Honors students celebrate the life of Martin Luther King Jr.

Honors College students participated in a variety of events celebrating the life of Martin Luther King Jr. during the week of January 20^th.

Honors College students volunteered at the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina during the 2020 MLK Day of Service.

The week kicked off with a campus-wide Day of Service. Forty Honors students volunteered at the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina. The volunteers managed inventory, distributed and packed food supplies, cleaned and organized, among other small jobs. Other projects they were involved in included building food boxes, sorting and repackaging produce, groceries and bulk dry items like rice or pasta, and labeling food containers.

The Honors College’s involvement in MLK Day of Service was spearheaded by the Honors College Student Council Service Chair Shea Middleton.

“The HCSC Service Day event went very well and I’m so proud of all of the Honors students who volunteered,” Middleton said. “Seeing so many individuals happily using their own free time to perform work helping the community flourish is so refreshing, and truly exemplifies the spirit of service. Our participation really helped the food bank and will help ensure that no one goes hungry in Greenville.”

One of the students who participated in Service Day was freshman EC Scholar Abby Ulffers. She helped bag sweet potatoes for distribution while at the food bank.

Freshman EC Scholar Abby Ulffers bagged sweet potatoes during the 2020 MLK Day of Service at the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina.

“Most of the people volunteering were members of the community so it felt like we were making an impact on the greater Greenville area, not just ECU,” Ulffers said. “We worked for about two hours and bagged over 35,000 potatoes. They even had a Blood Connection truck there so my roommate, Teresa Hupp, gave blood when we finished volunteering. It was a great opportunity to turn a day off from school into a day used to serve others.”

Senior EC Scholars also volunteered during their impact trip to New York City. They served 734 hot meals and bagged 140 lunches at the Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen.

Honors College students also attended the Martin Luther King Jr. celebration keynote speech. This year, April Ryan, a White House correspondent and political analyst, gave the address where she urged people to get out of their comfort zones to pursue equality.

“April Ryan gave a refreshing perspective on the historical and current state of civil rights in our nation, particularly in the continuing need in working towards freedom for all,” said Godgive Umozurike, a senior Honors College student. “Surrounded by individuals who’ve lived through the civil rights movement and those who grew up on the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., I was reminded that the path to achieve this is a long an arduous one. Nevertheless, hope for a better future continues to ignite the passion of those who believe in this future, for those who believe in Dr. King’s dream. That my skin color should not speak before I do. That we will be judged not by the color of our skin, but by the content of our character. As a soon-to-be college graduate, I know that my journey to become a future physician providing equitable care to underserved and underprivileged communities can help to achieve Dr. King’s dream in hopes that one day, we can all truly be free.”

White House correspondent April Ryan meets with ECU students during a reception at the Main Student Center on Wednesday night. (Photo by Rhett Butler)

Umozurike’s thoughts were echoed by freshman Grant Smith.

“April Ryan’s speech on MLK was extremely emotional. It really captivated you and helped you to get a better grasp on the extent to which he has changed the course of history,” Smith said. “It was cool to see how many people were there, and the different backgrounds and life experiences the people in that room had. There were three generations of people in the room, and we were all able to gain so much from her inspirational and impactful words on the legacy MLK has left in this world.”

This year, the university offered four main MLK Celebration Week events. These were a day of service, a gospel concert, a contemporary panel discussion on civil rights, and the keynote speech by April Ryan.

Read more about April Ryan’s talk and campus-wide MLK events at https://news.ecu.edu/2020/01/23/aspire-to-inspire/