A more granular description of the places we've visited, and a listing of the dates when we were there.
Monday, May 6: depart Lexington, VA, arrive in Cullman, AL at St. Bernard Abbey, Benedictine Abbey founded from the Archabbey in Latrobe, PA.
Tuesday, May 7: Campus visit to Birmingham Southern College; Kelly Ingram Park in downtown Birmingham, AL -- site of the Children's Crusade protest and violence against the marchers. Southern Negro League Museum.
Wednesday, May 8: Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, whose bombing by the KKK resulted in the deaths of four young girls attending Sunday Bible school there. Birmingham Jail, where Martin Luther King Jr. was held during his arrest for his involvement in the Project Confrontation protests -- this place is where he penned his "Letter from a Birmingham Jail"
Thursday, May 9: St. Bernard Preparatory School, student-for-a-day experience. Mass and Vespers at the Abbey Church. Campfire hosted by Fr. Linus, headmaster of St. Bernard Prep
Friday, May 10: Birmingham Civil Rights Museum
Saturday, May 11: depart Cullman/Birmingham AL, arrive at Montgomery, AL. Meet up with Greg Thornton '67. The National Memorial for Peace and Justice, in honor of the victims of the racial terrorism of lynching. The Legacy Museum, compiled by Equal Justice Initiative.
Monday, May 13: Meet up with Pat Thornton, wife of Greg '67, an in-depth personalized tour of the offices of the Southern Poverty Law Center. The Civil Rights Memorial, compiled by SPLC honoring the martyrs of the Civil Rights Movement. Cookout dinner at the home of Pat and Greg Thornton, guests included Morris Dees (founder of the SPLC), Georgette Norman (previous director of the Rosa Parks Museum), and several students from LAMP High School in Montgomery.
Tuesday, May 14: Depart Montgomery, AL, arrive at Selma, AL. Meet up with Edmundite Missions and Joe O'Quinn for personalized tour of Selma and a presentation of the work of the Edmundites concerning the residents of Selma. Walking the Edmund Pettus Bridge, site of the "Bloody Sunday" march to Montgomery to demand voting rights
Wednesday, May 15: Depart Selma, AL (Demopolis), arrive at Clarksdale, MS. Tour of the county presented by Bill Sutton, history teacher, about race injustice during Reconstruction, the story of John Milton Brown, first black sheriff of Coahoma county. Bill Sutton is also the director of the Habitat For Humanity in Clarksdale, and we are living in the H4H dormitory during our stay here.
Thursday, May 16: Community service projects - working at Care Station, who deliver food to the homebound in the the Clarksdale area; and at Clarksdale Cares, animal shelter for the county. Meet with Bowen Flowers and his father, to see the work being done planting at their cotton farm. Dinner at the Ground Zero Blues Club for live music representing "Delta Blues"
Friday, May 17: Meet with Aallyah Wright, reporter for mississippitoday.org news, who accompanied us during the day as research for an article she will be writing; Emmett Till -- travel to Tallahatchie River site where his body was discovered; to Money, MS where the Bryant's owned a store; to the Sumner County courthouse where the sham trial was held; dinner at the home of Jenn Ruskey, who teaches Art at Coahoma County High School -- guests included several teachers and many students of CCHS
Saturday, May 18: Meet with Robert and Margaret Brown, long-time residents of Clarksdale -- Margaret lives in a home that was built through Habitat For Humanity; meet with Bubba O'Keefe, long-time resident of Clarksdale, director of tourism for the town. Afternoon of recreation at the home of Susan and Bowen Flowers.
Sunday, May 19: Sunday service at the First Methodist Church of Clarksdale; potluck lunch with the church community at their fellowship center; in the afternoon, depart Clarksdale, MS, arrive in Memphis, TN; dinner hosted by Darius Stewart, SBP Class of 2000, architect, graduate of Notre Dame University
Monday, May 20: visit and tour of Hord Architecture firm in downtown Memphis, where Darius has worked for the past four years; visit to National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel - site of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
Tuesday, May 21: visit to Mason Temple Church of God in Christ, where MLK gave his final speech before he was assassinated the next day; Memphis Museum "Pink Mansion"; Big River Walk, bridge over the Mississippi River, walking to Arkansas State Line
Under each date or place, we have included links to the related blog posts.
Sunday, May 5: depart St. Benedict's Prep, arrive in Lexington, VA. Meet up with Carlos Acosta SBP '18 who is completing his first year at VMI; dinner hosted by Coach Joyce and Mr. Williams of the C.O.W. Program at the Virginia Military Institute.Monday, May 6: depart Lexington, VA, arrive in Cullman, AL at St. Bernard Abbey, Benedictine Abbey founded from the Archabbey in Latrobe, PA.
