Letter: Holiday brings back memories of King

It happened when King received the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo. I was in my second tour as press attache at the American Embassy and was the embassy's liaison with King and his entourage. I was in charge of press relations with King and the international press. I arranged his press conference and participated in the weeklong series of lectures and events connected with the occasion.

A large entourage accompanied King to Oslo for the event and I got to meet them all. They included his wife, Coretta Scott King; his father, mother and brother; the Rev. Ralph Abernathy and his wife, and other King associates in the civil rights movement. My main contact during the week was Andrew Young, who later became U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and mayor of Atlanta.

A year following the King event, I performed the same duties when the UNICEF committee was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for its work with the world's children.

And 10 years earlier, on my first tour in Oslo, I did the same for Ralph Bunche when he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work for the United Nations in promoting peace in the Middle East.

Orville Goplen

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