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Register for MLK Day of Service (January 19, 2026)

Register HERE to Volunteer

MLK Day of Service - “A Day On, Not A Day Off

MLK Day of Service: January 19th, 2026 (8:00am-12:00pm)  

Volunteer Event Details: 

Cal Poly Humboldt students, staff and faculty, and community members are invited to participate in a morning of community service. Volunteer and support our Humboldt community! 

Breakfast snacks, coffee & tea provided.

Event Schedule:

8:00-8:20am: Volunteer Registration & Breakfast Snacks/Coffee (catered)

  • Sign-in, project check-in, and field trip roster forms
  • Glove distribution
  • Light breakfast snacks and drinks available

8:20am: Welcome Message

  • Welcome remarks
  • Project & logistics overview

8:30am: Group Photo

8:40am: Load Busses and Departure for Community-Based Sites

8:40-9:00am: Travel to Community Sites

9:00am-11:45am: Engagement & Reflection at Community-Based Sites

11:45am-12:00pm: Return to Campus and/or Head Home 

 

Volunteer Projects / Community Site Descriptions

Black Humboldt (10 volunteers)

Volunteers will assist with indoor and outdoor site/office improvement projects. Projects may include: furniture building and moving; space organization; hanging shelving; unpacking; and filing paperwork. Black Humboldt is a community-based, grassroots organization offering cultural, arts and educational programming to the Black and Brown communities of The Redwood Region of California.

 
Boys and Girls Club of the Redwoods (10 volunteers)

Volunteers will help to clean, sort, and maintain high-use program spaces, including garden projects at the Eureka Clubhouse and Teen Center.  Volunteers will not be engaging with youth during this volunteer event. The Boys and Girls Club of the Redwoods serves the community as a youth development program for children ages 6 to 18.

 
Centro del Pueblo (30 volunteers)

Volunteers will support outdoor projects at the garden or farm sites. Projects may include: removing invasive plants: preparing beds for spring planting; mulching pathways; composting; organizing a seed library and tool area; and painting garden signs. Centro del Pueblo creates a safe space for the empowerment of Immigrants, Indigenous Peoples from the South, and members of the Latine community on California's North Coast. Centro's work brings awareness about Immigrant Humans Rights through the revitalization of cultural, artistic and wellbeing practices.

 
Jefferson Community Center (30 volunteers)

Volunteers will assist with indoor and outdoor site improvement projects at this urban community space in Eureka. Indoor projects may include: sorting/organizing supplies, breaking down/moving Christmas decorations and supplies. Outdoor projects may include: landscaping and beautification projects. The Jefferson Community Center and Westside Community Improvement Association (WCIA) supports and facilitates programs to revitalize neighborhoods by increasing recreational, educational and vocational opportunities.

 
Northcoast Regional Land Trust (NRLT) (60 volunteers)

Volunteers will work outside to assist with invasive plant removal to enhance wetland restoration projects and improve the public-access Nature Trail at Freshwater Farms Reserve. This 74-acre multi-use property owned and operated by the Northcoast Regional Land Trust, welcomes people of all ages to explore coastal wetlands alongside agricultural pastures, and protects native biodiversity and local rangelands thanks to volunteers like you! 

 
OhSnap! Food Pantry - Cal Poly Humboldt Campus (10 volunteers)

Volunteers will help sort donations for the campus thrift store. Volunteers will also assist with food sorting and pantry cleaning to prepare for the first day of school! This program serves students at Cal Poly Humboldt in providing access to food and basic needs resources.

 

MLK Day of Service - Event Description

Each January, Cal Poly Humboldt students, staff, faculty, and community members are invited to join in a morning of community service on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. This is a wonderful opportunity to contribute to local organizations while commemorating the life and legacy of Dr. King. 

What is Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Why is it a “Day of Service?”

Legislation signed in 1983 marked the birthday of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as a federal holiday.  In 1994, Congress designated the Martin Luther King, Jr. Federal Holiday as a national day of service.  Each year, on the third Monday in January, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service is observed as a “day on, not a day off.

Who organizes this event? 

The MLK Day of Service is a collaborative event organized by several programs at Cal Poly Humboldt. 

