Martin Luther King Jr. Day

City Hall will be closed on Monday, January 18 in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The Blue Island Public Library is hosting a Remembering MLK event at 3 p.m. on Sunday at Christ Memorial United Church of Christ, 2440 York St.  Writer, actor and social satirist Aaron Freeman will headline an event honoring the life of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.  Freeman, who also appears on National Public Radio and PBS, will read selections from King’s speeches. The Advocate Church Music Ministry will perform. A reception will follow. The event is free, but reservations are requested. Information: (708) 388-1078, Ext. 30.

A great way to mark this holiday is to volunteer in your community – seek small ways to make a difference. There are many opportunities all around. Sites like Serve.gov or VolunteerMatch provide a place to search, or pick up the latest issue of StreetWise, which features a guide to non-profits, many of them in our area. Ask your churches, your hospitals (see this article about a Doctor at MetroSouth making a difference in Haiti), your schools… you’ll never know how good you feel about it until you try it!