On Jan. 19, more than 200 residents of all ages took advantage of having the day off from work or school and chose to give back to the community at Mt. Lebanon’s second MLK Day of Service, an event sponsored by the Mt. Lebanon Civic Engagement Board. This year’s event grew from last year’s, both in volunteer numbers and project locations. Participants had several volunteer options, including leading bingo and serving lunch at Asbury Heights, assembling hygiene kits for Global Links, making valentines for senior citizens, and preparing sandwiches for residents of downtown Pittsburgh shelters, a project of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church.
The idea for the Day of Service in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. came from the prior iteration of the Civic Engagement Board, the Mt. Lebanon Community Relations Board, as well as the ad hoc diversity, equity and inclusion committee. According to Kelsey Leigh, a current Civic Engagement Board member and chair of the 2025 and 2026 Days of Service, the idea resurfaced during the November 2024 Civic Engagement Board meeting, was discussed and was voted on affirmatively by the board. Leigh said, “The goal was to celebrate MLK Day and Dr. King’s legacy as a municipality and a community and for the Civic Engagement Board to host an event in the spirit of the board’s name: civic engagement and service.”
Members of the Civic Engagement Board are hopeful that the MLK Day of Service will continue as an annual event that the Mt. Lebanon community looks forward to and that participation will grow each year.
