San Diego Martin Luther King, Jr. Foundation
Keeping the dream alive through scholarships to deserving youth since 1990
Our History
In 1987, the San Diego community had become deeply divided over the ballot initiative which resulted in the stripping of the name "Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive" and reverting the street to its original name, "Market Street". Searching for a way to diffuse the situation, the president of the Greater San Diego Chamber of Commerce approached Rev. George Walker Smith with a proposition. The proposal was to develop a committee to raise funds and establish an appropriate permanent memorial to the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Committee, established by the Chamber, decided it would be appropriate to have two types of memorials--an artistic memorial depicting the life and work of Dr. King, and a perpetual memorial scholarship award. The Committee established criteria for the scholarships which included leadership abilities, strong academic achievement and community service reflecting the principles promoted by Dr. King. Together, school children and adults joined forces to raise funds for the two memorials.
In 1990, Tom Carter assumed chairmanship of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Committee. With a target date of January 15, 1991, the anniversary of Dr. King's birthday, subcommittees were formed to accomplish the tasks at hand. The Committee successfully presented a perpetual scholarship recommendation to the Chamber of Commerce. The Center City Development Corporation established an artistic memorial, the Martin Luther King Promenade, a colorful palm-lined promenade near the Convention Center in downtown San Diego along Harbor Drive. However, the Committee kept the memorial scholarship alive and proposed to the Chamber that the perpetual scholarship be implemented in 1991 with the funds already raised.
And so it was, the first recipients, Cindy Tinsley and Armond Washington were selected and awarded scholarships in 1991. The recipients are selected from an ethnically diverse group of students that emulate the qualities of Dr. King in their daily lives. Initially, awards were made to two students at $5,000 each. Since that time, the Committee increased the two $5,000 scholarships to $7,500 scholarships and established them in the names of Reverend George Walker Smith and the late Tom Carter. The Committee also added one additional scholarship in the amount of $5,000 to its annual awards. In 2011, the Foundation was honored to present the Debra Ann Stephens Scholarship to a Lincoln High School senior who excelled academically and emulates the spirit, compassion and commitment demonstrated by Debra towards making the Lincoln and greater San Diego community a "better place." The scholarships are funded by the annual San Diego Martin Luther King, Jr. Golf Classic, which began in 1993, along with corporate and individual donations.
In 1996, Reese Jarrett, the Committee Chairperson at the time, spearheaded the effort to establish the Foundation as a 501(c)(3) charitable corporation. To date, the Foundation has awarded approximately $400,000 in scholarships to deserving seniors attending high schools in the San Diego Unified School District. The Foundation continues to transform lives by fulfilling the dream of achieving a college degree for students in San Diego.
