On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Palm Beach Atlantic University students served alongside hundreds of volunteers across Palm Beach County, partnering with the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County to serve on MLK day. This event has been going on for over a decade, and this is the sixth year that the two faith communities have served in this partnership.
The event had close to 1,000 volunteers serving at 15 non-profit organizations. Volunteers packed homeless relief bags, provided meals for the homeless, donated approximately 10,000 pounds of peppers for local food banks, and worked with homebound elders. Volunteers also visited five different animal shelters and supported the animals in need.
MLK Day of Service brought two locally involved religious communities together. The longstanding collaboration between the Jewish Federation and PBA has been a partnership with the help of the County’s Kohl Jewish Center and Worship.
“The synergy between Jewish and Christian communities working together truly exemplifies Dr. Martin Luther King’s mission of allyship," said Amy Gordon, the director of the Jewish Volunteer Center. “The spirit of collaboration and service highlights the strength and unity of our community as we come together to make a positive impact.”
In accordance with its Christian values, PBA requires students to serve the community for at least 45 hours per year in order to graduate in a program called Workship. Nathan Chau, the Workship Director, explained that this year’s MLK Day of Service had its own unique challenges.
“This year's event was different because of the rain. Two of our initiatives had to be rescheduled for another day, which meant we had to move volunteers around to new locations,” Chau said. Fortunately, all of the volunteers were still excited to go serve!"
Several PBA students, including Keelan Tidwell and Trace Kirkland, served in the project on PBA’s Rinker Campus, alongside Meals of Hope. Both students expressed the way PBA’s Christian values aligned with the holiday itself.
“Serving means a lot to me especially, with this event because it is Martin Luther King Day, and he did a lot when he was alive and he made such a big difference,” said Kirkland. “It is such a big thing as Christ's followers as we are called to serve as Jesus served others.”
Tidwell highlighted the correlation between PBA’s 2024-2024 theme verse and the MLK Day of Service.
“MLK Day is a great way for PBA students to serve the community. The Great Commission is something that PBA lives by, and that is our theme verse for this year. It is important to serve your community first,” said Tidwell.
Dr. King's dream was to have all people of races and backgrounds share an America marked by freedom and democracy.
“I believe this dream was accomplished with a variety of service projects, ranging from providing meals and spending time with the elderly,” says Chau.
By Ava D'Andrea
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