MLK Day – A Day On!

Dr. King stressed volunteer service as a means to social justice. As he famously said: “Everybody can be great... because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.”

Legislation was signed in 1983 creating a federal holiday marking the birthday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. In 1994, Congress designated the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Holiday as a national day of service and charged the Corporation for National and Community Service with leading this effort. Taking place each year on the third Monday in January, the MLK Day of Service is the only federal holiday observed as a national day of service. The MLK Day of Service is a part of United We Serve, the President's national call to service initiative. It calls for Americans from all walks of life to work together to provide solutions to our most pressing national problems. The MLK Day of Service empowers individuals, strengthens communities, bridges barriers, creates solutions to social problems, and moves us closer to Dr. King's vision of a "Beloved Community."

Millions of Americans will come together on the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, January 16, 2017, in a day of national service and dialogue to honor the memory of Dr. King. Dr. King had a dream that one day all people would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness as called for in the Declaration of Independence. Dr. King called for social justice and opportunity. He asked that we bridge differences and come together in unity.

According to the Points of Light Foundation, we have a unique opportunity to unite as in volunteer service and issue a call to action to do what we, as Americans, do best – lend a hand, help our neighbors – and build better communities. Since Dr. King was assassinated, tremendous social progress has been made, but much remains unfinished. Americans believe that people have the power to make positive change – in cities struggling with poverty and high unemployment rates – in families where people are going hungry – and in school districts where more than half of our children aren’t graduating from high school.

With many communities struggling to access financial and human services, volunteer service can be a powerful force. Neighbors helping neighbors, young helping old, employees offering skills and companies investing in communities where they do business. We dream of a day when everyone is actively involved in making a better America. This year, Points of Light, in partnership with the Corporation for National and Community Service and sponsored by the GE Volunteer Foundation, will create new and meaningful ways to harness the passion of our nation’s citizens in honoring the memory and promoting the vision of Dr. King

MLK Day is a great opportunity to get hands-on in your community. You might have a passion for service. Dr. King’s life and legacy was about his commitment to service and social justice. If you would like to connect your service project specifically to Dr. King, below are a few ideas:

• Poverty: Organize a canned food drive for your local shelter. Expand the drive to include donating blankets, gloves, etc. to keep the homeless in your community warm during the winter months.
• Education: Organize a school supply drive.
• Community: Learn about the history of the community where you live. Identify cultural and religious groups in your community that might be neglected. Discuss how you can learn about their culture and help support them in preserving it.
• Youth: Organize a toy drive to provide less fortunate children in the community with toys and games.
• Military/veterans: Assemble care packages for military members overseas. The Community Blueprint is a set of tools and practices that provide a framework for communities to produce positive, measurable outcomes for veterans, military members and their families.
• Women’s empowerment: Identify gaps in your community where women don’t have equal opportunity. Develop a plan to provide literacy classes, teach English, offer vocational skills, or train on financial literacy.

You can also join local volunteer initiatives. The Volunteer Center of Cedar Valley and First Presbyterian Church will once again sponsor a Martin Luther King Family Day of Service. Families are invited to participate Monday, January 16 from 10:00 – 11:30 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church, 505 Franklin in Waterloo. Participants will complete projects that will be donated to community agencies. Families are encouraged to volunteer together on this important day.
 
For more information on this event or to learn more about service, contact the Volunteer Center of Cedar Valley at (319) 272-2087, email or visit www.vccv.org.

The MLK Day of Service is the only federal holiday observed as a national day of service – a “day on, not a day off.” It’s a way to transform Dr. King’s life and teachings into community action that helps solve social problems.