This MLK Day, Find Greatness within Yourself through Service
By Barbara L. Stewart, CEO, Corporation for National and Community Service
This year marks 25 years since Congress designated Martin Luther King Day as a national Day of Service. The Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) is charged with leading this effort, guided by the wishes of Dr. King’s heirs and contemporaries to make his birthday more than just a celebration of his life but also to encourage volunteering to improve communities and our nation.
Dr. King’s life holds as many lessons for us today as it did during his time as a leader of the Civil Rights movement in the 1950s and 60s. He challenged us to strive toward creating a “Beloved Community” based on principles of love, justice, and equality for all our citizens.
One of the ways we can achieve this vision is through service and volunteering. Some of the most prescient thoughts from the many teachings Dr. King left as his legacy came from his sermon on the “Drum Major Instinct.” In a society seeking to build a life with meaning, his words are just as impactful as they were more than 50 years ago:
“If you want to be important — wonderful. If you want to be recognized — wonderful. If you want to be great — wonderful. But recognize that he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. That’s a new definition of greatness.
“…By giving that definition of greatness, it means that everybody can be great, because everybody can serve.”
We can understand the true meaning of greatness when we volunteer and share love, empathy, and grace with one another. Service gives us a chance to experience an incredible feeling because you look to help others first.
Examples of this service are all around us. Follow an AmeriCorps team into a disaster zone and see how they serve communities. Go into a community with an AmeriCorps VISTA member who works relentlessly to end the challenges that accompany poverty.
Meet one of the veterans who proudly served their country on the battlefield and decided to serve again building and repairing homes, battling the opioid epidemic, or supporting other veterans who need a helping hand to reacclimate to civilian life.
Assist a neighbor in need with daily tasks such as grocery shopping. Walk to school with a Foster Grandparent to see how they bring patience and love to help little ones with their class assignments. Drive with a Senior Companion to meet a family that appreciates the time they spend to make others’ lives easier.
Whether you join in helping a neighbor in need or dedicate time to volunteer with a local organization, you are setting an example of service others can follow.
On behalf of CNCS, we encourage all Americans to find ways to serve on MLK Day and throughout the year to make our country better for all who call it home.
Make the holiday “a day on, not a day off.”
Barbara L. Stewart is the CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service, the federal agency that leads AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and the nation’s volunteer efforts. You can learn more about how to volunteer in your community at MLKDay.gov.
