Messiah College to commemorate Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday with service and educational experiences in Harrisburg
January 17th, 2008
GRANTHAM, Pa. (Jan. 17, 2008) — Messiah College invites your coverage of its third annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Engagement Day on Jan. 21, an event involving 60 students, faculty and staff celebrating King’s life and vision through a variety of service and educational activities in Harrisburg. Funding for the day’s activities is courtesy of a grant from Sovereign Bank.
The onsite contact for this event is Becky Owen, local community service director for The Agape Center for Service and Learning at Messiah College; she can be reached via cell phone at (717) 856-9820. (Please note: Messiah College offices will be closed Jan. 21 in observation of King’s birthday.)
City tour – 9:15 a.m. to 10:45 a.m.
Participants will embark on a tour of the city to include the downtown, midtown, uptown and Allison Hill communities. This driving tour of Harrisburg is a collaborative effort between students of Messiah College and the City of Harrisburg to create an experience where participants learn about the city’s social groups and structures, history, politics, economics, civil rights movement, entertainment and other attractions. Messiah College student coordinator Katrina Peters trained students to lead the tour.
Panel discussion and lunch with community leaders – 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Following the tour, participants will gather at Grace United Methodist Church (216 State Street) to hear from a panel of community leaders including Craig Peiffer, president of the board of directors for Historic Harrisburg Association; Rev. Nate Gadsden, counselor at Harrisburg’s Science and Technology High School; Rev. LaVette R. Paige, pastor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Baptist Church; and Ann Lyon, coordinator of Harrisburg Civil Rights Oral History Project.
Community service activities – 1:40 p.m. to 3:40 p.m.
Participants will travel to one of several community partners for an afternoon of service projects including:
• Harrisburg Brethren in Christ Church (2217 Derry Street) to assist with renovating the youth room. The church is a growing, multi-cultural, urban church committed to community outreach through its food pantry as well as its children, youth and adult ministries.
• Silence of Mary Home (1411 Market St.) to hear from a current Harrisburg resident who has served as a sanitation worker and whose experiences reflect themes in this year’s highlighted King speech, “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop.” Following, students will interact with residents and hear their stories.
For more information on Messiah College’s commemoration of King, visit www.messiah.edu/mlk.