In reality, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday is January 15 — he would have turned 91 a week ago today — though as a nation we celebrate it on every third Monday of January. 

Yet it’s only been 20 years since the entire nation celebrated Dr. King’s birthday as a holiday, even though it was made a federal holiday in 1986 when signed into law by President Reagan.  Only in 2000 did it become a state holiday in all 50 states.

With the help of U.S. Rep. John Lewis, the Atlanta Congressman who marched side-by-side with Dr. King during the Civil Rights Movement, the MLK Day of Service was passed into law in 1994, and its first observance was held in 1995. It is the only federal holiday “designated as a national day of service to encourage all Americans to volunteer to improve their communities.” It is seen not as a day off, but as a day on. As Dr. King said himself, “Everyone can be great because everybody can serve.”

So much of what Dr. King said in his short time still rings true more than 50 years later.  His quest for education and justice are important today as well. 

We hope you took the time to put his words into action on Monday and serve the community and if not that day, perhaps some day soon. And we hope his words will continue to reverberate and inspire generations to come.