It is very difficult to recount the depth and impact of Martin Luther King Jr. Day in one short blog post. Dr. King Jr.’s life and message influences society in countless ways. Hosting a Day of Service in his honor is one small way we can say thank-you.
For our MLK Day of Service we volunteered at Davidson Middle School in San Rafael, supported the MLK Marin City Coalition, and had a civic dialogue about the documentary “Taking Root”. We thought that there was no better way to summarize this powerful Day of Service than by devoting a small blog "series" to MLK Day and by addressing our work from Dr. King Jr.’s perspective...“All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.” -Martin Luther King Jr.
All in all, 29 individuals came out to help plant trees, pull invasive plants and build a small community garden for our MLK Day of Service at Davidson Middle School. The work wasn’t easy, and at times, it didn’t seem very glamorous. Planting trees meant digging holes in hard clay soil; pulling invasive meant hacking and pulling at roots that seemed to go on forever; and building a community garden meant endlessly spreading mulch, sifting soil and sorting organic waste (smelly garbage) for compost. There were times when it seemed we were never going to finish the work, never going to reach our goal.
But then, a transformation occurred, a new energy took hold of the entire project, a light bulb went on. We started to see progress. Our hard work was actually making an impact. Davidson Middle School started to look different—cleaner, greener, healthier. There were new trees. The playground was clear of overgrown weeds. The garden was more welcoming. Suddenly, the labor we so painstakingly endured took on dignity and importance. It gave us a tangible connection to the community, something we could feel with our hands. As we helped improve the school for hundreds of kids in the community, in a small but dignified and important way, it connected us to the painstaking labors Martin Luther King and many others underwent in order to build a better community for us today.
-Casey Falvey, Volunteer Services Associate
“An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.” -Martin Luther King Jr.
As part of our day of service, the Center for Volunteer and Nonprofit Leadership supported the Marin City MLK Coalition by recruiting volunteers to serve with the Coalition in Marin City. The number of volunteers recruited by all agencies involved speaks to the power of collaboration. Our Flexible Volunteer program contributed 9 volunteers who volunteered along side members from the coalition agencies and their volunteers, totaling nearly 50 volunteers. The quantity of work accomplished by the combined efforts of all the volunteers on MLK highlights the strength in working together. Through the joint man power of all the volunteers noticeable transformations were made in Marin City. The beautification project lead by Conservation Corps North Bay involved three parts. We worked on improving the Marin City Community Garden, de-weeding and creating a colossal mound of weeds and planting 18 fruit trees; helping in the Marin City Academy School Garden, and cleaning and removing litter from the Marin City underpass.
The day was a testimony that partnership of local organizations and community members joining together can make a difference, and on MLK we helped make Marin City become a cleaner and greener community. Having so many people from all over Marin and different walks of life come together on this day brought to life the very essence of Dr. King’s Dream.
-Kyla Burke-Lazarus, AmeriCorps VISTA
“Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness.”-Martin Luther King Jr.
Following our morning of outdoor labor at Davidson Middle School, a group of volunteers returned to the Center (CVNL) to continue our day of service with documentary and dialogue. Together we watched the Community Cinema Film “Taking Root”, which tells the story of Wangari Mathaai, one woman who has not only chosen to walk in the light of creative altruism, but to be the beacon of that light to others. Maathai persevered through loss, persecution, and isolation to stand up for the environmental rights of her fellow Kenyans.
The film served as an inspiration for us all. Maathai walked in Dr. King’s footsteps as she made the decision to serve humanity above herself. Each of us that volunteered on MLK Day took the first step towards making that decision...
We gave-up a day off to help the collective, and ended the day knowing that constant perseverance, collaboration, and altruism can truly make a difference in our communities.
-Sarah Van Dine, AmeriCorps VISTA
