Madison events to honor legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.

Members of the UW–Madison community and the Madison community at large will have plentiful opportunities for observance and service to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a federal and state holiday, will be observed Monday, Jan. 16.

The Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery plays host to the Martin Luther King Jr. Youth Service Day event titled “A Dedication to Service … A Discovery of Science.” The event kicks off at 9 a.m. with a welcome, followed workshops and exploration stations with topics ranging from poverty to “seed-to-table” agriculture. After lunch, participants will engage in community service projects throughout Dane County. The event is targeted to middle and high school students. Volunteers are needed to staff the event and lead exploration stations. Students and UW faculty and staff are encouraged to volunteer.

Martin Luther King Jr. Youth Service Day is free and open to all members of the community, but is limited to the first 300 registrants. Contact Hannah Sievers at hsievers@warf.org or 316-4662 for more information.

At 6 p.m. on Jan. 16, Rev. C.T. Vivian will be the featured speaker at the 27th Annual Official Madison-Dane County King Holiday Observance. Vivian, a close friend and lieutenant of King, helped found the Nashville Christian Leadership Conference, which organized the first sit-ins in Nashville in 1960 and the first civil-rights march in 1961. Vivian rode the “Freedom Bus” into Jackson, Miss., and went on to work alongside King in Birmingham, Selma, Chicago and Nashville, and for the March on Washington. His work on the St. Augustine campaign helped lead the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The event will be held at the Overture Center’s Capitol Theater. There is no cost to attend.

Other community events include the following:

• Friday, Jan. 13: 25th Annual Free Community Dinner, 4:30-7 p.m., UW–Madison’s Gordon Commons, 717 W. Johnson St. For more information, call Ruth Gundlach, 233-5880.
• Saturday, Jan. 14: I Have a Dream Scholarship Ball, 6 p.m., Monona Terrace.
• Sunday, Jan. 15: 28th Annual Urban League Guild Youth Recognition Breakfast, 7:45 a.m., Edgewood High School. Tickets can be purchased at www.ulgm.org. Cost is $8 in advance, $12 at the door.
• Sunday, Jan. 15: MLK Ecumenical Church Service, 4 p.m., Mt. Zion Baptist Church, 2019 Fisher St.
• Sunday, Jan. 15: America’s Sunday Supper, 6 p.m., Urban League of Greater Madison, 2222 S. Park St.

On Jan. 16, Madison Metro bus schedules operate on alternate schedules. Campus routes 80, 84 and 85 follow recess schedules, while most major city routes follow Saturday schedules. In addition, all standing paratransit rides are canceled. Maps of all bus detours and updated bus schedules are available at http://www.mymetrobus.com. For more information, contact Metro at 608-266-4466.