In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, students, staff, and community volunteers at City Park Elementary spent their day today serving in their school and throughout the community.

City Park Principal Kim Rhyne said the legacy of Dr. King and the City Park PAWSitive panther traits of service and unity inspired the event.

“Service is such a big part of teaching the kids,” Rhyne said. “We’re developing the whole child, so we made time for both learning and service projects today.”

Students were found landscaping with Dalton Public Schools maintenance workers, visiting local senior centers, hosting puppies from the Humane Society of Northwest Georgia, and helping out at local businesses.

In addition to a parade celebrating the day of service, City Park community volunteers were invited to a luncheon where they heard about more volunteer opportunities.

Dalton Public Schools District Ambassador Marisa Kelley is one of the community volunteers at City Park. After her niece had a wonderful experience as a student at City Park, Kelley knew she wanted to get involved with the school.

“She had such a great experience at City Park,” Kelley said. “I just wanted to give back because they really took care of her while she was here. I’m excited to work with them.”

Leslie Meza, City Park Panther mother and School Council member, said she began volunteering to interact with the students and teachers more. 

“It’s really nice to see the way they learn,” Meza said. “It always amazes me the way that I can see my son learning every day. They have so much fun, and the teachers are really awesome. Getting to connect with them is so nice.”

Schools across the district are currently welcoming community volunteers. If you would like to volunteer at one of our schools, visit our volunteer opportunities page.