Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Anyone can be great because everybody can serve.” It can be easy for a volunteer to question the difference they can make. What can really change in an afternoon of volunteering? A lot.
Points of Light’s MLK Day of Service is just one example of how the community can change in one afternoon. On Monday, January 16th thousands of volunteers of all ages, races, ethnicity, religion and gender will band together to make one movement that will leave a huge impact on our nation. This year we have approximately 300 service projects that will cover a wide range of impact areas such as environment, education, homelessness and hunger, and disaster relief efforts.
With the declining economy and 46.2 million people living in poverty in the United States (according to the US Census Bureau, the need for volunteers is greater than ever. MLK Day of Service engages over 220,000 volunteers in just one day. One hour of volunteer labor is worth $21.36 in the United States (as estimated by The Independent Sector). This MLK Day of Service, volunteers will contribute approximately $14.1 million worth of service back to communities.
The impact that our volunteers will make on Monday will mean more than just money. It will mean a warm meal in an empty stomach, a more beautiful park for our children to enjoy, smiling senior citizens at a retirement home, a new home for a family that dreamed of one, a day of fun for children, and communities joining together to help one another.
That is exactly what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. meant when he said anybody can be great. It is easy to look at an afternoon of volunteering as just one afternoon, but that one afternoon could mean the world to someone in need.
How will you celebrate that contribution this Martin Luther King, Jr. Day? Let us know in the comments below!
During his lifetime Dr. King worked tirelessly toward a dream of equality. He believed in a nation of freedom and justice for all, and encouraged all citizens to live up to the purpose and potential of America. The Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service is a way to transform Dr. King’s life and teachings into community service that helps solve problems. MLK Day programs meet tangible needs, such as revitalizing schools and feeding the homeless; but also build a sense of community and mutual responsibility by spurring conversation. On this day, Americans of every age and background celebrate Dr. King through volunteering and unite to strengthen communities, empower individuals, and bridge barriers.
Today’s post comes from Michael Nealis, Interactive Strategy Coordinator for 
More than 120,000 people volunteered in 4,900 projects through 
In order to channel the energy and engagement of Martin Luther King Jr. Day into a deeper and more consistent commitment to volunteering, Points of Light recently launched 
The Teacher’s Supply Depot is a nonprofit that gathers donated goods and hosts give-aways for district schools. Teachers, principals and PTAs can come get paper, educational material, art supplies and much more for free!
After the pictures were painted and crafts were made the History Channel’s documentary film 
Today’s post comes from Anna Hoyt, an AmeriCorps VISTA serving with the C4 Network.
I resolved to find a way to utilize my resources to make the day of service successful. Through the network that HandsOn and AmeriCorps provide, I was able to call up another AmeriCorps member serving in another part of the Seattle area who was coordinating a completely different project. She invited me to join in her effort to clean transitional homes for AIDS victims moving from the crisis of homelessness to self-sufficiency through a local organization. I had an incredible day serving alongside fellow community members and sharing in a great day of service to honor Martin Luther King Jr. What could have been a very discouraging day resulted in a new opportunity to partner with others and make a real impact in our community.
The Volunteer Center of LeHigh Valley will be partnering with the Easton Area School District to educate and inspire youth volunteers. This project is designed to give the older students an opportunity to help educate the elementary school children about tolerance, perseverance and community service, while providing the elementary school students with outstanding role models who encourage them to work hard and dream big.
The Volunteer Center of the Virginia Peninsula in partnership with the RISE Project staff will be hosting a special day of activities to celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. It will be a day of presentations, volunteer activities, Safe Assured IDs for children and seniors, and will include a very special speaker, Dr. A. Terry Morris of NASA.
The Volunteer Center of Greensboro is partnering with Guilford County Schools to engage in a county-wide youth service extravaganza on January 17: MLK Jr. Day of Service. The VC will bring together the nonprofit community and the district’s student base of over 71,000 to impact Guilford County. Students will be empowered to define and address needs in their communities by developing meaningful service projects.
Greater DC Cares, supported by Target, will lead 300 volunteers and Members of Congress in MLK Day discussions and preparation of literacy and warming kits at Tyler Elementary School, along with over 2,000 volunteers at 30 other sites around the DC area.
Hands On Atlanta will host a full day of activities to include: a Freedom Rally, Community Conversation Forums, an Oxfam Hunger Banquet and a food drive/packing effort to feed 10,000 metro-Atlanta families. The Freedom Rally will kick off the celebration of Dr. King’s life and legacy via music, dance, and a generational talk. The talk will feature Georgia State Senator Jason Carter. Over 800 AmeriCorps/VISTA members and more than 2,000 metro-Atlantans are expected to participate in the day’s events.
