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Building On The Dream is an annual large-scale volunteering event organized by the local nonprofit agency Hands On Charlotte (HOC). Its purpose is to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. through service to the greater community. Building On The Dream offers volunteers the chance to participate in a range of service projects on Saturday, January 17, with a kickoff celebration on that morning at Thomasboro Elementary School, as well as projects taking place on the MLK Holiday of Monday, January 19. Building On The Dream will activate as many as 500 volunteers at approximately 20 volunteer project sites around Charlotte, with each project focusing on the issues of poverty and challenged neighborhoods.
Opportunities to volunteer—either as an individual or as a group—are still available. Those interested can see a list of volunteer projects and register for the event online by visiting http://www.handsoncharlotte.org.
Sponsored by Duke Energy, The Home Depot and the Corporation for National and Community Service, Building On The Dream kicks off on Saturday, January 17 with volunteer registration/sign-in (8am-9am) and an opening celebration (9am-9:30am) at Thomasboro Elementary School (538 Bradford Drive). Volunteer projects will then take place from 10am until 1pm. Projects on Monday the 19th will take place at various times, primarily from 10am until 1pm, but there will be no kickoff event on Monday.
Hands On Charlotte’s second annual Building On The Dream event is part of an ongoing national initiative to encourage Americans to mark the King Holiday with service, and President-elect Obama and Vice President-elect Biden are scheduled to take part in service projects themselves on January 19. “Our expectation is that the new administration will call all citizens to increase their service to community, and Building On The Dream offers a perfect opportunity to make that first step,” said Bob Young, HOC’s associate director. “Charlotte is a very generous community in terms of volunteerism, and we’re confident that people from across the community will embrace this event and get 2009 off to a great start.”
About Hands On Charlotte
A non-profit organization founded in 1991, Hands On Charlotte’s mission is to strengthen ourcommunity and enrich lives by mobilizing a diverse, committed corps of citizens in direct volunteer service. Through special events such as its annual Hands On Charlotte Day event, and its ongoing calendar of volunteer projects, Hands On Charlotte creates and manages more than 800 volunteer projects every year and touches the lives of thousands of Charlotte citizens, including seniors, people with disabilities, children from low-resource neighborhoods, adults dealing with illiteracy, and much more. Additional information regarding Hands On Charlotte can be found at www.handsoncharlotte.org, or by calling 704-333-7471.
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