On MLK Day, a morning to serve

Several Elon Law students, administrators, faculty and friends packed food, produced scarves, and created Valentine’s Day cards for local seniors as part of the 2018 Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service organized by The Volunteer Center of Greensboro.

Members of the Elon Law community honored the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday by taking part in a citywide service event that reflected the same spirit of selflessness and service that has defined the late civil rights leader.

Students, administrators and faculty joined with hundreds of others from across the region – college students, parents with young children, retirees – at the Four Seasons Town Centre for the 2018 Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service organized by The Volunteer Center of Greensboro.

Volunteers created “no-sew scarves” with strips of fabric. They penned Valentine’s Day messages for seniors. They stuffed “snack packs” for distribution to those in need.

“I try to find every opportunity to volunteer and it’s wonderful to see so many people on their day off get involved with service,” said Sade Moten, a member of Elon Law’s Class of 2019.

Her classmates shared similar sentiments at the Jan. 15 mall gathering. “Dr. King was the epitome of a public servant,” said James Harris, a member of the Class of 2019. “Things like today represent what he was about.”

At Elon Law, the Black Law Students Association and Elon Law’s Pro Bono Board helped recruit volunteers for the Day of Service in coordination with Stacie Dooley, director of Student Life for the law school.

“We think it’s important to help further Dr. King’s mission of service to all people in our communities,” Dooley said. “And we were excited to see so many of our students participate today.”

Programs that celebrate King’s legacy continue this week with a Jan. 16 address at 12:30 p.m. in the law school’s Room 207 by Professor and Dean Emeritus George Johnson, followed Jan. 17 by a “Circle of Hope” conversation at 5:30 p.m. in Room 105.