UTRGV students Dennis Rodriguez (left) and Alberto Vilano gather leaves at the Old City Cemetery in Brownsville during last year’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service. Americans across the country come together on the King holiday in service to others. MICHELLE ESPINOZA/THE RIDER FILE PHOTO
The Office of Student Involvement at UTRGV has teamed up with several local nonprofit organizations throughout the Valley to host this year’s Martin Luther King Day of Service from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday.
“With MLK day we are trying to pretty much honor Martin Luther King Jr. and trying to instill what he’s been teaching, or what he taught, into our students: creating a more beloved community and giving back to our community and the importance of working together,” said Yaribel Caraveo, Leadership and Social Change coordinator for UTRGV’s Student Involvement.
More than 700 volunteers served the community during last year’s Day of Service. As of last Friday, 500 people had registered to participate in this year’s event.
“This year, we hope to match or surpass last year’s numbers,” said Raul Leal, program coordinator for Leadership and Social Change for UTRGV’s Student Involvement.
The event is open to the campus community, offering students, faculty and staff 35 different organizations, to volunteer for, valley wide.
“If faculty wants to bring their children, because it is a holiday and some students don’t go to school, by all means they are more than welcome to participate with their parents,” Caraveo said. “As well as the students, if they have children or family members that want to participate, they are more than welcome to participate.
To view the full list of volunteer opportunities and to register visit the Engagement Zone portal at ez.utrgv.edu
“We have a new portal called ‘Engagement Zone,’ Caraveo said. “You log on with your UTRGV credentials and from there you’ll see MLK Day of Service 2017. … Students will get to see the different agencies we are working with and also, specifically, the projects that they will be doing. So, you’d be able to see the agency name, the location it would be taking place in, and the activity that they’ll be participating in.”
Among the 35 organizations that need assistance are the Salvation Army of Hidalgo County, the Valley Nature Center in Weslaco, Keep Brownsville Beautiful and the National Butterfly Center in Mission.
“We are a nonprofit and we have 100 acres, it’s a lot,” said Angie Garcia, administrative assistant at the National Butterfly Center. “We have three full-time employees outside that take care of all those acres and so, you know, we could use a lot of volunteer help. We like to educate and teach as people come in. So they help us but we like to teach them, too.”
Garcia said this is the third time the center participates.
“It’s a big help, believe it or not,” she said. “Even though they are only here for a few hours, it’s stuff that could take one of us a few days to take care of. So it’s a really big help, whether it’s picking seeds, even picking up the trash. They help us water, they help out in our garden, planting trees or moving plants around. It’s a big help.”
The deadline to register to participate in this year’s Day of Service is noon Wednesday.
