On Monday, January 17, 2011, over 1,200 volunteers gathered in downtown Detroit to celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. day through their gift of service to the community. In middle schools, high schools, colleges, and social service agencies, volunteers worked to aid the community through a variety of projects including donating books to local libraries and food to pantries for the homeless. Aquinas alumna Chelsea Wojes, ’10, member of AmeriCorps, participated in the city-wide effort and said that the “projects that had incredible impact” on the morale and quality of life for students in the Detroit area. Through the work of the volunteers and the aid of AmeriCorps’ City Year Detroit, struggling neighborhoods in the Motor City celebrated the holiday - and their communities - whole-heartedly.

Wojes originally became involved in the organization through another Aquinas graduate, Emily Ferstle, and explained that “The AmeriCorps program is a national service based program that allows a wide range of citizens to be a leader in their community through service.” Therefore, volunteers have the opportunity to serve in a vast variety of programs throughout the nation that suit their particular strengths and abilities. After applying for the position, Wojes became a Downriver AmeriCorps member through the United Way of Southeastern Michigan (SEM). She said, “My specific role is one of a kind in that I get to work on joint volunteer projects that City Year Detroit and United Way for SEM are a part of.”

City Year Detroit is a unique organization within AmeriCorps whose members serve students K-12 downtown Detroit. Together with United Way members, the organization collected the resources and helping hands needed to cultivate the event. “The volunteers for Martin Luther King Day were quite diverse,” said Wojes. Workers included high school and college students, parents, family groups, and teachers.

Together, the hundreds of workers painted murals and inspirational locker quotes in Detroit “turn around schools,” distributed blankets to the homeless, donated food and books to local organizations, and cleaned and organized social agencies. “This was by far the largest Martin Luther King Day that City Year and United Way SEM have ever had, and the number of people that were impacted was huge,” said Wojes, “Really, every program had an impact that was both tangible and intangible.”

Though Wojes graduated Aquinas with a Bachelor of Arts in Theater, her experience in AQ PennyBen inspired a commitment to better the lives of others through community service. After completing a full-time year as a corps member, Wojes will receive an education award as well as take home the satisfaction of successful events such as the Martin Luther King Day celebration. “Now that I am in the program, I am very thankful for the opportunity and support the program 100% of the time,” said Wojes, “I highly recommend it for students who want to serve and make an impact on the world we live in.”