Moab celebrates MLK Day of Service

On one of the coldest days of the year so far in Moab, ice rimmed the edges of Mill Creek, and even froze solid under the bridge near 100 West. That didn’t stop David Olsen from jumping in, completely submerging in the icy water, and lingering for several minutes before exiting into the sub-freezing air.
It was Monday, January 20—Martin Luther King Jr. Day—and the cold plunge was a symbolic gesture, part of a ceremony that closed a morning of celebrating the renowned civil rights activist and completing community service. The plunge, according to the event’s flyer, “represents courage and invigorates us to step out of our comfort zones to fulfill our dreams.” A bonfire on the creek’s bank was a place to warm up and represented “the spark that ignites our collective efforts and the warmth and light that hope brings.”
Olsen, who serves as the development director at the Moab Free Health Clinic and is also the AmeriCorps VISTA project director, partnered with several other individuals and organizations to help put together the volunteer activities and other events. The day showcased community partnerships and a spirit of service.

New teen center


On Monday morning, a couple of dozen people met at the new location of the Grand County Library’s Teen Center on 321 East Center Street, to get a peek at the new center and hear a presentation on how Dr. King’s vision applies to Moab today.
The new Teen Center is located just across the street from the library, bringing it much closer than its previous home in the Community Resource Center on 200 South.
“The proximity to the library just can’t be beat,” said Carrie Valdes, the library director. The center opened to youth about a week before Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and Teen Services Librarian Christina Williams said the kids especially loved the conference table in the basement.
“Some had never been in a basement,” she said.
The new location also offers almost twice the space of the old one, and it’s divided into rooms so staff can organize different activities in different spaces, separating quieter pursuits like studying from noisier ones like games.
Previously, the Housing Authority of Southeastern Utah used the building that is now the Teen Center; this past fall, HASU moved to 380 North 500 West, to a building that used to house the Moab Free Health Clinic. The health clinic has been in its new campus for about two years—in one of the buildings vacated by Utah State University when that institution moved to its new campus on South Highway 191. The old USU campus is also now home to the Community Resource Center, which functions as a hub for nonprofits that support “social determinants of health,” or factors like job and housing security and environmental health that can affect overall health. The CRC fosters partnerships among local organizations.

MLK presentation


After admiring the Teen Center, attendees gathered in the basement for a presentation from Murice Miller, a member of the American Connection Corps, an AmeriCorps program that “leverages the power of national service to expand people’s economic opportunities, bridge their social network, and open them up to different perspectives.” AmeriCorps has been coordinating Martin Luther King, Jr. Day service projects across the nation since the holiday was designated as a national day of service in 1994.


Miller’s ACC position is with Moab’s BEACON Afterschool program, where he serves as the Marketing and Communications Coordinator. The afterschool program supports economic development and opportunity by offering skills and enrichment activities for kids, and also providing a safe place for kids outside of school while working parents complete their workdays.
Miller’s presentation referenced the Poor People’s Campaign, a 1968 push for economic justice led by King and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. The original campaign outlined a set of demands aimed at ensuring that all people would have what they need to live, regardless of race. The movement was revived in 2018 with similar principles and objectives.
Miller focused on King’s vision of everyone having access to economic opportunity, education, a living wage and affordable housing, and how that vision applies to Moab today. He encouraged listeners to be creative in seeking economic opportunity, and to take advantage of resources like free education, business and financial advising, and grants.
“Whether you want to be an entrepreneur or not, have that growth mindset,” he said. “See opportunity in every problem.”

Service projects
After the presentation, volunteers split into two groups, with several people heading to the Family Support Center building to work on a landscaping project. The Family Support Center’s mission is to protect children, strengthen families, and create a caring community. It offers a 24-hour crisis/respite nursery and works to reduce and prevent the incidence of child abuse and neglect in Grand County.
Volunteers dug out turf along a walkway outside the building to make room for edging, and laid cardboard and spread mulch throughout the dirt and patchy grass. Jeremy Spaulding, Grand County School District’s community coordinator, helped lead the group. Spaulding helped organize the day’s events, along with Miller and Olsen.
The rest of the volunteers headed to the Youth Garden Project, where they helped trim and clear out dead plant material.
“We’re just doing some winter clean-up,” said Emily Roberson, YGP’s executive director, as she distributed tools and directions. “Cleaning out dead material to make room for new stuff to grow in the spring.”
Volunteers knelt in the garden beds and removed dry, yellowed stalks, cheerful despite the biting wind.
The day wound up with the “Fire & Ice” bonfire/cold plunge ceremony at the bridge over Mill Creek near 100 West.
Only one other brave person jumped into the creek alongside Olsen, but several people shared stories around the fire about what Martin Luther King, Jr. Day means to them.
New acquaintances were made and existing ones were strengthened through a shared sense of community and service.