Looking for a great way to start the New Year with your community? The Longwood Center for the Visual Arts and the Robert Russa Moton Museum are partnering to bring an MLK Day celebration of service on Monday, January 20. The event will be held at the Moton Museum from 10:30 am to 12:30 pm No registration is required, and the workshop is free and open to the public. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

During the celebration, guests of all ages will have the opportunity to tour the Robert Russa Moton Museum and take part in a variety of art activities led by the LCVA. “The workshop connects my two favorite places – the LCVA and the Moton Museum,” says Larissa M. Smith, who is sponsoring the workshop along with her husband, John D. Miller. “It provides opportunities for families to engage in creative activities while also celebrating the life and legacies of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and our local civil rights heroes.”

There will also be a civil rights focused reading area provided by the Virginia Children’s Book Festival and the Farmville Lions Club will offer free vision screenings. Leah Brown, Associate Director of Education and Collections at the Robert Russa Moton Museum, expressed her excitement about the event, stating “We are so thrilled to be hosting the 2024 MLK Day workshop with the LCVA at the Moton Museum. It is a great opportunity for engagement and collaboration within Farmville and the wider community.”

“The MLK Day workshop also serves as an opportunity for community members and college students to give back to their community by volunteering to help on the day of the workshop,” explained Emily Grabiec, the Director of Education and Outreach at the LCVA. “This event is a wonderful chance for everyone in the community to come together.” When asked about the impact of volunteering for the workshop, current Longwood student Aaliyah Liles ’25, who has volunteered for the workshop for the past two years, shared that “Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?'” The MLK Day Workshop enables Longwood and Hampden Sydney students to do something for others by providing an opportunity to engage and volunteer with the Farmville community in a fun, creative, and educational way. ”

When and Where:

Monday, January 20, 2024 from 10:30 am-12:30 pm at the Robert Russa Moton Museum, located at 900 Griffin Boulevard.

About the Robert Russa Moton Museum:

The Robert Russa Moton Museum is a National Historic Landmark dedicated to sharing the story of Prince Edward County’s role in the fight for civil rights. Located at the site of the 1951 student strike, the museum promotes civil rights education, engagement, and the continued pursuit of social justice.

About LCVA:

The Longwood Center for the Visual Arts presents a rotating program of inspiring and conversation-starting exhibitions. Admission to LCVA and its programs is—and always has been—free for all. It is located at the intersection of Main and Third Streets (129 North Main Street) in Farmville, Virginia. For additional information on these exhibitions or other programs and events, contact LCVA at lcvainfo@longwood.edu or 434.395.2206.

Images/Credit Lines:
LCVA exhibitions and programs are made possible through the generous support of: the Wells Fargo Foundation, the Walter J. Payne Foundation, Anne Carter & Walter R. Robins, Jr. Foundation, Walmart, Navona & David Hart, Century 21 @ Home, Helton House, Haley Auto Mall, Candice Jamison Dowdy ’69 & Charles H. Dowdy III + Northwestern Mutual, Lisa & Tim Tharpe, Rock Foundation, Community Foundation for a Greater Richmond, Harriet Butterworth Miller ’51, Joni Beachly + Focused Financial, YakAttack, Cifers Enterprises, Peachtree House Foundation, Wilma Register Sharp ’66 & Marc B. Sharp, and Mindy & Nash Osborn + North Street Press Club.