More than 150 Hamilton students, faculty and administrators turned out to honor Dr. Martin Luther King's legacy through service on Saturday, Jan. 20, as they took part in Hamilton's 3rd Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Community Service Day.
Assistant Dean of Students and Director of Multicultural Affairs Karen Green, coordinator of the Service Day, said, "this service project is one attempt to bridge the gap between the forces that keep us from truly knowing each other. We went to communities to serve those individuals whose life circumstances are very different than our existence here on the Hill."
Participants spent the day volunteering at 10 local organizations, including the American Red Cross, Hope House, New Horizons, Loretto Center, Cosmopolitan Center, St. Francis DeSales Church, Thea Bowman House, Insight House, ElderLife and Lutheran Homes of Central New York.
The volunteers spent the day cleaning, painting, sorting clothing, and organizing food pantries. Dean Green says, "We did things these organizations needed done but don't have always have the time for because other work takes precedence. This was the perfect opportunity for our volunteer groups to do a one-shot deal and tackle these projects. Our volunteers are young and energetic and they can do in four hours a project that might otherwise take two weeks to do," Green said.
The project has grown in three years, from 115 participants the first year working at eight sites, to this year's record number of more than 150 volunteers at 10 locations.
Green noted that the results of the previous years' efforts are still being felt. Several members of the Hamilton community still visit the sites they worked at, and others have been asked to serve on Boards of some of the organizations.
More photographs of MLK Service Day.
