On Jan. 16, the Center for African American Students and the Huntington-Cabell Branch of the NAACP hosted the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service and Celebration in honor of the federal holiday.

From 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., there were various community service projects, and the event culminated with the Community Celebration Dinner in the Don Morris Room of the Memorial Student Center. The dinner featured a keynote address by Huntington Police Chief Karl Colder, the first African American to hold that title in the city. 

Community service projects included a community cleanup where volunteers came together to clean, repair and improve public spaces. According to the Herald Dispatch, the holiday and service day had the goal of “encouraging residents to give back to the communities that have built them,” in hopes to honor the memory and values of King Jr. in building a more inclusive America.

The event also included a voters registration station, a canned food drive as well as a clothing collection and donation drive where volunteers assisted in organizing and passing out clothing items. 

For participants sixteen and under, the A.D. Lewis Community Center hosted an arts and crafts center where volunteers also received a free lunch after the morning activities.