Rock Creek Park, in partnership with Rock Creek Conservancy will host the 12th annual MLK Weekend of Service in honor of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his legacy of community action. With service events planned at Rock Creek Park and throughout the Rock Creek watershed, we invite our neighbors to join us and help their communities by picking up litter and removing invasive species from our beloved public green spaces!
“MLK Weekend of Service is the perfect way to start the new year and honor Dr. King’s legacy: people-powered restoration improves the climate resilience of our region by freeing trees of invasive vines - and these activities strengthen our social resilience by expressing our shared values and love of Rock Creek," noted Conservancy Executive Director Jeanne Braha. “This people-powered restoration work is a great opportunity to make a difference locally."
"Rock Creek Park is excited to welcome volunteers back for the 12th annual Weekend of Service," Julia Washburn, Rock Creek Park superintendent, said. "We hope the local community will join us as we protect the waterways both here and downstream and maintain our park’s natural ecosystem."
Service events will take place Saturday, Jan. 15, through Monday, Jan. 17, with several opportunities for community members to get involved throughout the watershed. All events include COVID-19 safety protocols, including limits to volunteer group sizes.
In addition to in-person service events throughout the watershed, volunteers are also encouraged to complete individual cleanups or take the English Ivy Pledge on their own time and with their friends or family. These options can take place at home, helping to protect the park from the outside in, and allow everyone to be a Rock Creek steward, regardless of availability.
Every year, thousands of volunteers help protect and restore parklands along the 33-mile length of Rock Creek and its tributaries. This service improves Rock Creek Park for wildlife, plants and visitors, and reduces our impact downstream. Left uncollected, plastic bags and other litter make their way down Rock Creek and into the Potomac River, drift to the Chesapeake Bay and ultimately end up in the ocean. Invasive plants, like [examples], take over the forest and choke out native species that are vital to the park’s ecosystem.
Visit the Rock Creek Conservancy's MLK Weekend event site --https://www.rockcreekconservancy.org/mlk-weekend-of-service -- for details on volunteer activities, registration details, and how to get more involved as a Rock Creek steward.
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
