Public is invited to participate in myriad activities
By Kathleen Brady Shea, Managing Editor, The Times
The Coatesville Area School District, the Coatesville Youth Initiative, and the Coatesville Area NAACP have organized a plethora of family-friendly activities to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
An impassioned contingent of Coatesville volunteers has been working to ensure that Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream does come true, organizing an abundance of hands-on activities for Monday, a day of service in his honor.
The Coatesville Area School District, in partnership with the Coatesville Youth Initiative and the Coatesville Area NAACP, is inviting the public to participate in storytelling, arts and crafts, and myriad family-friendly programs designed to improve mind and body from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
For example, participants can sign cards for U.S. troops, register to vote, learn about teen-dating violence, create care packages for senior citizens, take a Zumba class, or watch the presidential inauguration. Participants are asked to bring donations of canned goods, which will benefit the Chester County Food Bank.
Organizers said the day was scheduled to complement Martin Luther King Jr.’s goal of fostering “…a nation of freedom and justice for all, and [where] all citizens to live up to the purpose and potential of America by applying the principles of nonviolence to make this country a better place to live— creating the Beloved Community.”
Last year, about 800 people participated in the various programs, and organizers are hoping for an even bigger turnout this year.
Other activities during the day will include a middle-school mock trial – Rumpelstiltzkin vs. Queen Malory – an elementary-school award presentation, a beautification effort at the Coatesville Community Center and Palmer Park led by Coatesville Police Officer Rodger Ollis, and a panel discussion on “Human Trafficking” headed by Tonya Thames Taylor, a West Chester University history professor, Coatesville school board member, and president of the Coatesville Area NAACP.
For a complete schedule, visit the school district web site: http://www.coatesville.K12.pa.us. The high school is located at 1425 E. Lincoln Highway, Coatesville, 19320,
