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To mark the 25th anniversary of the King Holiday, and to encourage ongoing service throughout the year, we are launching the MLK 25 Challenge – a call to all Americans to honor Dr. King by pledging to take at least 25 actions during 2011 to make a difference for others and strengthen our communities. Watch the MLK 25 Challenge video.

From something as simple as cleaning a neighborhood park to a more intensive commitment such as becoming a mentor, the key is to give of yourself in some way to help others. You may want to volunteer in a range of efforts, or make a sustained commitment to a single cause. There is no shortage of work to be done, or lack of ways to get involved. Follow your passion, and find something that’s right for you. You can find volunteer opportunities and get ideas for your own projects by visiting Serve.gov.

Here are some ideas to get you started:

	1	Send a letter or care package to a soldier deployed overseas
	2	Visit a wounded veteran at the hospital
	3	Donate unused frequent flier miles to a military family organization
	4	Do home repairs for a veteran or military family
	5	Drive a veteran or military family member to a medical appointment
	6	Help a veteran tell their story through an oral history project
	7	Serve and prepare food at a homeless shelter
	8	Help someone who is out of work with their resume or job search
	9	Donate to your local food bank
	10	Volunteer as an income tax preparer
	11	Help build or renovate a home
	12	Donate gently used professional clothes to an organization that helps people rejoin the workforce
	13	Volunteer at a food pantry to prepare and distribute meals
	14	Clean your closets, attic, basement, or garage and donate gently used items to a homeless shelter
	15	Organize a coat and winter clothes drive
	16	Deliver meals to homebound seniors
	17	Stop and have a conversation with a homeless person
	18	Help a local nonprofit post their volunteer opportunities on Serve.gov
	19	Spread the word about your city's emergency warming centers and hypothermia hotlines
	20	Help connect a homeless person to services they need
	21	Serve on a nonprofit board of directors
	22	Share your technology skills with a nonprofit that needs them
	23	Volunteer on a hotline
	24	Become a mentor
	25	Teach English classes to adults
	26	Volunteer or donate books to your local library
	27	Teach a senior how to use a computer
	28	Serve as a tutor
	29	Teach parenting classes to young fathers and mothers
	30	Participate in a service-learning project
	31	Become a homework helper at your school
	32	Volunteer to lead a club or teach an after-school enrichment class
	33	Read books to elementary school students
	34	Chaperone a school field trip
	35	Organize a book drive
	36	Participate in a school beautification project
	37	Be a recess or lunchroom monitor
	38	Bring someone new with you when you volunteer
	39	Participate in a charity ride or race
	40	Hold a dance for your local senior center or nursing home
	41	Become a virtual volunteer by helping a nonprofit with graphic design
	42	Volunteer at your local youth or recreation center
	43	Invite local police officers to present a drug awareness or safety program
	44	Read books or the newspaper on tape for the visually impaired
	45	Be a hospice volunteer
	46	Take a volunteer vacation
	47	Attend a meeting of your neighborhood association
	48	Visit patients or provide administrative support at a hospital
	49	Assemble emergency supply kits
	50	Get trained to respond to emergencies
	51	Become CPR certified
	52	Make presentations to schools and community groups about emergency preparedness
	53	Become a volunteer firefighter or EMT
	54	Volunteer with your local police department
	55	Help create or expand a community garden
	56	Clean up a nearby empty lot, or pick up trash on your street or in your neighborhood
	57	Walk or bike to work or school once a week
	58	Test the health of the water in your local lakes, rivers, and streams
	59	Replace old light bulbs with energy efficient ones and turn off appliances when you're not using them
	60	Take mass transit more often
	61	Make an intensive commitment to serve by joining AmeriCorps
	62	Join the bone marrow registry
	63	Become a coach for a youth sports team
	64	Make quilts or blankets for hospitalized children or wounded soldiers
	65	Volunteer on MLK Day and the September 11 National Day of Service and Remembrance
	66	Create a neighborhood safety patrol
	67	Help build a playground
	68	Rake leaves, shovel snow, clean gutters, or wash windows for a neighbor
	69	Share your lifetime of skills and experience by joining Senior Corps
	70	Give blood
	71	Be a friend to someone with mental illness
	72	Pick up groceries for a senior citizen in your community
	73	Volunteer at a local animal shelter
	74	Check in on your elderly or disabled neighbors regularly, especially in hot and cold weather
	75	Visit Serve.gov to find a volunteer opportunity

We hope this list is a starting point for you to develop your own commitments. However you choose to get involved, you will be making a difference at a time when our nation needs your service. As Dr. King said “Make a career of humanity...and you will make a greater person of yourself, a greater nation of your country, and a finer world to live in.”

How will you answer the MLK 25 Challenge? Follow MLK Day on Twitter and use the hashtag “#MLK25” to tell us how you will be serving this year. We’ll post some of your responses throughout the year.

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Tell us how we're doing: MLKDay@cns.gov

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