Neighborhood voices: a King Day opportunity

By Alice Pak

When I was in middle school, my biggest concerns were how I could convince my mom to let me wear make-up; when my crush, Jeffrey, would finally notice me; and when I could swipe the first chair clarinet position from Megan.

Since I’ve been serving at Hunts Point Middle School as a City Year New York corps member, I’ve learned that my students have a lot more to worry about.

• They can’t enter the school building before stepping through a metal detector.
• The traditional American family “standard” of one mom, one dad, and a couple siblings does not apply to many of them. Some live with cousins, many with grandparents.
• Many of them speak frankly about their easy access to an array of drugs, as nearby as a couple doors down in their apartment buildings.

But all of them are stronger than anyone I knew when I was their age, and perhaps stronger than I myself will ever be.

If it weren’t for this year of service, I don’t know that I ever would have set foot in the South Bronx. If it weren’t for City Year, I doubt I would ever have had thought-provoking conversations with 12- and 13-year-olds about their fears of gang violence; discussed their hopes of being the first in their family to graduate from middle school or high school.or college; or, on a lighter note, engaged in deep, controversial debates over which Jonas brother is actually the best looking.

If it weren’t for public service, I wouldn’t have given myself the chance to discover how much I have in common with these students.
To me, that’s the most beautiful thing about public service–it’s blind to backgrounds, upbringing and status.

Service is an equalizer that unites people of different worlds–like my students and me–because it helps us find common ground in the simple desire to make a difference in the world we all share. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. recognized this beauty when he said, “Everybody can be great because anybody can serve.”

At the root of Dr. King’s legacy was the idea of simply helping our fellow human beings just because we can.

In 1994, Congress passed the King Holiday and Service Act to honor him and to give Americans the push to do serve, even if only for a day. Ever since, the phrase “a day on, not a day off” has grown in recognition. Over one million Americans showed up to serve in 13,000 projects in all 50 states last year, more than doubling the number of participants from the King Day of Service in 2008.

Now is your chance to jump on this bandwagon of national service. There are people to be fed, children to be taught, and positive feelings to be shared. If you’re lucky, you might get to work with someone from the opposite end of the social, political, or ideological spectrum. And if you’re really lucky, you might make a life-changing connection, even if it stems from a conversation about the Jonas Brothers.

Alice Pak is a member of City Year’s corps at MS 424. On Martin Luther King Day, Jan. 18, City Year corps members will lead volunteers in service projects such as painting classrooms, murals, and revitalizing the Hunts Point and Longwood community. They will meet at MS 424, 730 Bryant Ave., at 9 a.m.

Have an opinion on an issue of concern to Hunts Point and Longwood? “Neighborhood Voices” welcomes your submissions. E-mail editor@huntspointexpress.com or mail your article to Joe Hirsch, community editor, c/o The Point CDC, 940 Garrison Ave., Bronx, NY 10474.