Eighteen Arkansas Tech University students participated in a Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day service trip to Memphis, Tenn., Jan. 18-19.
“I will never forget when we, as a group, marched down the streets for MLK and rang the bell to commemorate his memory,” said Diana Henderson, an ATU sophomore from Russellville majoring in psychology, sociology and criminal justice. “This experience can’t be written or put into words unless you have personally experienced a march in the heart of Memphis. With Memphis’ long and remarkable history that has affected the Black community that lives there to this day, you could feel how powerful the crowds were and how much they believed in Dr. King’s message. I felt our voices became one and we were being heard. The freezing weather did not stop us from marching. It did not stop us from dreaming of that fateful speech that Martin Luther King gave and what we will do to continue his legacy and provide the true American dream to the next generation.”
The members of the ATU delegation also visited the National Civil Rights Museum and participated in a service project during their trip to Memphis.
“There’s nothing like the feeling you have after volunteering yourself to a community and seeing the impact you have left on it,” said Pablo Moreno, an ATU freshman from Green Forest majoring in digital marketing. “It was good to know we were helping a good cause and that there will soon be people using the garden beds we cleaned and redid as a form of physical and mental therapy.”
The trip was made possible by the ATU Center for Student Engagement and First-Generation Student Success and organized by Armando Harper, ATU graduate assistant for campus life.
“Be kind and help others by showing kindness, especially for people who may not look the same or act the same as you,” said Henderson. “If you give kindness willingly without any strings attached, you will receive kindness in return. I plan to live out the ideals expressed by Dr. King by continuing to volunteer and provide community service to those in need. I cannot express how much this trip has changed me as a person and how much more I want to do for Arkansas Tech University and beyond.”
Learn more about the ATU Department of Campus Life at www.atu.edu/campuslife.
