Nonprofits Awarded Grants to Engage Thousands in Service, Discussion on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service

Corporation for National and Community Service, Points of Light Bring Americans Together to Honor Dr. King's Legacy

ATLANTA, Dec. 6, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Six organizations have been awarded grants to lead service projects and dialogue on the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service to transform Dr. King's life and teachings into community service that helps create change in communities across the country. All these organizations will bring communities together to bridge differences and address homelessness, hunger and poverty that American families and veterans face today.

On MLK Day, Jan. 16, 2012, Americans of every age and background will honor Dr. King by volunteering in their communities. Projects will take place in all 50 states, including delivering meals, refurbishing schools and community centers, collecting food and clothing, supporting veterans and military families and more, with many projects starting on MLK Day and lasting throughout the year.

Americans will also gather for America's Sunday Suppers, a shared meal and discussion of issues affecting their communities. Anyone can register a Sunday Supper to become eligible to win for a $25 Restaurant.com gift certificate, or join the national conversation by connecting online via Twitter (#MLKDay), Facebook and Points of Light's online Livestream channel to share their experiences, perspectives and insights. You can find a service project near you or register you own project online.

As part of its MLK Day efforts, the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) awards grants to organizations to help mobilize more Americans to serve on MLK Day and throughout the year.  CNCS awarded a $155,000 grant to Points of Light, which awarded six sub-grants through its volunteer activation enterprise HandsOn Network that will mobilize more than 185,000 volunteers and impact more than 500,000 people. Grantees include:

MLK365 - $30,000 grant

The 17th annual Global Citizen/Greater Philadelphia King Day of Service is expected to be the largest MLK Day event in the nation. Approximately 80,000 volunteers of all ages and backgrounds from Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware will participate in more than 1,200 community projects, resulting in breaking down barriers, building ongoing partnerships and promoting a realization that we have more in common than our differences.

Volunteer Center of Greensboro - $30,000 grant

Each of the 125 schools in Guilford County, N.C., will take part in service learning experiences center on the life of work of Dr. King as part of The Volunteer Center of Greensboro's (TVC) MLK Day efforts. TVC is partnering with nonprofit agencies and the Guilford County Schools to lead a county-wide service kickoff on MLK Day and continuing through January.

HandsOn Central California - $15,000 grant

HandsOn Central California's Operation Yellow Ribbon asks people to remember when the country rallied to show their support for our military by wearing yellow ribbons of support 10 years ago. This year, they are asking 5,000 people to renew their commitment by participating in service projects for active military, their families and veterans. HandsOn Central California will host seven Yellow Ribbon America's Sunday Suppers to create conversations about the needs of the military community and how to implement the Community Blueprint to better address these needs along with creating Community Action Teams in every local community.

Virginia Conflict Resolution Center - $15,000 grant

For more than 20 years, the Virginia Conflict Resolution Center (VCRC) has shown an intense passion for building capacity for peace through a multitude of community service projects. For Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, the VCRC will expand on past successes by enabling nearly 6,000 volunteers throughout Hampton Roads to make a difference in their community. "Operation Appreciation" will utilize a network of volunteers and organizations to connect military service members, veterans and their families to service they need, thank them for their commitment to the country and build care packages for those still deployed overseas.

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. - $15,000 grant

Each of Alpha Kappa Alpha's more than 950 chapters will simultaneously host America's Sunday Suppers around the globe to commemorate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. More than 20,000 are expected to participate in dinner, a movie, meaningful discussion and service projects. The sorority will also engage 5,000 middle school girls participating in its Emerging Young Leaders program in service projects focused on human rights and creating equal opportunities for all Americans.

HandsOn Greater DC Cares - $15,000 grant

HandsOn Greater DC Cares is hosting its 13^th annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service. This year's observance will engage 1,650 corporate, community and student volunteers in service at 30 nonprofit and school partners. In addition, HandsOn Greater DC Cares and Serve DC will work with a coalition of nonprofit partners to mobilize 12,000 volunteers in the month of January to build nonprofit capacity, ensuring that area nonprofits are able to mobilize volunteers year-round.

In 1994, Congress passed legislation encouraging Americans to observe MLK Day as a national day of service that brings people together from different backgrounds to meet needs in their community. The Corporation for National and Community Service was designated as the lead federal agency to execute MLK Day. MLK Day provides Americans the opportunity to celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. King through service to meet local and national needs. For more information visit MLKDay.gov.

About the Corporation for National and Community Service

The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that engages more than five million Americans in service through its Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America programs, and leads President Barack Obama's national call to service initiative, United We Serve. For more information, visit NationalService.gov

About Points of Light

Points of Light is the world's leading volunteer organization, with more than 20 years of history and a bipartisan presidential legacy. Our mission is to inspire, equip and mobilize people to take action that changes the world. We connect people to their power to make a meaningful difference, by providing access to tools, resources and opportunities to help volunteers use their time, talent, voice and money to meet the critical needs of our communities. We are organized to innovate, incubate and activate new ideas through our action networks, including: HandsOn Network, the largest network of 250 local volunteer centers across the country and around the world; generationOn, the youth service movement that ignites the power of kids to make their mark on the world; AmeriCorps Alums, the national service alumni network that activates the next generation of service leaders; and Points of Light Corporate Institute, which enables companies to engage their employees and customers in service. For more information, visit www.PointsofLight.org.

Contact:
Sandy Scott, Corporation for National and Community Service
202.606.6724
[email protected]

Anne O’Neill, Points of Light
404.844.5360
[email protected]

SOURCE Points of Light