Community members celebrated activist Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and worked on service projects during the Evanston Public Library’s MLK Day of Celebration and Service on Monday.

Kids made bracelets and cards for children at the Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago and Ronald McDonald House Charities through the Dragonfly Foundation. They also learned about King’s life through videos, “Martin’s Big Words” and “March On!” 

The event was one of the library’s multiple volunteer-focused MLK Day celebrations. 

“There’s a lot to be learned from (King),” said Laura Florian, the event’s organizer. “We can all do a lot better than what we’ve done. It is a good reminder every year to think about who’s come before, what they’ve tried to do and what we can add to that.”

To end the day, Rev. Eddie Reeves delivered an interpretation of King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. He has performed the address for over 50 years, beginning when he was 13 years old, and said he has seen countless people be moved to tears upon hearing it. 

“When I bring it to life, people understand the message a lot better,” Reeves said. “The act of having it done live and in person makes an impression on people.”

Florian said she hoped families learned more about King through the event. She believes repetition of information, in addition to the differing forms of delivery, could have a lasting impact on people. 

Florian has spoken with kids who say they are familiar with King but have noticed gaps in their knowledge. The event sought to fill some of those voids, she said.

“I hope the kids are introspective a little bit,” Florian said. “They have the capacity to think about what would be wonderful in the world… It’s like, what can you offer as a kid? You could do a lot.”

Annie Haberl, 9, visited Monday’s event with her parents and made courage bracelets. She attends the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Literary and Fine Arts School and said her school has an annual assembly about King. 

Haberl also said she has learned more about King’s life by reading books.

“[The bracelets] are for children who are sick, and their lives are probably hard right now,” Haberl said. “I wanted to make them because I wanted something that makes them smile.” 

Florian said the service project is a somewhat new event — the library had not hosted it before 2024. She found it challenging to create a task that kids would grasp but decided on the courage bracelets and cards after seeing them at another event. 

Florian said Evanston is a divided community but hopes those divisions will be bridged. She believes King’s remarks could matter in making that happen. 

“There’s always hope in this community,” Florian said. 

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