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| The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others. |
Taking place the third Monday in January, the National Day of Service marks the birthday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and is the only federal holiday observed as a national day of service. In line with Dr. King’s vision, the annual event is designed to empower individuals, bridge barriers and solve problems and strengthen communities.
Please join me and the hundreds of others who will be planting 200 trees with the assistance of Trees Atlanta and planting 5,000 daffodils with the help of the Daffodil Project. There will be park beautification, street sign cleaning as well as other projects taking place at Dunwoody Place Personal Care Home, the Dunwoody Nature Center, and the Spruill Center for the Arts. Volunteers can also make a donation of non-perishable food items and/or coats at donations bins that will be located at the Brook Run pavilion on the day of the event. Full details here, including preregistration that is suggested but not required.
Check-in for all projects will be at Brook Run Park (4770 N. Peachtree Road) beginning at 8:15 a.m. Music, coffee, donuts, and giveaways will be available before work begins at 9 a.m. Volunteers working on projects outside of Brook Run Park will need to provide their own transportation to other venues. Please bring the entire family if you are able.
Several months back I had the pleasure of standing up and saying a few words about former Mayor Denis Shortal and the main focus of what I said was that Denny was a man who placed Service over Self - service in the military, to veterans, to family, civic organizations, to starting the city and serving as Mayor. As I read some of Martin Luther King Jr's quotes on service listed below, I think about and am thankful for so many fine people in our community as it is you who make this community so strong.
“If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.”
“Not everybody can be famous but everybody can be great because greatness is determined by service… You only need a heart full of grace and a soul generated by love.”
“All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.”
Now a little bit more on Denny... On Monday, I know I will be cleaning street signs again with our former Mayor and he will probably not judge the quality of my work, he won't say a word; instead, he will just get back up on the little ladder to ensure that the bottom half is spotless as he then gets frustrated that I may have missed a spot on the top half that he just can't reach. The quote on painstaking excellence struck a chord with me as I look at the photo below, I just laugh knowing that I could always do better in doing small things in a great way. Thank you Denny and to everyone who does small jobs with painstaking excellence.
