HOMESTEAD, FLA. (WSVN) - Volunteers across South Florida rolled up their sleeves and performed acts of service in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Monday was a day on, not off, for those serving communities across South Florida.
In Fort Lauderdale, volunteers gave back through community clean-up and beautification projects.
“They’re just to help revitalize the community and keep it clean,” said volunteer Whitney Wolfgang. “We have four different routes today, so they’re scattered across the neighborhood right now.”
The YMCA of South Florida spent the holiday morning doing service projects at Juan Pablo Duarte Park.
In Brownsville, volunteers with the nonprofit City Year spent the day painting educational murals and beautifying outdoor spaces.
“It’s important for us to go into schools in our communities and beautify them and make them a really great experience for our students,” said volunteer Carolina Hernandez.
City Year volunteers were also down in Homestead at Redlands Middle School.
“This is an opportunity to bring people from the community into our schools to help impact the community,” said Karen Velazquez-Vargas, City Year’s executive director.
Velazquez-Vargas said it’s inspiring to see so many people committed to preserving King’s legacy through service.
“People, even during the pandemic, have been willing to give up their time to give back on this day,” she said. “This today is really about the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King.”
It’s a task that, Velazquez-Vargas said, does not end when Martin Luther King Jr. Day is over.
“While today is all about Dr. King’s legacy, we know his work has to continue every day,” she said.
This is the first time in at least a year that these organizations have been able to do these service projects in person.
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