HONORING KING WITH SERVICE — About 30 adults and youth volunteered Saturday to pack food to be distributed by the Sycamore Youth Center to local families in need as part of a weekend observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The Wal-Mart Distribution Center donated six pallets of food for the effort. -- Warren Scott

STEUBENVILLE — Many gathered at the Sycamore Youth Center on Saturday to hear how the life of slain civil rights leader the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. is still making an impact while following his example of community service.

About 30 adults and youth volunteered to pack food to be distributed by the organization to local residents in need.

Michelle Clum, program manager for the Sycamore Youth Center, said six pallets of food was donated by the Wal-Mart Distribution Center for the effort.

She said about 10,000 meals are provided through weekly food distributions held at the center.

Clum added food is provided for backpacks taken home by children at East Garfield Elementary School and delivered to six neighborhoods.

She said one of the center’s goals is to encourage healthy eating, and youth who participate in afterschool programs there and at Indian Creek Middle School learn to prepare nutritious meals.

Students involved in activities at the center and from the Franciscan University of Steubenville were among the many who volunteered their time Saturday afternoon.

Many also were on hand for a morning of live entertainment provided by local youth and a talk by WTOV-TV’s Nickayla Wiggins.

Sponsored by the center and the Martin Luther King Association, headed by James Baber, the day included a free lunch for the many volunteers.

Clum said, like Wiggins, her own story involves ignoring naysayers and having confidence in herself to overcome the barriers necessary to pursue her dreams.

A former teacher, Clum said she’s enrolled in Trinity Health System’s nursing school, a move bringing her closer to a longtime dream.

She said she drew inspiration from King, who pursued the more expansive goal of ensuring civil rights for all Americans.

Clum noted people in minority groups struggled against segregation and other discrimination in King’s day, adding there’s still much division in some places today.

“Sometimes people think the fight is over, but it isn’t,” she said.

Clum said often young people in racial or ethnic minorities feel discouraged from following their dreams, but they should reach out to people in the professions they aspire to.

“There are people who care about them that can give them the resources and support they need,” she said, adding those who can serve as such role models should seek connections with those youth.