Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service takes on different look because of social distancing protocols, but spirit of service reigns

DETROIT — This year’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service looked different, but the mission to serve remains the same.

Instead of the usual gathering of parish and school groups at Sacred Heart Parish in Detroit for a day of prayer, reflection and service, groups throughout the Archdiocese of Detroit came up with their own projects closer to home during the annual service day, held Jan. 16 this year.

But even while people are apart, the tradition still brings people together, said Joni Scott, director of religious education at St. Charles Borromeo Parish in Detroit. St. Charles youth created care packages for senior parishioners who are homebound because of the pandemic.

“St. Charles has an amazing group and an amazing community that’s homebound with special needs,” Scott told Detroit Catholic. “We used to have members our bus would pick up weekly and take to Mass, but because of the pandemic and because they live in group homes, we can’t do that because of safety reasons. So as a community, we organized our youth to safely serve our seniors.”

St. Charles Borromeo partnered with Nativity Parish on Detroit’s east side. The two parishes share a pastor, Fr. Ray Stademeyer, OFM Cap., and members of both parishes’ religious education classes put together gift baskets with the essentials, plus a note for recipients to let them know that even from a distance, the parish is still thinking and praying for them.

“You miss that human interaction, which makes you feel way better than doing it through the mail,” admitted high school senior Gabrielle Taylor, a St. Charles parishioner. “I feel like getting peoples’ reactions, seeing how much of an impact you have, is better than just mailing them a care package. But it’s still good, showing how through a pandemic, we still care about them.”

Social distancing hasn’t stymied participation in the event, with more than 27 parishes and 550 volunteers participating this year, said Chris Leach, coordinator for the Archdiocese of Detroit’s Office of Christian Service.

“We’d like to gather everyone together to build relationships and foster that kind of encounter,” Leach said. “But uniting everyone in common service on the same day, in honor of MLK’s accomplishments, is still the goal for us. We want people to feel they are part of something, all united together in making Dr. King’s dream a reality.”

In a time of isolation and separation, the gift baskets are a gesture of how the parish is still connected and united in service.

“This will help (seniors) know we are here for them, that we will help them out when they are in trouble or anything,” said Gregory Taylor, Gabrielle’s brother. “Also, when people see us doing this, they might help us do it on a regular basis, I hope.”

St. Pio of Pietrelcina Parish in Roseville had a small team of middle school and high school youth group members tie scarves around bus stop signs along Gratiot Avenue, from the parish’s location on 13 Mile Road south to Eastern Market in Detroit.

St. Pio Parish started a scarf ministry five years ago, and this year, members of the parish youth groups will tie scarves around bus stop signs for people to take for free.

“Each scarf comes with a note in remembrance of MLK Jr. and his fight for equality,” said Jan Pazuchowski, youth ministry coordinator for St. Pio Parish. “It’s a way of giving back to the city. People will see the scarfs outside, waiting for the buses and can take one. It’s a good way to care for people and connect our cities, from Roseville and Eastpointe down to Detroit and back.”

Pazuchowski estimates the St. Pio group distributed about 300 scarves on Jan. 16.

“Seeing there is a little note on the scarf captures (bus patrons’) eye,” Pazuchowski said. “If there are people waiting at the bus stop, we hand them out directly and say why we are doing it. It’s been a great way to get people involved, from knitting together the scarves to handing them out. A lot of older people donate fleece to make the scarves.”

Going remote has allowed parishes to involve parishioners who normally don’t have the time or ability to volunteer in person, Leach said.

“I know it’s a lot different this year, but I don’t know if service is harder because of it,” Leach said. “Because we have a great number of parishes still participating, and we have the same number of volunteers as we had in the past signing up, parishes reporting that people are participating.”

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. knew the strides to equality and inclusion would be met with difficulty, but they were strides worth taking, Leach said, just like this year’s day of service was still worth doing. 

“The legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King gives me passion because he showed you can make an impact in your community by doing little things and joining people in your community together,” Gabrielle Taylor said. “He showed us that no matter who a person is, no matter their religion, the color of their skin, it’s the content of their character, it is the person that matters.”

“In our Catholic religion, when Jesus was on earth, he showed us how to live that way as well, because he serviced the poor, the homeless, the unfortunate people,” Taylor continued. “The legacy of MLK ties in with that and gives me a chance to help my community, showing I can make the world a better place by doing little acts of service.”