Michigan Volunteers to Honor Martin Luther King, Jr. with Service

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was created by Congress in 1994 and has grown beyond a federal holiday honoring Dr. King into a national day of community service. Each year, service projects are planned across the country to share Dr. King's message of serving others.

Everyone is encouraged to participate in the King Day of Service and all types of service are accepted. The Michigan Community Service Commission (MCSC), a supporter of the annual King Day of Service, encourages individuals and/or organizations to search for opportunities in their community by visiting the official MLK Day website at www.MLKDay.gov .

"Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, ‘Everybody can be great, because everybody can serve,'" says Paula Kaiser VanDam, Executive Director of the Michigan Community Service Commission. "Now, more than ever, we hope the annual MLK Day of Service will inspire all of Michigan's citizens to engage in volunteerism to help make a difference and to tackle critical challenges their communities are facing."

To find out about potential projects in your area, visit the above website and search via your ZIP code and the key words "MLK Day." Current available projects include:

• Local youth and community members from the Lansing area will join together for the "Remembering Martin Luther King, Jr. Through Creative Service" mural project on Monday, January 17. The mural will be on permanent public display outside Lansing's Black Child and Family Institute thanks to the efforts of the Arts Council of Greater Lansing.
• Downriver CARES AmeriCorps in Southgate will hold its annual MLK Day service project on Monday, January 17 in an effort to make the Ralph J. Bunche Academy a "Michigan Green School." Efforts will include mural painting, gardening, cleaning, and crafting cards to send to active military service members.
• The Heart of West Michigan United Way will begin phase one of the clean-up and updates needed at the Grand Rapids' Veteran's Home's greenhouse. Volunteers in the area will unite on Monday, January 17 to serve.
• Members of the North Dickinson County High School Student Council will use the MLK Day as an opportunity to teach younger students the lessons of Dr. King through an educational service project. These efforts are being coordinated by the Great Lakes Center for Youth Development in Marquette on Monday, January 17.

For more information on other national days of service, visit

Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service efforts are supported by a group of organizations in Michigan; including the Michigan Community Service Commission, Michigan Department of Human Services, Volunteer Centers of Michigan, Michigan Campus Compact, The LEAGUE Michigan, the Corporation for National and Community Service - Michigan Office, and the Michigan Association of United Ways. www.michigan.gov/mcsc .

BACKGROUND:

builds a culture of service by providing vision and resources to strengthen communities through volunteerism. In 2010-2011, the MCSC is granting nearly $9 million in federal funds to local communities for volunteer programs and activities. The MCSC is funding 26 AmeriCorps programs, 25 Learn and Serve programs, and seven Volunteer Michigan grantees. The Governor's Service Awards and Mentor Michigan are also premier programs of the MCSC. The MCSC is housed in the Michigan Department of Human Services, whose mission is to assist children, families, and vulnerable adults to be safe, stable, and self-supporting. The Corporation for National and Community Service grants the federal funding the MCSC administers. Michigan Community Service CommissionThe

Michigan has a long history of volunteering. As part of the 2010 Volunteering in America research, nearly 2.3 million volunteers in Michigan dedicated more than 308 million hours of service to their communities in 2009. Their efforts equated to a monetary contribution of more than $6.4 billion. Michigan has an average of 29.1 percent of citizens volunteering with an average of 39.5 volunteer hours per resident per year.