emerging scholars and servant leaders who, in ways

small and grand, will carry on King’s legacy.

Investing in an Incubator of Ideas

President Hugh Gloster ‘31 and Leontyne Price

Bishop Desmond TutuNelson Mandela, Maynard Jackson Jr. ‘56 and Coretta Scott King

The Rev. William Augustus Jones Jr.U.S. President Jimmy Carter The Rev. Samuel DeWitt Proctor

Rosa Parks and Dean Lawrence E. Carter

Stevie Wonder The Rev. Gardner C. Taylor The Rev. Al Sharpton

The Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr.

The Rev. T.J. Jemison and Dean Carter

Eric Holder, The Rev. Joseph Lowery and then-Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin

Spike Lee ‘79, President Walter E. Massey ‘58, Dean Carter, John R. Silber and Otis Moss Jr. ‘56

Wynton Marsalis and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

Former First Lady Barbara Bush Ambassador Andrew Young

Karen Armstrong, Best-selling Author of A History of God

Shaquille O’Neal

Dean Carter and His Holiness Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

As we envision the future of the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel, our challenge is to ensure the viability

and sustainability of our global treasure today.

All contributions to the Chapel Restoration Project are invited and much appreciated.

To learn more or to make a giftGo to http://www.morehouse.edu/chapelrestorationproject

To make a donation by check or money order

(payable to Morehouse College), mail to:

Office of Institutional Advancement

Attn: MLK Jr. Chapel Restoration

Morehouse College

830 Westview Drive, S.W.

Atlanta, Georgia 30314-3773

All contributions are tax-deductible.

Contact The Office of Institutional Advancement

(404) 215-2659

President Benjamin E. Mays

Dr. King in Sale Hall Chapel

Presidents Emeriti Robert M. Franklin ‘75 and Walter E. Massey ‘58, and President John Silvanus Wilson Jr. ‘79

Martin Luther King Jr. ‘48