Journal Gazette from Mattoon, Illinois • Page 6

A6 Tuesday, January 22, 2C38 STATENATION www.jg-tc.com Bush hails Martin Luther King Jr. as a towering figure Martin Luther ling called 'champion of peace7 in holiday service at Ebenezer Baptist Church the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in downtown Washington. The building features a colorful mural that depicts scenes from King's life and celebrates his role in the march toward social justice "Martin Luther King is a towering figure in the history of our country," Bush said. "And it is fitting that we honor his service and his courage and his vision." Bush spoke after participating in a story-time session with a handful of children who grew shy in his presence.

i The president posted a few pictures on a bulletin board as the young students learned how King fought to change unfair laws. When the kids were asked how they could make the world a better place, none of them spoke up. So Bush did for them, "Love your neighbor," he said emphatically. "Volunteer," chimed in the first lady. Bush has marked the King holiday in different ways during his presidency.

Among other events, he has viewed the Emancipation Proclamation at a special showing at the National Archives, placed a wreath at King's grave, spoken at a predominantly black Baptist church and helped spruce up a high school. Associated Press The Rev. Bernlce King, daughter of Martin Luther King left, sings 'We Shall Overcome' with Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie, second from left, her aunt Christine King Farris and her cousin Isaac Newton Farris during a Martin Luther King Jr. birthday service Ebenezer Baptist Church on Monday In Atlanta. WASHINGTON (AP) -President Bush on Monday hailed the Rev.

Martin Luther King Jr. as a towering figure and called on the nation's people to honor the slain civil rights leader by helping those in need. "Our fellow citizens have got to understand that by loving a neighborj like you'd like to be loved yourself, by reaching out to someone who hurts, by just simply living a life of kindness and compassion, you can make America a better place and fulfill the dream of Martin Luther King," Bush said at a library named for the slain civil rights leader. With first lady Laura Bush at his side, Bush spoke briefly on the federal holiday honoring the birthday of King, who would have been 79 on Jan. 15.

An advocate of peaceful resistance and equality for people of all races, King was assassinated in April 1968. Bush said that King's holiday offers a chance to "renew our deep desire for America to be a land of promise for everybody, a land of justice, and a land of opportunity." He said it should be a "day on" of volunteering not a day off and encouraged people to do community service year-round. The setting for Bush was BENNETT TIRE 1123 Maine St. Windsor 459-2104 (800) 252 to ATLANTA (AP) More than 2,000 people crowded Ebenezer Baptist Church on Monday to honor the Rev. Martin Luther King commitment to peace and equality and note the importance of his legacy in this election year.

"He understood that life is not about self. Life is about service and service to others," said Georgia Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle. Former President Bill Clinton, Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee and Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin were among those attending the service.

King's birthday is Jan. 15, but the federal holiday bearing his name is observed on the third Monday in January. It has been a national holiday since 1986, but his birthday has been observed at Ebenezer Baptist where King preached from 1960 until 1968 every year since his assassination in Memphis, at age 39 on April 4, 1968. "Martin aimed high, acted with faith, dreamed miracles that inspired a nation. Can we act on King's legacy without dreaming? I think not," Franklin said.

"King's legacy gives light to our hopes, permission to our aspirations and relevance to our dreams." "He freed us all to fight the civil rights battle, to fight the poverty battle, to fight all these battles and do it together," Clinton said. "He made a place at the table for all of us." Clinton also noted the diverse presidential race that includes a Mormon, a black man and a Baptist preacher as well as his wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton. "Isn't this interesting? I mean, how cool is it? You know, we've got all these different people seeking the presidency," he said. "And guess what? It's all possible because of Martin Luther King's vision of the beloved community." Franklin recently endorsed Democratic hopeful Barack Obama over Hilary Rodham Clinton. "Georgia is on the mind of the next president of the United States," said the mayor.

Would you like comment? 'is 'b cized in the black community for describing aspects of Obama 's candidacy as "a fairy tale." While the largely black crowd erupted in applause at Franklin's comments, Clinton sat with his hands clasped in front of him. The war in Iraq also drew a mention. "We would be remiss if we did not commemorate Martin Luther King a champion of peace in a time of war," said Isaac Newton Farris a nephew of King and president of the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change. Farris urged diplomacy, economic incentives and other nonviolent efforts "as an alternative to military intervention to end the war in Iraq," drawing applause from the crowd of more than 2,000.

