Monday’s federal holiday honoring Martin Luther King Jr. has turned into much more than a day to take off work and let loose, as thousands of Washington-area residents prepare to volunteer in honor of the slain civil rights leader.
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Day has become a day of service for most jurisdictions in the region, with events scheduled for residents to go out into their communities and give back, to celebrate King’s dream.
Food and Friends, a nonprofit that delivers meals to people suffering from HIV, AIDS, cancer and other life-challenging illnesses, will team with about 30 FedEx volunteers to distribute more than 3,000 meals to residents throughout the Washington region.
| MLK Day events |
| Park Service King Memorial |
| The National Park Service will hold a wreath-laying observance at the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial at noon on Sunday. |
| Montgomery County Day of Service |
| Decorate cards for troops, make sandwiches for local shelters and pack snow day boxes for Meals on Wheels at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel and Conference Center, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Monday. |
| Washington National Cathedral |
| The church will hold its Martin Luther King Jr. Day program at 2 p.m. Monday. |
| Capitol Heights March |
| Capitol Heights officials will hold a community march in honor of King at 2 p.m. Monday, starting at the town hall. |
| Fairfax County Celebration |
| The Richmond Boys Choir highlight a number of performances at the ninth annual McLean Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration at the McLean Community Center, from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Monday. |
Montgomery County officials will hold a food drive at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel and Conference Center, just one of many service projects available to residents throughout the county on Monday.
Thousands are also expected to trek to the District to visit the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial, which opened in August. This will be the first year the memorial will be open on MLK Day, and the National Park Service will hold a wreath-laying ceremony at the site at noon on Sunday, in honor of King’s 83rd birthday-anniversary.
Prince George’s County resident Darryl Barnes said he plans to take his children to the memorial on Monday.
“That’s my way of teaching them what this day is all about,” said Barnes, president of the nonprofit Men Aiming Higher. “As a black man born in the 1960s, this is a real special moment for me, to finally be able to realize the freedoms and things we now have available to us. … It’s important for these kids to understand the civil liberties that Martin was fighting for.”
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced Friday that the misquoted inscription on the King memorial would be changed within 30 days.
The misquote drew criticism from activists such as poet Maya Angelou.
“I do not think it’s an accurate portrayal of what Dr. King was,” Salazar said.
Other events and concerts in the District on Monday will be held in honor of King, from a “Let Freedom Ring” concert at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to a special exhibit on King’s legacy at the National Museum of American History.
