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Posted December 16, 2009

Events bring King’s legacy to lifeEvents bring King’s legacy to life

Temple remembers civil rights leader through day of service

“Everybody can be great, because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve. You don't have to know the second theory of thermodynamics in physics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, and a soul generated by love.”

Before his death in 1968, Martin Luther King Jr. spoke those words. And in just a few weeks, Temple students, faculty and staff will have an opportunity to live them by participating in a national day of service in his memory.

Temple will be a co-sponsor of the 15th Annual Greater Philadelphia Martin Luther King Day of Service, held on Jan. 18. Organized by Philadelphia-area non-profit organization Global Citizen, the event will highlight MLK 365, a program designed to stimulate year-round civic engagement and volunteerism.

For students and staff interested in participating in the citywide event, transportation to and from Girard College, which will serve as home base for community service projects throughout the day, will be provided by Temple’s Office of Community Service.
Here at Temple, departments from across the University will sponsor service activities in areas such as poverty, the environment, access to health care, and bridging the digital divide. This year’s opportunities include:

Main Campus events:

  • The Department of Nursing will partner with Norris Homes leaders to run a program for Grey Manor, a senior and disabled care community.

  • Temple and the Fresh Grocer will collect canned foods to deliver to nearby churches for their soup kitchen programs

  • The College of Education is partnering with City Year on a series of beautification projects at Olney High School, 101 West Duncannon Avenue. For more information, contact Tiffany Tavarez, assistant director of alumni affairs at the College of Education, at 267-575-8153.
  • A knit-in, organized by Linda Mauro and Cheryl Hyde of the School of Social Work, where volunteers will knit and crochet hats and scarves to be donated to local homeless shelters.

  • A clothing drive, where students, faculty and staff can drop off gently used clothing items at specially marked boxes around Main Campus. For location information, check the daily "Temple Today" e-mail.

  • A construction project, held at the Penrose Recreation Center, located at 2211 N 12th St, and sponsored by the University Community Collaborative of Philadelphia (UCCP) and YouthBUILD.

  • The Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc., Chi Omega Chapter, will install recycled computer equipment donated by Temple University to Mt. Zion Methodist Church, located on the 1500 block of North 11th Street.

Ambler Campus Events

  • Students, faculty, and staff at Ambler will help stock shelves and pack food and clothing boxes for disadvantaged families at the Mattie Dixon Community Cupboard in Ambler Borough

  • Ambler volunteers will spend time with the residents of the Silver Stream Center in Spring House to support the Crossroads Hospice.

  • The Ambler Campus Learning Center will host “King’s Dream,” a program that will feature live performances and multimedia presentations that offer a tribute to Dr. King.
To help sow the seeds of service for Temple's new students, Andrea Swan, community and neighborhood affairs director, will address all incoming students at their winter orientation, to talk about service opportunities available to them.

"It is a lot to ask a brand new student to participate in a day of service, when they're just getting acclimated to a new campus," she said. "That said, we want to make it known that Temple has a strong commitment to community service, and we want our students to share that commitment."
Ryan S. Brandenberg/Temple University
For the second year in a row, students will undertake an improvement project at the Penrose Recreation Center, near Main Campus at 12th Street and Susquehanna Avenue.
In fact, each semester at Temple begins with a day of service. At the start of the fall semester, all students participate in FreshServe, which unites students, faculty and administrators to paint, clean, plant and build at over 50 locations around Main Campus. At the start of the spring semester, all students and staff are strongly encouraged to participate in the Martin Luther King Jr. day of service.

Last year's event, which Temple hosted at the Liacouras Center, drew volunteers from around the city and region to participate in more than 150 projects, including the building of an environmentally-friendly playground at the Winchester Recreation Center, located near Temple at 15th Street between York and Dauphin streets.

"Temple's commitment to serving its surrounding community has been a cornerstone of the institution since its founding over 125 years ago. We are delighted to further that tradition by once again participating in the region's largest day of service in honor of Dr. King," said Kenneth Lawrence Jr., senior vice president for Government, Community and Public Affairs.

For more information or to register to participate in Temple's events, please contact Andrea Swan at 215-204-7409 or aswan@temple.edu. For information about city wide projects, visit MLKdayofservice.org for a list of all opportunities by zip code. For more information on Ambler Campus events, contact the Office of Student Life at Ambler at: 267-468-8425.
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