MLK Day of Service is Organized and Supported By:
  • Youth Educational Services (Y.E.S.)
  • Umoja Center for Pan African Excellence
  • Place-Based Learning Communities (PBLC)
  • Office of Student Life
  • Diverse Male Scholars Initiative (DMSI)
  • Division of Enrollment Management & Student Success

Testimonials from MLK Day of Service Volunteers and Community Partners

Student Volunteer Reflection

“After attending my first MLK Day of Service event, I really look forward to being able to participate in future events like this one on campus and in the community! It was super rewarding being able to connect with peers in a face-to-face setting and share the significance of the holiday while giving back and building community with one another.” 

- Autumn Cry-Mark, Cal Poly Humboldt student and Y.E.S. student leader 

Community Partner Feedback

"MLK Day with YES House has become a tradition. From our inception, participants from the University have come and invested their time and talents in beautifying and building up our Community Center. The Jefferson Community Center, located in an formerly abandoned school, is founded and led by neighbors in the most ethnically diverse and lowest median income section of Eureka. Through volunteerism and community support, together we have created the bustling, beautiful heartbeat of our neighborhood.  THANK YOU!"

- Heidi Benzonelli, President Westside Community Improvement Association

“Volunteers made a huge difference on the land at Freshwater Farms Reserve this Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service. Volunteers bravely battled a towering, seemingly endless blackberry bramble along the slough. After a few hours of work, they cleared several yards of the invasive blackberry wall, which greatly improves conditions for native plants, including saplings planted this winter, to establish and reclaim the space. Volunteers also helped maintain the row crop area, and clear tree limbs from the public access trail. Ongoing stewardship of Freshwater Farms Reserve, and the wildlife, agriculture, and people it supports, is only possible with the many volunteers, partners, financial contributors, and more who care for the land. Thank you for showing up to steward local lands!"

- Nadia Van Lynn, Outreach and Development Director Northcoast Regional Land Trust 

 

MLK Day Of Civic Engagement January 2021 and 2022 - A Recap

January 2022

Closing Speaker: Bree Newsome - Virtual Speaker & Guest

Monday, January 17th, 2022 (8:00am-1:30pm)

Schedule for the Day

8:00-8:15am: Volunteer Registration & Breakfast Snacks/Coffee (catered)

  • Sign-in, release of liability, and field trip roster forms
  • T-shirt and glove distribution
  • Drinks and granola bars available (room off lobby)

8:20am: Welcome Message

  • Welcome remarks: Dr. Eboni Ford Turnbow
  • Project & logistics overview: Melea Smith

8:30am: Group Photo

8:40am: Load Busses and Departure for Community-Based Sites

9:00-10:45am: Engagement at Community-Based Sites

  • Off-campus: 3-4 community sites (Eureka and Arcata)
  • On Campus: Event clean-up and OhSnap!

10:45-11:00am: Return to campus

11:00-11:15: Grab & Go Lunch

  • Return work gloves

12:00-1:25pm: Closing Speaker (Bree Newsome)

  • Hyflex event in the Great Hall (with Zoom access for virutal attendees)
  • Closing speaker
  • Q & A / Reflection

1:25-1:30pm: Evaluations

 

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January 2021 

A Morning of Civic Engagement & Community Organizing Workshops *Virtual
Monday, January 18th, 2021 (9:30am-12:30pm)
Schedule & Recordings for the Day

9:35-10:00am: Land/Labor Acknowledgement & Welcome Message 

9:50-11:00am: Keynote Speaker - LaTosha Brown

11:05am-12:00pm: Break Out Sessions (2 workshops offered)

  • Art and Community Activism
  • The Salvation of Democracy: Civic Engagement of the Dispossessed
    • Presented by: Ron White from Humboldt Area Foundation & Chair of a National Organizing Network
    • Movements are often spearheaded by those most oppressed in society but results in the expansion of the democratic promise for all. This presentation will explore how marginalized communities have organized and breathed life into campaigns that have expanded our franchise of participation. We will use this conversation to explore what this means for local politics
    • Recording: https://youtu.be/Ql7rEdeXG2I

12:00-12:30pm: Reflection & Closing 

 

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