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CITY OF MARTIN and UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE AT MARTIN ANNOUNCE MLK DAY OF SERVICE
January 10, 2024 – MARTIN, TENN.: The City of Martin and the University of Tennessee at Martin officially announce Day of Service plans for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day on January 20, 2025, at 9am at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center (15 Mt. Pelia Road, Martin, TN). The planning committee composed of city officials, university officials, and the UTM Black Student Association has organized the Day Of Service to package 20,000 meals to address the need of food insecurity in Martin/Weakley County.
The Day of Service activities will open with a Call to Action from Dr. Yancy Freeman, Chancellor of the University of Tennessee at Martin followed with instructions for volunteers who will be organizing and packaging the 20,000 meals. The meals will serve the Martin/Weakley County community and will be distributed to local food banks and pantries to assist those with food insecurity needs.
Churches, community organizations and individuals, along with UT Martin faculty, staff and students, are all invited to participate in the Day of Service. Participants are encouraged to register online to participate at https://runway.utm.edu/submitter/form/start/667865. An email confirmation receipt will be sent to confirm registration. If anyone should experience any issues with online registration or needs assistance, please contact Mr. Brad Thompson at Martin City Hall at 731.587.3126 or [email protected] or Mr. Kameron Echols at UT Martin at 731.881.1864 or [email protected].
The packaging event is a coordinated effort with the Meals of Hope organization in Nashville, TN. Meals of Hope is a nonprofit organization 501(c)(3) that is committed to bringing people together to fight the hunger epidemic. Founded in 2007 in Southwest Florida, Meals of Hope has packed over 100 million meals that have been donated to communities in need across the nation and around the world. (“Home – Meals of Hope Tennessee”) For more information about Meals of Hope, visit their website at https://mealsofhope.org/tennessee/.
“This event comes with a cost, and we are thankful for the UT Martin Student Organizations, community businesses, and individuals who donated to make this Day of Service possible,” said Kameron Echols, Director of Multicultural Affairs at UT Martin. Mr. Echols also reflected on thoughts that Martin Luther King Jr. believed that people should have access to food, education, and dignity. Dr. King said, “I have the audacity to believe that people everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education, and culture for their minds and dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits.” He believed the idea that poverty, hunger, and homelessness should not be tolerated.
Brad Thompson, Director of Economic and Community Development for the City of Martin, stated, “Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. also said, ‘Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, What are you doing for others?’ What a good activity for us to honor Dr. King’s legacy in service to others.”
Event: UT Martin and City of Martin – MLK Day of Service
Date: January 20. 2025
Time: 9:00am, arrive by 8:45am
Call To Action: Dr. Yancy Freeman, Chancellor, University of Tennessee at Martin
Location: Tom & Kathleen Elam Center
Number of Meals: 20,000