Tuesday, May 7: Campus visit to Birmingham Southern College; Kelly Ingram Park in downtown Birmingham, AL -- site of the Children's Crusade protest and violence against the marchers. Southern Negro League Museum.
Wednesday, May 8: Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, whose bombing by the KKK resulted in the deaths of four young girls attending Sunday Bible school there. Birmingham Jail, where Martin Luther King Jr. was held during his arrest for his involvement in the Project Confrontation protests -- this place is where he penned his "Letter from a Birmingham Jail"
Thursday, May 9: St. Bernard Preparatory School, student-for-a-day experience. Mass and Vespers at the Abbey Church. Campfire hosted by Fr. Linus, headmaster of St. Bernard Prep
Friday, May 10: Birmingham Civil Rights Museum
Saturday, May 11: depart Cullman/Birmingham AL, arrive at Montgomery, AL. Meet up with Greg Thornton '67. The National Memorial for Peace and Justice, in honor of the victims of the racial terrorism of lynching. The Legacy Museum, compiled by Equal Justice Initiative.
- Their spirit lives on through us
- Mourning the victims of lynching
- The Legacy of Slavery and Mass Incarceration
- At Home in the home of a Montgomery Gray Bee
Monday, May 13: Meet up with Pat Thornton, wife of Greg '67, an in-depth personalized tour of the offices of the Southern Poverty Law Center. The Civil Rights Memorial, compiled by SPLC honoring the martyrs of the Civil Rights Movement. Cookout dinner at the home of Pat and Greg Thornton, guests included Morris Dees (founder of the SPLC), Georgette Norman (previous director of the Rosa Parks Museum), and several students from LAMP High School in Montgomery.
Tuesday, May 14: Depart Montgomery, AL, arrive at Selma, AL. Meet up with Edmundite Missions and Joe O'Quinn for personalized tour of Selma and a presentation of the work of the Edmundites concerning the residents of Selma. Walking the Edmund Pettus Bridge, site of the "Bloody Sunday" march to Montgomery to demand voting rights
Wednesday, May 15: Depart Selma, AL (Demopolis), arrive at Clarksdale, MS. Tour of the county presented by Bill Sutton, history teacher, about race injustice during Reconstruction, the story of John Milton Brown, first black sheriff of Coahoma county. Bill Sutton is also the director of the Habitat For Humanity in Clarksdale, and we are living in the H4H dormitory during our stay here.
Thursday, May 16: Community service projects - working at Care Station, who deliver food to the homebound in the the Clarksdale area; and at Clarksdale Cares, animal shelter for the county. Meet with Bowen Flowers and his father, to see the work being done planting at their cotton farm. Dinner at the Ground Zero Blues Club for live music representing "Delta Blues"
Friday, May 17: Meet with Aallyah Wright, reporter for mississippitoday.org news, who accompanied us during the day as research for an article she will be writing; Emmett Till -- travel to Tallahatchie River site where his body was discovered; to Money, MS where the Bryant's owned a store; to the Sumner County courthouse where the sham trial was held; dinner at the home of Jenn Ruskey, who teaches Art at Coahoma County High School -- guests included several teachers and many students of CCHS
Saturday, May 18: Meet with Robert and Margaret Brown, long-time residents of Clarksdale -- Margaret lives in a home that was built through Habitat For Humanity; meet with Bubba O'Keefe, long-time resident of Clarksdale, director of tourism for the town. Afternoon of recreation at the home of Susan and Bowen Flowers.
Sunday, May 19: Sunday service at the First Methodist Church of Clarksdale; potluck lunch with the church community at their fellowship center; in the afternoon, depart Clarksdale, MS, arrive in Memphis, TN; dinner hosted by Darius Stewart, SBP Class of 2000, architect, graduate of Notre Dame University
Monday, May 20: visit and tour of Hord Architecture firm in downtown Memphis, where Darius has worked for the past four years; visit to National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel - site of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
Tuesday, May 21: visit to Mason Temple Church of God in Christ, where MLK gave his final speech before he was assassinated the next day; Memphis Museum "Pink Mansion"; Big River Walk, bridge over the Mississippi River, walking to Arkansas State Line
Wednesday, May 22, and Thursday, May 23: Travel back to New Jersey, by way of West Virginia, Ohio, and Western Pennsylvania. We arrived safely back at St. Benedict's Prep on Thursday, May 23 at 5:30 PM.