Thursday, January 11, 2024
  Community

By Victoria Brito Morales

UPDATE: Due to inclement weather, UTRGV's MLK Day of Service on Monday, January 15, will be postponed.

RIO GRANDE VALLEY, TEXAS – JAN. 11, 2024 – UTRGV is starting off the Spring 2024 semester by preparing for its annual MLK Day of Service.

MLK Day, observed on the third Monday of January, commemorates and honors the life, legacy and impact of the late civil rights activist, Martin Luther King Jr.

This year, MLK Day falls on Jan. 15 on what would have been King’s 95th birthday. 

To commemorate the day, the UTRGV community will continue the tradition of participating in volunteer projects across the Valley from 9 a.m. to noon.

Volunteer sites are as follows:

  • Brownsville – BiG Heroes – 5552 Dockberry Road.
  • Brownsville – Good Neighbor Settlement House – 1254 East Tyler St.
  • Brownsville – Keep Brownsville Beautiful – 104 El. Paso Road (Oliveira Park).
  • San Benito – La Posada Providencia – 30094 Marydale Road.
  • Harlingen – Loaves & Fishes – 514 S E St.
  • McAllen – Keep McAllen Beautiful – 4101 US-83 Business (McAllen Nature Center).
  • Edinburg – Restlawn Cemetery – 1122 North Jasman Road.
  • Pharr – RGV Food Bank – 724 North Cage Boulevard.            

“Each year, UTRGV unites on MLK Day of Service, dedicating time to volunteer and enhance our community,” said Ashley Guzman, program coordinator for the UTRGV Center for Student Involvement and coordinator of MLK Day events for the UTRGV community. “Volunteering fosters connections among Vaqueros and contributes to the betterment of the place we proudly call home.”

Volunteers will receive a free T-shirt and a free lunch after the event. 

Guzman said the volunteer activities serve as an opportunity to connect with others in the UTRGV community, engage in meaningful projects that have an impact on the Valley, and build leadership and teamwork skills. 

For more information or to register or volunteer, click here.



ABOUT UTRGV

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) was created by the Texas Legislature in 2013 as the first major public university of the 21st century in Texas. This transformative initiative provided the opportunity to expand educational opportunities in the Rio Grande Valley, including a new School of Medicine, and made it possible for residents of the region to benefit from the Permanent University Fund – a public endowment contributing support to the University of Texas System and other institutions.

UTRGV has campuses and off-campus research and teaching sites throughout the Rio Grande Valley including in Boca Chica Beach, Brownsville (formerly The University of Texas at Brownsville campus), Edinburg (formerly The University of Texas-Pan American campus), Harlingen, McAllen, Port Isabel, Rio Grande City, and South Padre Island. UTRGV, a comprehensive academic institution, enrolled its first class in the fall of 2015, and the School of Medicine welcomed its first class in the summer of 2016.