Press Releases

17th Anniversary Ceremony & Other Memorial Activities Detailed

***PRESS ADVISORY***

April 19th – Remembrance Ceremony

The 17th Anniversary Remembrance Ceremony will begin at 8:55 a.m. on Thursday, April 19th, on the Outdoor Symbolic Memorial. Governor Mary Fallin and Mayor Mick Cornett are scheduled to join this year’s ceremony. Memorial Foundation Chairman Gary Pierson will emcee the event.

Similar to previous years, 168 seconds of silence will be observed at 9:02 a.m., reflecting the moment the nation was changed forever. The ceremony will start with a bagpipe procession of the ceremony participants, led by Pipe Sergeant Kevin M. Donnelly of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Black and Gold Pipes and Drums.

Edmond North High School Orchestra will provide the music, and Charity Logan will perform a special song before the reading of the 168 names. Morgan Merrell, whose mother Frankie Ann Merrell was killed on April 19, 1995, will talk about teaching the next generation this story before the reading of the 168 names of lives lost in the tragedy, read by family members and representation from five Oklahoma rescue worker agencies.

The ceremony is expected to last about an hour, and the Field of Empty Chairs will be open to the media following the ceremony as families, survivors and friends place items on the chairs.

A limited number of seedlings from the Survivor Tree will be available. Each year, the Memorial Facilities & Construction staff picks up Survivor Tree seeds from Sunshine Nursery in Clinton, OK, who grows the seedlings for the Memorial Foundation. Mark Bays, with the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food & Forestry, is the Survivor Tree consultant and has been nurturing this remarkable tree now for 17 years.

Media Information: All media except pool cameras will be located under the Survivor Tree. A mult-box feed will be provided at the tree. All media will need to be in place no later than 8:30 a.m. in the reserved media area under the Survivor Tree. There will be media credentials passed out that morning. Media truck parking should be along Robinson and coordinated through the Oklahoma City Traffic Department, at 405.297.2004. All trucks should be parked by 8:00 a.m.

Pool Camera Information: KOCO-TV will provide the podium pool TV camera shot. Contact Kyle Hamm, khamm@hearst.com or 405.620.5051 for more information or to get a feed from this camera shot. Associated Press will provide the still pool camera shots. Please contact Sue Ogrocki at sogrocki@ap.org. All other reporters and cameras will be under the Survivor Tree.

If you are interested in getting a camera on the GSA Plaza, overlooking the Memorial (please note there will be a 90+ piece orchestra in this area that takes priority), please contact Joanne Hutchinson with General Services Administration at joanne.hutchinson@gsa.gov

The weather alternate site will be called at 7:30 a.m. The location is First United Methodist Church at N.W. 5th and Robinson.

Please contact Kari Watkins at 405.235.3313 or kw@oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org with any special requests.

Cox Community Day – Thursday, April 19th

Cox Communications will again sponsor free admission to the Oklahoma City National Memorial Museum for all visitors on Thursday, April 19th. The Museum will open at 10 a.m., following the Remembrance Ceremony and will remain open until 5:00 p.m. Cox Community Day aims to ensure all are able to learn the lessons of the Oklahoma City bombing, and we encourage all to join us during this day of remembrance.

Culture & Memory: The Importance of Documenting Our Stories, A Conversation with Dr. Michael Berenbaum – Tuesday, April 17th

The Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum along with partners at the Jewish Federation of Greater are proud to host A Conversation with Dr. Michael Berenbaum at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, April 17th, at the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum. Dr. Berenbaum is a writer, lecturer, teacher and museum development consultant who contributed to the conceptual design of the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum and the U. S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC.

Space is limited. Register at OklahomaCityNationalMemorial.org or call Lynne Porter, Education Coordinator, at 405.235.3313.

Memorial Motorcycle Run Benefitting the OKC National Memorial & Museum – Saturday April 21st

The 5th Annual Memorial Motorcycle Run will be zooming your way on Saturday, April 21st. The Memorial Motorcycle Run is for Oklahomans who wish to support the Oklahoma City National Memorial by doing what they love: riding their bikes under beautiful Oklahoma skies.

The run will start and end at Margarita Island, located at 8139 N.W. 10th St. in Oklahoma City. The first bike out leaves at noon, and the last bike is in at 6 p.m. Registration begins at 11 a.m., at $20 for a single rider and $30 for double riders. If you have any questions, contact Stacey Weddington at sw@oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org

12th Annual Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon – Sunday, April 29th

More than 25,000 people are expected for the 12th Annual Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon, the Run to Remember. We are expected to have over 25,000 participants from all 50 states and 7 foreign countries. The Marathon begins at 6:30 a.m. followed by the Kids Marathon at 8:15 on Sunday, April 29th.

There is still time to register for the Marathon at OKCMarathon.com. The Memorial Marathon requires a lot of community support, so if you are interested in volunteering contact Mollie Bennett, Marathon Coordinator at mb@oklahomacitynationalmeomrial.org

Special guests and participants can be made available for media interviews or live shots before and during the race. For media information regarding the Marathon, please contact Kari Watkins at 405.830.6114 or kw@oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org

Reflections of Hope Award – Thursday, May 10th

The 2012 Reflections of Hope Award will be bestowed posthumously on two-time Pulitzer Prize journalist Anthony Shadid. The Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum is presenting this award for his life’s work as a foreign correspondent, his understanding of the Middle East and his role in giving people impacted by terrorism and violence a voice through his storytelling.

Shadid’s widow Nada Bakri and their children will accept the award on his behalf at the Reflections of Hope Award luncheon on Thursday, May 10th at noon. The luncheon will be held at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum’s Sam Noble Special Event Center. Tickets are available at ReflectionsofHopeAward.org

The Reflections of Hope Award, established in 2005, is made possible through the generous support of the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation. Some of the previous recipients have been Father Alex Reid, President William J. Clinton and President George W. Bush and family.

For media inquiries, please contact Kari Watkins at kw@oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org or 405.235.3313.

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