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Events: Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Virginia Wesleyan observes holiday with collaborative community event and special presentation
News Release | January 18, 2016
Photos: "I Have a Dream for My Community"
On Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Jan. 18), volunteers from Virginia Wesleyan College joined Western Bayside Community United, the Virginia Beach Police Department and Bayside High School for a community day at Good Samaritan Episcopal Church on Baker Road.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service event, themed “I Have a Dream for My Community," focused on literacy and creating positive relationships between police officers and youth in the Western Bayside area of Virginia Beach.
Officers from Virginia Beach’s third precinct built a Little Free Library that will be installed at Good Samaritan and helped participants write down their dreams for the neighborhood. Virginia Wesleyan and Bayside High School students created literacy stations featuring storytelling (with tales of Martin Luther King Jr.), fun with reading recipes and making snacks, and the creation of bookmarks inspired by a walk through the Western Bayside Community Garden.
This celebration characterizes the ongoing collaborative relationship between Virginia Wesleyan College and the neighboring Western Bayside and Lake Edward community. For more than 25 years, the College’s community service efforts—including elementary school mentoring programs like Marlins Read and Marlins Count and the more recent Readings With Wesleyan adult education program—have made a difference in the area.
The Virginia Wesleyan community had an additional opportunity to reflect on the life Martin Luther King Jr. Monday evening with the presentation of “Against All Odds,” by Dr. Adrienne Coqueran. During this special Winter Session event, Dr. Coqueran shared her inspiring story of determination and the obstacles she overcame on her journey to becoming a physician.
For more information on upcoming events and service opportunities, visit the Campus Events Calendar.