Lake County Gazette

An Illinois state representative noted Martin Luther King Jr. Day by encouraging volunteerism, pointing people to a United States governmental agency that offers ways people can volunteer on that day in 2023.

Illinois State Rep. Tom Weber (R-Lake Villa) encouraged people ahead of Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Jan. 17 to volunteer in their communities to celebrate that day while directing them to AmeriCorps, which connects Americans to volunteer opportunities.

Martin Luther King Jr. was a civil rights leader “known for his work on racial equality and ending racial segregation in the United States,” National Today wrote. King, who was born on Jan. 15, 1929, and who was assassinated on April 4, 1968, would have been 93.

“‘Everybody can be great, because everybody can serve …You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love.’ This Monday is #MLKDayofService. Learn more and find volunteer opportunities in your community,” Weber said on Facebook, with a link to Americorp. 

AmeriCorps offers resources for MLK Day of Service, and encourages people to “plan ahead for MLK Day 2023” so that they can volunteer on the third Monday in January. Among resources, it has self-starter project ideas and toolkits.

“MLK Day is the only federal holiday designated as a national day of service to encourage all Americans to volunteer to improve their communities,” AmeriCorps’ website said. “AmeriCorps has been charged with leading this effort for the past quarter century.”

Volunteering for the MLK Day of Service engages people in their communities and honors Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy, AmeriCorps said.

King was a talented orator.  One of his most famous speeches is the “I have a dream speech” which he delivered on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in August of 1963, according to NPR.  In this speech he famously said, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”

The activist was the youngest man to receive The Nobel Peace Prize, in 1964. He was 35, The Nobel Prize site said. “When notified of his selection, he announced that he would turn over the prize money of $54,123 to the furtherance of the civil rights movement."

King had survived an assassination attempt in the fall of 1958 but continued to preach and practice non-violence.  In April of 1968, King traveled to Memphis to support sanitation workers that were on strike.  He was standing on the balcony of his hotel when he was assassinated, according to History.com.