2008 Woodie Awards
Martin Luther King Day to be celebrated through service
By Samantha Shaner
Rocket Contributor
Issue date: 1/18/08 Section: Focus
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The events for the day of service include volunteering time at elementary schools and nursing homes in the area and also a basketball tournament food drive and penny carnival organized by the campus AmeriCorps branch.
The number of volunteer groups put together for nursing homes and elementary school locations will be determined by the number of volunteers that show up to participate at the pre-registration. Locations for the
service projects have yet to be finalized.
Pre-registration for the Office of Intercultural Programs' events will begin at 8:30 a.m. in the University Union Multi-Purpose Room. Na'im Akbar, a scholar, author, and lecturer will be giving a speech after pre-registration. Currently, Akbar is on the faculty in the Department of Psychology at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. Akbar's lectures often pertain to his insight and his analysis of the social concerns affecting African-Americans.
Following Akbar's lecture, the scheduled volunteer work will begin and continue until 3 p.m.
Robert Clay, the assistant director of the Office of Intercultural Programs and co-chair of the planning committee, has been working to organize the day of service. Clay has been with SRU for five years and is the one who originally came up with the idea of creating the day of service dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr.
"Dr. King fought for civil liberties for all people, and the Martin Luther King Day
of Service is a great opportunity to honor his life and legacy," Clay said.
DaNine J. Fleming, director of the Office of Intercultural Programs, makes sure that the volunteer programs for this event run smoothly as possible while giving back to the community and getting involved. As a part of her job, Fleming supports services designed for the diverse minority student population at SRU.
Fleming said she believes that students should get involved for a variety of reasons.
"We have people going (that) want to assist our community any way they can," Fleming said. "What could be a better way to join the community then to work shoulder to shoulder with others who have the same goal?"
She also said she thinks that this the day of service is a great way to bring the entire community together.
"It doesn't matter what race or gender you are, because completing the project and giving back is what truly matters," she said. "It is a great way to commemorate such a wonderful man."
Sade Battle, a junior communication major, works for the committee's registration services and has been volunteering with the Office of Intercultural Programs for two years. She will also be attending nursing homes and elementary schools with some of the other volunteers on Martin Luther King Day.
"When a man had a dream (his whole life) to give back and seeing how (what we're doing) affects the lives of the children and elders we help is wonderful," Battle said.
Students are encouraged to get involved with the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service and can go to the SRU homepage in order to sign up.
The AmeriCorps Program is also holding volunteer programs for Martin Luther King Day. And according to Alice Kaiser-Drobney, there are 7,500 members around the world who participate in volunteering in their local communities through AmeriCorps.
Hoops for the Hungry will be held this Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m. in the Aebersold Recreation Center. Hoops for the Hungry is a three-on-three basketball tournament for elementary students from third through sixth grades. It is run in partnership with the ARC and the Slippery Rock Park. Students will bring canned goods as a fee for entering the tournament.
The goal for Hoops for the Hungry this year is to collect 2,000 cans. All of the canned goods collected will go to the Feed My Sheep Food Cupboard, which takes care of 350 families within the Slippery Rock community.
"If every college did Hoops for the Hungry, just imagine the difference we could make," Kaiser-Drobney said.
Last year, 130 students participated in Hoops for the Hungry and AmeriCorps hopes to have an even better outcome this year. They are still looking for anyone who would
like to help out by keeping score. The tournament revolves around student involvement because the goal is to get children involved in giving back.
"We knew we wanted to get little kids involved in service and have them doing something fun," Kaiser-Drobney said. "We want them to realize that service can be fun."
AmeriCorps is also holding the Penny Power Carnival this Monday from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. There are three sites in New Castle and one
at the SRU Daycare.
The carnival will hold games for children to play while raising money by giving the pennies to Catholic Charities in New Castle. These charities will provide electricity for families during the winter. Each year, the carnival raises around $400.
"Service can be fun but the best service is finding what you are passionate about and putting it to good use," Kaiser-Drobney said.
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