Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - Rochester’s annual celebration of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Holiday this year includes the dedication of a city park in honor of the slain civil rights leader.

The Rochester Park Board recently approved a request to rededicate East Park near the Federal Medical Center made by the Rochester MLK Community Action Group. The ceremony making the change official is scheduled to begin Monday morning at 11:15 following a march from the Mayo Civic Center, where the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Rally begins an hour earlier. Those attending the rally will be invited to join in the march and rededication of the park.

An official commemorative program sponsored by the Rochester branch of the NAACP will then take place in the Mayo Civic Center Theatre at 12:30 PM. The featured speaker is University of Minnesota Attorney and Century High School graduate Angela Porter. That will be followed by a birthday party for Martin Luther King Jr. starting at 2 PM.

The local commemoration of the holiday actually begins at 7:30 Monday morning with the annual “We Have a Dream” breakfast sponsored by the Rochester Area Chamber of Commerce, the local branch of the NAACP and the city. The keynote speaker for the event at the Mayo Civic Center will be Rochester Community and Technical College President Jeffrey Boyd.

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