CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – The International African American Museum received a $200,000 pledge from Denny’s.

“It is an honor to support an institution that will illuminate our shared history and elevate inclusion, progress and the celebration of diversity,” said John Miller, Denny’s President and CEO.

“While Denny’s is based in South Carolina with deep roots in this region, its footprint extends nationally and internationally, reaching as far as New Zealand,” said IAAM President and CEO Michael Boulware Moore. “That concept, of a local presence and an international influence, exists at the core of the IAAM as well. While we will be physically located in Charleston with strong ties to this area’s history, we will propel our lessons far beyond the museum’s physical walls – across the country and the globe.”

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Brenda Lauderback, Chair of Denny’s Board of Directors, and her husband, Dr. Boyd Wright, also expressed their ardent personal support of the museum with a $75,000 leadership investment to the Founders Fund. She added that, “We have the honor of spending a great deal of time in Charleston, and it is a very special city to many, my family included. There is no better place for this museum than on the sacred land of Gadsden’s Wharf, where so many of our ancestors took their first steps into America.”

Denny’s generous investment in the IAAM will be recognized in the East Boardwalk. As museum guests walk toward the museum grounds from the Charleston Harbor, they can enter the African Ancestors Memorial Garden through the East Boardwalk. This path carries guests past the Gadsden’s Wharf line and into the Lowcountry Garden. There, guests can enjoy the distinct feel and flora of the Lowcountry in the comfortable seating provided by water planters filled with local plant varietals.

“The African Ancestors Memorial Garden, a collection of gardens and artistic installations that sprawl across the IAAM grounds, will honor and commemorate African ancestors and give guests an opportunity to reflect on the historic significance of Gadsden’s Wharf,” said Joseph P. Riley, Jr., former Charleston mayor and IAAM board member. “This is a perfect place to recognize Denny’s generous investment.”