Faculty, staff and students will have the opportunity to participate in various service projects aimed at addressing social problems such as poverty, hunger and other injustices, according to Will Holland, director of the university’s Office of Community Outreach and Volunteer Services.
“Martin Luther King once said, ‘Life’s most urgent question is: what are you doing for others?’ With this in mind, we wanted to organize community-wide service projects that would allow our campus community to do something meaningful that could impact others in a positive way,” Holland said. “This Day of Service celebrates the spirit of giving back and lifting up our most vulnerable populations. We are encouraging everyone to get involved.”
This one-day event will begin at 8:30 a.m. with a breakfast in the university’s Don Morris Room in the Memorial Student Center on the Huntington campus. Speakers for the breakfast include Dr. Damien Arthur, director of the university’s Community-Based Learning program; Matt Jarvis, student body president; Heather Thomas, president of the National Pan-Hellenic Council; and Maurice Cooley, associate vice president of intercultural affairs.
After breakfast, Holland said participants will divide into morning and afternoon sessions for their assigned service projects. Project sites include Harmony House, Goodwill of the KYOWVA Area, Ronald McDonald House, Facing Hunger Foodbank, Ebenezer Community Outreach Daycare, Huntington Boys and Girls Club of Huntington and the A.D. Lewis Community Center, as well as one on-campus project.
To register for the event, visit www.marshall.edu/diversity/MLK. Registration guarantees a free breakfast and T-shirt for participation. Availability is limited and interested participants are encouraged to register immediately. This event is sponsored by the Division of Student Affairs and the President’s Commission on Diversity, Equality and Inclusion.
Earlier in the week, the university will participate in the annual tradition freedom march and King birthday celebration Monday, Jan. 15.