Shelsea Romney, 15, could have slept in as others did on Monday's Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, or seen the movie "Selma" about the civil rights icon, as some of her friends were doing.
Instead, she joined her mother, her two sisters, and about 30 other volunteers shelving and bagging groceries at the Howard County Food Bank as part of a national day of service. Helping others, especially those less fortunate, was part of King's message, said Shelsea, a student at Reservoir High School in Fulton.
"We should work together," she said, "and we should help others in need."
Elsewhere in the area, King was celebrated in other ways: Baltimore City held its annual parade down the boulevard that bears his name, and Annapolis hosted its first ever parade. In the evening, clergy and community groups marched to the State House for social justice and police reform.
In Howard County, organizers estimated about 200 residents had signed up to participate in a host of service projects, and some were so popular the number of volunteers had to be capped. Volunteers did chores and maintenance at a horse rescue farm, made flash cards for foreign-born people studying English, and learned about on-going community needs such as transporting seniors or helping at food banks.
"It's amazing to do something today, but we also want to encourage people to do something every day," said Amanda Llorens, chairwoman of the county's day of service committee.
Howard County Executive Allan Kittleman, who took office last month, told residents at a kick-off rally at the North Laurel Community Center that the day of service was a way of honoring local civil rights heroes as well. Kittleman, whose late father, Robert Kittleman, was a state senator who received threats as a white man who had joined the county's NAACP branch in the 1950s and fought to desegregate the schools.
"We need to build on what they have done," said Kittleman, a Republican, citing Silas E. Craft Sr., Elhart Flurry and Morris Woodson, educators and civil rights leaders in the county. "For us not to give back is to do them a disservice."
Kittleman, dressed in blue jeans, joined Fire Chief John Butler in one of the days events, teaching hands-only CPR, doing chest compressions to the rhythm of the disco song, "Stayin' Alive."
Butler, who is African-American, said he didn't intend to speak but was inspired to tell his own story after listening to other speakers. Growing up in Cincinnati, his parents happened to visit Columbia and marveled at what they considered a "Shangri-La" of multiracial families and diverse schools. They moved the family there, where Butler ultimately raised three children.
"I was just reflecting on … what Martin Luther King envisioned," Butler said, "and I'm like, 'Wow, I think I've lived that.'"
Amelia and Keira Cunningham, aged 7 and 4, colored pictures of King at the North Laurel center before going with their parents and grandparents to a synagogue to assemble care packages for the homeless.
"He was a great man," Amelia said. "He worked for peace all over this land."
Despite King's message, though, Amelia acknowledged that when she learned in school about King and his assassination, she wanted to punch the shooter in the face.
Her parents, Brendan and Kayla Cunningham, said they thought the day's activities brought to life what the girls had read and seen about King.
"We've been reading books about Martin Luther King, and at school they watched a video," Brendan Cunningham said. "They were talking about the legacy of King, and this has been a great way to continue the discussion."
Hundreds attended a prayer service in Annapolis Monday evening, then marched a few blocks to the State House for social justice and police reform.
Speakers including former delegates Heather Mizeur and Aisha Braveboy — candidates last year for governor and attorney general — called on lawmakers to end police brutality, help homeowners fight off foreclosures, increase funding for the state's historically black colleges and support minority-owned businesses.
At the food bank in Columbia, volunteers including Kittleman helped organize some of the 450,000 pounds of food that the county's pantries distribute over the course of a year. Given the small staff of two full-time and two part-time workers, volunteers are much needed to help the 22,000 people that come to the county's food pantries every year, said Bita Dayhoff, president of the Community Action Council, which provides food, housing, energy and other services to low-income residents.
"We would not be able to do what we do without the support of the community," Dayhoff said as volunteers formed an assembly line to bag canned goods.
For Vanessa Romney, a family physician who brought her three daughters to the food bank, helping out on Martin Luther King day was particularly satisfying because she remembers participating in efforts to get the holiday recognized and designated as a national day of service.
"I think it represents," Romney, 52, said, "what he was all about."
Baltimore Sun reporter Timothy B. Wheeler contributed to this article.
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