Monumental Talks returns to Everett for its third year on Friday, September 11 at 7:00 p.m. at the Everett Civic Auditorium, 2415 Colby Avenue. Admission is free, and no tickets or registration are required.
This year's theme is The Visible and Invisible Cost of Freedom. The program is presented in honor of first responders and veterans and is non-partisan, intended for all Americans.
The centerpiece is the Fireman's Prayer Anthem, the first anthem of its kind in American history. Composer Charles-Henri Avelange set to music a poem written in 1957 by A.W. Smokey Linn, a Wichita firefighter, after Linn and his crew responded to a fire in which three children died. Avelange first worked on the piece in a Mukilteo basement. It was recorded this year at Sony Pictures Studios with a ninety piece orchestra, the Los Angeles Master Chorale and the Los Angeles Children's Choir. Linn's daughter, Sharon Holycross, is traveling from Oklahoma to receive the Fireman's Prayer Award in person.
The evening also includes the presentation of colors by Naval Station Everett, remarks from Everett Mayor Cassie Franklin, a reading of the Fireman's Prayer by Everett City Council President and retired fire division chief Don Schwab, veteran speakers, the winner of the student freedom essay competition, and live performances with a band led by Jack Klitzman. Joe Marine, Mayor of Mukilteo, is master of ceremonies. Sanford Wright, MD, is producer and director.
More information is at hartleymansion.com/monumental-talks-2026.