Merion Mercy Celebrates Dr. Martin Luther King with a Day of Service

On Saturday, January 25, 2025, 32 members of the Merion Mercy Academy community joined together for a day of service in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. “Light for Justice” included a candlelight vigil led by Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Coordinator Taylor Stokes and Alumnae Relations Coordinator Barabara Harrison, followed by a service project and a lesson about Dr. King for younger attendees. Helping to organize this special event were alumnae Lauren Riley Hopkins ‘99 and Colleen Fitzpatrick Markey ‘83.

The service project involved making snack and outreach bags with breakfast items and toiletries to be distributed to children at the local community kitchen and people experiencing homelessness. Merion Mercy partnered with the Community Food Program within the Nutritional Development Program in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Together, our community of alumnae, students, parents, faculty, and staff created more than 150 bags, which younger children decorated and wrote notes for. Older children organized the supplies. 

“It’s a great way to celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King’s legacy of service,” said Markey. In fact, Dr. King is quoted as saying, “Everybody can be great, because everybody can serve.” Hopkins added, “Service means helping others; it’s the spirit of Mercy.”

Stokes explained, "Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s vision of a beloved community rooted in love, justice, and equality mirrors our mission at Merion. Just as Dr. King inspired change, so did two sisters of Mercy; Sisters Mary Charlene Curl and Mary Aloysius Warnock, who stood with him during the Selma March in 1968. Their courage and dedication remind us that service is not only about what we do but how we do it.”