This Monday, we’ll be celebrating the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We have compiled a list of many of the MLK Day of Service projects and events (including events for the whole family) happening in West Philadelphia. We have also included information about MLK Day celebration at the African American Museum in Philadelphia.

Check www.mlkdayofservice.org to find more projects in your area. If you know of more MLK Day events or projects, please post them in the comments below.

MLK Commemorative Symposium for Social Change at University of Pennsylvania

The University of Pennsylvania and the surrounding communities come together to commemorate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This commemoration includes a day of service and special programming and events through Friday, Jan. 29, 2016 (click here for more events):

Friday, Jan. 15, 6 p.m. – God’s Great Expectations of Men of Color, Christian Association, 118 S 37th St – A panel discussion on men of color’s shared understanding of God or a higher power’s relationship to them and their mission in everyday work.

Monday, Jan. 18:

8:00 – 9:30 a.m. – MLK Day of Service Breakfast, Hall of Flags, Houston Hall, 3417 Spruce St. – Day of Service Breakfast with include performers and guest speakers, including Jasmine Senior, Affinity Group Director, NeXT Philadelphia, and Urban League Youth Outreach. Free and open to the public.

10 a.m. – 2 p.m. – Community Beautification Projects at Comegys Benjamin B School, 5100 Greenway Ave., Community Education Center (CEC), 3500 Lancaster Ave., Martha Washington School, 766 N. 44th St. Volunteers will clean, paint, and organize. Refreshments will be served. Come dressed for painting and doing light cleaning. Meet at Houston Hall for transportation to sites at 9:45 a.m. Free and open to the public. Contact: Robert Carter to register at 215.898.0104. 

10 a.m. – 1 p.m. – Children’s Banner Painting, Houston Hall, 2nd Floor Auditorium – Children of all ages will paint commemorative posters and banners while listening to music and stories about Dr. King’s life. Adult supervision of children is required. Free and open to the public.

10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. – Helping Hands at Houston Hall, Reading Room – Create personal gifts that will be donated to West Philadelphia area shelters, homes, hospitals, and charities. Free and open to the public.

10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. – Philadelphia Reads: Literacy Project, Houston Hall, Benjamin Franklin Room – Come prepared to sort books in to age appropriate groupings and create books on tape to promote literacy for Philadelphia youth. Participants are asked to bring a book(s) to donate that discuss multi-cultural issues relating to children. Free and open to the public.

MLK Day of Service at Belmont Charter School (4030 Brown St.), Monday, Jan. 18, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Projects include: Grand Opening of the Belmont Community Health Center (20 volunteers needed); Health Center Mural painters (10); Area beautification (10). Sign up for as little as an hour or stay for the entire day! Please RSVP with Ms. Aisha: 215.823.8208.

Day of Service projects with Repair The World: Philadelphia

Projects include: Book sorting with Books Through Bars (4722 Baltimore Ave.), Saturday, 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. (click here to sign up); Cooking meals for homebound seniors (University Lutheran Church, 3637 Chestnut St.), Monday, Jan. 18, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. Help is needed to prepare and package meals. Click here to sign up; Crafting bookmarks for the West Philadelphia Alliance for Children (4029 Market St.), Monday, Jan. 18, all day drop by event. Volunteers are needed to make bookmarks for library programs that the West Philadelphia Alliance for Children runs in libraries. Materials will be provided. This event is family-friendly. Click here to register. More projects can be found here.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration Service at Bible Way Baptist Church (1323 N. 52nd St), Monday, Jan. 18, 10 a.m. – This is the annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration service. The Guest Preacher for the day is Bishop Dwayne D. Royster, Executive Director of P.O.W.E.R. (Philadelphians Organized to Witness Empower & Rebuild) and the founding Pastor of Living Water United Church of Christ. This year’s honorees are: Craig Stroman (We Feed The Hungry), and Elder Vincent Calloway (Counselor Human Relations). Go here for more information.

MLK Day of Service Clean-up, March & Program with “I Have a Dream” Speech in Southwest Philadelphia, Monday, Jan. 18

Reverend and community activist Paul “Earthquake” Moore will be coordinating a MLK Day of Service. The day will begin with a church clean-up at New Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church located at 7001 Woodland Ave. starting at 9 a.m. Volunteers are encouraged to come out and participate. A Reenactment March will begin at 4:00 p.m. at 6500 Woodland Ave. at the 12th District Philadelphia Police Station and will end at the New Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church. Rev. Moore is asking for all people to be a part of the march in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King and to show unity and diversity. Click here for more information.

MLK Day Celebration at the African American Museum in Philadelphia – AAMP (701 Arch St.), Friday, Jan. 15 – Monday, Jan. 18, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. $2 general admission on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.

The African American Museum is hosting a full weekend of fun, inspirational, family-friendly activities in celebration of the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. AAMP’s 2016 MLK Weekend kicks off on Friday with a young professional mixer co-curated by Philadelphia-based entrepreneur Curran J of Kings Rule Together (6:30 p.m.). Then, the weekend continues from Saturday to Monday with three full days of interactive and enlightening arts activities, performances and workshops. Guests can also explore the core exhibit, Audacious Freedom: African Americans in Philadelphia, 1776-1876. For more information and event schedule, visit: www.aampmuseum.org/mlk2016.html