March on Ballot Boxes

Anniversary Speech Celebration

A Mark for a Movement

On May 8, 1966, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. visited Kingstree, South Carolina and gave his remarkable “March on Ballot Boxes” speech, urging more than 5,000 residents in attendance to exercise their right to vote as a way to pursue social and economic justice. On May 8, 2016 — 50 years to the day of Dr. King’s original speech — the town of Kingstree and Williamsburg County planned on hosting a 50th-anniversary celebration (with the help of our team, of course).

To help create a consistent brand for this historic event, we designed a logo and brand guidelines that would influence the look and feel of the website and any other subsequent collateral pieces that would be produced. The colors and typeface we chose for the logo are a mix of traditional and modern, paying tribute to the original speech as well as to the current celebration.

How we helped

Event Planning & Promotion
Media Relations
Branding & Graphic Design

The real impact

25 Event Sponsors
78 Media Relations Emails Sent
300+ Event Attendees
$60,000 Dollars Raised

Spreading the Word

We created a simple, interactive website that would serve as the main hub for any relevant news or updates regarding the 50th-anniversary event. This website also served as a place to share historically significant pictures, videos and stories related to the original speech.

Celebrating History

Using the color palette and typeface of the March on Ballot Boxes logo, we created complementary collateral pieces such as programs and banners to be used at the 50th-anniversary celebration. The program featured a schedule of events and personal letters from several of the speakers. We also created commemorative “I was here in 1966” stickers for attendees to wear if they were present at Dr. King’s original speech.

Remembering a Legacy

Our team helped manage the event, securing public figures such as Former State Representative and CNN Political Commentator Bakari Sellers, the Honorable Congressman James E. Clyburn, Reverend Samuel B. Cooper and Ann McGill of Live 5 News/WCSC. The event included the presentation of the original speech, the unveiling of a historical marker by the SC State Historic Preservation Office and a time capsule presentation by Supervisor Stanley Pasley and Williamsburg County Youth Leadership Group.

TRIO's professionalism, expertise and advice are unsurpassed by any event planner. The team did a great job making this a special event for all who attended and read about this event in the media. W.E. JENKINSON, COMMITTEE MEMBER FOR MLK MARCH ON BALLOT BOXES