King's widow, Coretta Scott King, worked for more than a decade to establish her husband's birthday as a federal holiday. She died in 2006 at age 78. Associated Press writers Daniel Yee and Greg Bluestein contributed to this report. Associated Press Former President Bill Clinton speaks during Martin Luther King Jr. birthday service Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta.

"We are at the cusp of the impossible into Franklin said. "Yes, this Serving your tire needs since 1932 Most all brands available by Special Order Check out our gumhop trade timfor Suns- 8473 SS omen I i i 71 i Some head to polls to cast ballots early, honor King's legacy Heart Smart for ,1 .1 i Heart Smart is not an exercise program or a weight-loss program. Its a FREE 13-week program intended to teach women simple and personalized strategies for increasing daily physical activity and improving eating hahits for a lifetime. Associated Press George W. Pricecenter, and others vote In the 2008 Illinois primary on Martin Luther King Jr.

Day during the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners grace period Monday in Chicago. Price chose to vote on the holiday as a way to celebrate King's memory. is reality, not a fantasy, or a fairy tale" Bill Clinton has been criti- Were unavailable Monday. Voters over 65, like Montgomery, have the highest participation rates so far in early voting in Chicago. In ward-by-ward participation, South Side wards account for eight of the top 10 in the city, according to officials.

But not everyone could cast an early vote on Monday's holiday. The Alexander County Courthouse in the predominantly black, far southern Illinois town of Cairo, for example, wasn't open on the holiday to accept early votes, clerk Nancy Kline said. Still, she says, demand for early votes has been fairly brisk: In just a couple days, the 32 early ballots cast dwarfed the half-dozen or so turned in to her office last year. Another 70 voters had requested absentee ballots, she said. Kline expects the bulk of the action to come on primary voting day.

"Some people just prefer to vote at the polls," she said. Associated Press Writer Jim Suhr contributed to this report from St. Louis. the program beginning offers 4:30 4 Tuesday, meetings personal coaching 5:30 p.m. FeLary 19, 2008 CHICAGO (AP) When retiree Julia Montgomery used Illinois' early voting option to cast her ballot Monday, it was mostly about convenience although she said her action also honored the legacy of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.

"It's the least that we could do for him," the 88-year-old Montgomery said. All 51 early voting sites in Chicago and some around the state were open on Monday, the holiday honoring King, and city churches and community groups have been encouraging members to cast their ballots in advance of the state's Feb. 5 primary. "It's an excellent day (to vote)," said Pastor Tony Dumas of Evening Star Missionary Baptist Church on the city's South Side. "People are already off work; they don't have to take off." Although Illinois Sen.

Barack Obama is on the Democratic presidential ballot, church leaders say they're not pushing people to vote for any particular candidate just to honor King's legacy by exercising their rights, and to avoid long lines and the possibility of bad weather on Election Day. "No better way to honor Dr. King than to go out and exercise your vote," said Tony Land, an associate minister at Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church on Chicago's South Side Pastors also organized an early voting event on King's actual birthday, Jan. 15. Dumas said early voting means there's no reason for people not to vote.

"No excuse because you have plenty of times, plenty of days to get this done," he said. Early voting ends Jan. 31 in Illinois, one of about 30 states that offer some way to cast an early ballot. Chicago is seeing a big II rui weekly at Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Center or educational materials incentives long-lasting health Wednesday, February 20, 2008 at the Cumberland County Health Department jump in early ballots, and the chairman of the city's election board says the increase is due in large measure to interest in an election where the country could send the first black man or the first woman to the White House. Both of those candidates also have ties to Illinois.

Obama is the state's junior senator and New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton grew up in a Chicago suburb. "It is really an historic election for Illinois," Chicago Election Board Chairman Langdon Neal said. City elections officials say 21,288 early ballots were cast in the first seven days of early voting through Sunday, and there's still more than a week to go before it ends. During the entire early voting period for the 2006 primary, the first time early voting was offered in Illinois, 14,437 people cast ballots in Chicago, and a total of 24,805 people in the city voted early in the November 2006 general election.

Early voting also seems to be on the upswing statewide, although updated numbers improvements tVr more information or to register for the free program, call Lori Richardson at 238-4550 or 348-4550 or the Cumherland County Health Department at 849-3211. SARAH BUSH LINCOLN HEALTH SYSTEM 1000 Health Center Dr. Mattoon, Illinois 61938 www.sarahbush.org.