Every year on the third Monday in January, the nation comes together to honor one of the leaders behind the Civil Rights Movement, Martin Luther King Junior. Around the country people use this day to honor Dr. King through service and giving back to their community. The Douglas-Hart Nature Center Volunteer Coordinator and Educator Dakota Radford says it's been tradition for the center to offer service projects on MLK Day Ratford says, "We want to offer an opportunity on the MLK Jr. Day of Service to invite people in the community who are maybe looking for a way to get involved on this national day or looking for a local spot to give back." Radford says despite the snow they still had volunteers come out to work on conservation projects to celebrate the Illinois Prairie and the animals that depend on them. Student volunteer Benjamin Tolepanen says he's not only using today as a way to give back to the community but to get conservation hours for a Boy Scout badge. Tolepanen says, "I'm a star scout right now so I need to get life for my next rank and after that I can work on eagle and that's the highest rank you can get." Whether you're volunteering at a nature center, a university or a social service agency in your community today, educators like Dakota Radford say it's your chance to make a difference. Radford says, "By actually giving back and creating the change in the world you're working towards and following your dream of what you want the world to look like in another decade." Radford says in May the prairie flowers planted today will bloom near the Douglas-Hart Nature Center and feature varieties such as Partridge Pea, Prairie Onion and Butterfly Milkweed.
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