MLK Day of Service is a national initiative to strengthen communities, bridge barriers between different groups of people, create solutions to our social problems and move us closer to Dr. King’s vision of a “Beloved Community.” Thousands of individuals around the U.S. honor Dr. King’s legacy on this day by participating in volunteer projects that encourage community collaboration and make our towns a better place to live.
“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?'”
— Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
According to the Corporation for National and Community Service, more Americans live in poverty today than during Dr. King’s lifetime–which is why it is more important now than ever to work together to make Austin greater for all residents.
More than 300 volunteers signed up to work on eight projects for this year’s MLK Day of Service on January 16th. This annual event is hosted by United Way for Greater Austin, Keep Austin Beautiful and State Representative Dawnna Dukes.
We kicked off the event at UWATX with breakfast and encouraging speeches from Mayor Steve Adler, UWATX Board Member Rodney Northern and other influential community members. Volunteers then dispersed to work on a variety of projects, ranging from a clean-up of MLK Jr. Boulevard to creating works of art of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to be auctioned off to raise money for UWATX’s Middle School Matters program.
Some of the groups that signed up for the event were Apple employees, current and alumni AmeriCorps groups, local churches, middle school students from our VPL program and Young Leaders Society members. There were also clean-ups in various parks around town, a gardening project with the Sustainable Food Center, facilities maintenance and cleanup with Child, Inc. and Boys and Girls Club, and the organization and creation of craft supplies with Creative Action.
Thank you to everyone who showed up bright and early on a weekend morning to improve our community!
Tweet us your photos of the day @uwatx using the hashtag #MLKDay.
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